Infection Prevention News 2026Jan08

LeadingAge to HHS: Revise COVID Guidelines for Healthcare Settings

LeadingAge sent a letter to Department of Health & Human Services (HHS) Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. on December 23 urging the Secretary to take immediate action to empower the Centers for Disease Control & Prevention (CDC) to update COVID guidelines for healthcare settings, including guidelines for patient/resident isolation and return-to-work guidelines for healthcare personnel. This letter is the latest in many previous actions taken by LeadingAge to highlight this issue, including both written advocacy and discussions with both CDC and the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS). LeadingAge pointed out that healthcare setting recommendations have not been updated since the end of the public health emergency and remain inconsistent with current general public health guidance. This discrepancy places unnecessary restrictions on older adults in nursing homes, solely because of their living situation.  LeadingAge will continue to press for updates to these recommendations, which are enforced by CMS as accepted national standards.