As COVID-19 vaccines continue rolling out across the country, CMS is taking action to protect the health and safety of our nation’s patients and providers and keeping you updated on the latest COVID-19 resources from the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS).

With information coming from many different sources, CMS has up-to-date resources and materials to help you share important and relevant information on the COVID-19 vaccine with the people that you serve. You can find these and more resources on the COVID-19 Partner Resources Page and the HHS COVID Education Campaign page. We look forward to partnering with you to encourage our beneficiaries to get vaccinated when they have the opportunity. For more information, visit the CMS COVID-19 Policies and Guidance page.

VACCINES.GOV MAKING IT EASIER TO FIND VACCINES

Access to a vaccine should not be an obstacle for someone to get vaccinated. Here are three vaccine tools to bring to your communities right now:

1. Visit vaccines.gov (English) or vacunas.gov (Spanish) to search and find a vaccine near you.
2. Text GETVAX (438829) for English or VACUNA (822862) for Spanish to receive three vaccine sites on your phone within seconds.
3. Call the National COVID-19 Vaccination Assistance Hotline at 1-800-232-0233 for those who prefer to get information via phone call.

NEW COVID-19 RESOURCES: SPREAD THE WORD

COVID-19 Community Champions

On May 5, 2021, CMS debuted the first social media videos highlighting long-term care staff, also referred to as Community Champions, who moved from being initially uncertain about receiving the COVID-19 vaccine to accepting the vaccine– and encouraging their peers to do the same.

Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, staff in nursing homes have been providing ongoing care to our nation’s most vulnerable.  This social media campaign is intended to help increase vaccine acceptance amongst long-term care staff. Please like and share our Community Champions video:  https://youtu.be/k0WbAhveyDY  We can do this!

COVID-19 conference cards

Conference cards are available to order from the CMS Product Ordering web site in multiple languages. They can be found under the Featured Medicare button:

• Bring Your Medicare Card When You Get Your Covid-19 Vaccine
• Stay Protected from Covid-19 – Medicare Covers the Vaccine

Other Medicare publications are available to download in several languages here.  You can also find helpful tips on CMS product ordering here.

COVID-19-RELATED COVERAGE AND PAYMENT

HRSA COVID-19 Coverage Assistance Fund (CAF)

On May 3, 2021, HHS, through the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), announced a new program covering the cost of administering COVID-19 vaccines to patients enrolled in health plans that either do not cover vaccination fees or cover them with patient cost-sharing. This new program is called the HRSA COVID-19 Coverage Assistance Fund (CAF).

“After securing enough COVID-19 vaccines for all adults, the Biden-Harris Administration is elevating work to boost access to them,” said HHS Secretary Becerra. “We listened to our healthcare providers on the frontlines of the pandemic. On top of increasing reimbursement rates tied to administering the shots, we are closing the final payment gap that resulted as vaccines were administered to underinsured individuals. No healthcare provider should hesitate to deliver these critical vaccines to patients over reimbursement cost concerns.”

See the press release on this announcement here.

Learn more about CAF here. Also, see the CAF Fact Sheet and Frequently Asked Questions about the program.

Increased Medicare Payment for Administering Monoclonal Antibodies

CMS has increased Medicare payment for administering monoclonal antibodies to treat beneficiaries with COVID-19, continuing coverage under the Medicare Part B COVID-19 Vaccine Benefit. This means more providers and suppliers are readily able to administer these treatments. Beneficiaries are not responsible for any cost sharing, regardless of where the service is furnished – including in a physician’s office, other healthcare facility or at home.

The national average payment rate has increased from $310 to $450 for most health care providers. In support of providers’ efforts to prevent the spread of COVID-19, CMS will also establish a higher national payment rate of $750 for at-home monoclonal antibodies treatment.

See updated toolkits for providers, states and insurers to help the health care system swiftly administer monoclonal antibody treatment with these new Medicare payment rates, here.

In addition, CMS is updating coding resources for providers. More information can be found here.

For more information, visit www.cms.gov/covidvax.

New Funding for Rural Clinics and Hospitals

On May 4, HHS and HRSA announced new funding thanks to the American Rescue Plan to combat COVID-19 across the country. Rural clinics and hospitals will receive nearly $1 billion dollars to strengthen COVID-19 response efforts and increase vaccinations in rural communities, and approximately $250 million will be awarded to develop and support a community-based workforce who will serve as trusted voices sharing information about vaccines, work to increase COVID-19 vaccine confidence, and address any barriers to vaccination for individuals living in vulnerable and medically underserved communities.

The HHS press release on rural clinics and hospitals funding can be found here.  Visit: https://www.hhs.gov/about/news/2021/05/04/hhs-announces-nearly-1-billion-from-american-rescue-plan-for-rural-covid-19-response.html

The HHS press release on community-based workforce funding can be found here.

STAY CONNECTED

Join the We Can Do This Community Corps: Help in the fight against COVID-19 by encouraging family, friends, and your community to get vaccinated. Join the Community Corps to get tips, tools and resources to share.  See https://wecandothis.hhs.gov/covidcommunitycorps

For more information, please contact us:  Partnership@cms.hhs.gov

COVID-19 vaccines are new, and it’s normal for people to have questions about them. The sheer amount of information—and misinformation—about COVID-19 vaccines can be overwhelming to anyone. You can help by listening without judgement and identifying the root of their concerns. Acknowledge their emotions so they know they have been heard. Ask open-ended questions to explore their concerns, ask permission to share information, and help them find their own reason to get vaccinated.

Click here for more information and resources.

CMS would like to make you aware that the federally supported website that makes it easier for individuals to access COVID-19 vaccines is now live. Vaccines.gov – powered by the trusted VaccineFinder brand – is available in English and Spanish, with high accessibility standard, and will help connect Americans with locations offering vaccines near them. In addition to the website, people in the U.S. are also now able to utilize a text message service, available in both English and Spanish. People can text their ZIP code to 438829 (GETVAX) and 822862 (VACUNA) to find three locations nearby that have vaccines available.

Vaccines.gov is meant to complement the number of state and pharmacy websites that have been successfully connecting many Americans with vaccinations, by providing a unified federal resource for Americans to use no matter where they are.

In addition to the website and text messaging service, the National COVID-19 Vaccination Assistance Hotline is now available to help those who prefer to get information by phone on where to get a vaccine. Call 1-800-232-0233 to find a location near you.

Research from the Foundation for Rural Service underscores the transformative role broadband played in rural America during the Pandemic and looks into increasing demand for what has become a fundamental service.

by Stephen V. Smith, May 7, 2021

The optimism that naturally accompanies the start of a new decade was met with a series of challenges as 2020 unfolded. The coronavirus pandemic was chief among these, creating a public health crisis, economic hardship, and social unrest.

Broadband was the technology that ran like a thread through efforts to combat these challenges.

A new white paper published by the Foundation for Rural Service, “Broadband Today: Rural America’s Critical Connection,” examined the role of broadband in responding to the pandemic.

“Never before has reliable access to high-speed internet been as important as it has been during the Covid-19 pandemic,” said FRS Executive Director Pam Becker.“Broadband connects us to our work, education, health care, government programs, and — most importantly — one another. This report examines the necessary benefits broadband access has provided to rural Americans throughout the pandemic and what more can be done to ensure sustainable, affordable networks for all going forward.”

The report found a 40% uptick in broadband usage between the end of 2019 and 2020. According to the research, rural networks were able to function well due to investments thanks to recent investments by local providers and an increase in the “fiber-to-the-home penetration.”

The report estimated that around 30% of the modern workforce could be working from home multiple days a week by as soon as the end of 2021, creating a permanent demand for higher speeds and upload capacity.

Read more.

by Liz Carey, May 6, 2021

Health care providers and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) are trying novel ways to get as many residents vaccinated as possible.

As part of that effort, the CDC recently reached out to extension agencies and other trusted rural community resources to get factual vaccination information into communities.

Called the Extension Collaborative on Immunization Teaching and Engagement (EXCITE), the program provides extension agencies with grants to promote Covid-19 vaccination information.

“The overall goal of this great collaborative effort is to create a precision immunization program based on needs assessments and local partnerships, and then to provide immunization education and linkages to immunization opportunities for the most socially vulnerable audiences,” said Alexi Piasecki, with the CDC Vaccine Task Force. “This will be done through building trust, empowering health care personnel and engaging with communities and individuals.”

The five-year, $9.9 million program is a collaborative effort between the U.S. Department of Agriculture National Institute of Food and Agriculture and the CDC and uses the Cooperative Extension System to reach out to rural and medically underserved communities.

Read more.

By Tim Murphy and Tim Marema

The number of new Covid-related deaths increased last week by 14%. Urban areas saw an increase of only 1%.
Read more

To reinforce the association’s dedication to health equity, The National Rural Health Association (NRHA) has recently joined several national coalitions aimed at communicating vaccine safety and efficacy. HHS’ COVID-19 Community Corps aims to establish a network of trusted voices to promote vaccines. The Made to Save Coalition is a public education and grassroots effort to increase vaccine access in communities of color. And the COVID-19 Vaccine Education and Equity Project includes resources to reach a variety of populations. Bookmark NRHA’s COVID resources page to find rural-relevant resources all in one place.