The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services has added nursing home COVID-19 booster vaccination data to its Medicare.gov Care Compare website as part of its effort to help keep facility vaccination coverage strong, the agency said Wednesday.
CMS began posting primary vaccination rates on the Care Compare site in June. The newly added data shows resident and staff booster vaccination rates at the facility level — including national and state averages — displayed alongside other COVID-19 vaccination data.
Nursing facility residents now have about the same rate of COVID-19 booster shot vaccine coverage as the national average for adults aged 65 and older, CMS reported. As of Jan. 30, the rate for residents was 68.4%, according to analysis by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
But booster vaccination rates among nursing home staff (33.7% as of Jan. 30) continue to trail the national average of American adults, CMS added.
CMS is urging long-term care facility operators to communicate with fully vaccinated residents and staff members about staying up-to-date with their COVID-19 jabs.
“By posting these data, CMS is highlighting this information for the public and other stakeholders to help increase the number of nursing home residents and staff who obtain a booster shot,” it said in a statement.
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