Amid the growing COVID-19 pandemic, many hospitals and physician practices have been forced to lay off non-clinical staff. According to a survey conducted by MGMA, 48% of physician practices had furloughed staff and 22% had laid off some staff. The list of hospitals reporting furloughs/layoffs has grown to over 100, reports Becker's Healthcare.  

As COVID-19 spreads throughout the U.S., MSPs face unique challenges to support their practitioners and keep patients safe. In response, we’ve launched an Acute Care Coronavirus response page that provides resources and solutions for hospitals and health systems as they navigate COVID-19. You can also visit our forum dedicated to COVID-19 discussions to ask your questions and share best practices with your colleagues

One of the recent 1135 waivers issued by CMS due to the COVID-19 pandemic allows for hospitals to screen patients at a location offsite from the hospital’s campus to prevent the spread of COVID-19. Under normal circumstances, this would be a violation of the Emergency Treatment & Labor Act (EMTALA). 

The development of EMTALA compliance checklists and audit tools are important first steps for hospitals to initiate self-monitoring for compliance. Ongoing education and training is also essential. This EMTALA fact sheet is distributed by the HealthAlliance Hospital in Kingston, New York with initial medical staff application packets. It can also be combined with a post-test at the time of reappointment to ensure practitioners continue to be mindful of the requirements under EMTALA.

The role of a physician assistant (PA) has historically been one of a “dependent practitioner” requiring close physician supervision, which included co-signatures, chart review requirements, co-locating physicians on-site where PAs deliver care, and limiting a PA’s scope of practice. The trend in state regulatory laws, however, has been moving toward more remote supervision of PAs and fewer oversight requirements of PA clinical practice.