Ten million pieces of COVID-19 testing equipment are being sent directly to home health and hospice providers, rather than to state governments, by the Department of Health and Human Services.
HHS will send another 140 million units to healthcare organizations, historically black colleges, state governments and other institutions. All are rapid-results tests developed by Abbott Laboratories.
“If you’re looking to contain the spread, you want to take a look at folks who are going from home to home. That would be the hospice, home health and home care workforce,” explained Edo Banach, president and CEO of the National Hospice & Palliative Care Organization.
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services’ recent ruling requires hospice staff and others who need access to nursing homes to be tested regularly in order to enter those facilities.
