Waiving Medicaid Regulations During a Public Health Crisis: Identifying Heterogeneous Effects of Suspending Pre-Admission Screening Requirements on COVID-19 Deaths

Abstract

Background: During the COVID-19 Public Health Emergency, states were authorized to waive Pre-Admission Screening Resident Review (PASRR), a federal regulation requiring all individuals be evaluated before admission into a federally qualified nursing facility. We suspect states waived PASRR to reallocate resources from admission towards infection control and outbreak mitigation. However, by waiving PASRR and fast-tracking admissions, vulnerable elders may have been exposed to COVID-19 and unexpectedly placed at substantial risk for increased morbidity. Methodology: We reviewed all COVID-19 Medicaid emergency waiver requests to identify states waiving PASRR. We then analyzed daily, state-level COVID-19 deaths with a panel regression model, controlling for state and time fixed effects, and daily case rates. Finally, we expanded the model to identify heterogeneous effects shaped by market and administrative oversight factors. Results: Suspending PASRR led to significant declines in state COVID-19 deaths (–2.3 deaths per 100,000 population, p < 0.001). However, the effect waiving PASRR varied by excess nursing bed capacity (7.3 deaths per 100,000 population, p = 0.024) and historical PASRR deficiencies (0.9 deaths per 100,000, p = 0.009). Implications: Within the first month of the COVID-19 emergency invocation, nearly all states suspended PASRR, which our estimates suggest averted 7,600 deaths nationwide. However, we found that greater pre-emergency bed availability and less administrative oversight may have reduced the effectiveness of a PASRR waiver. While future research should aim to understand the mechanisms for such heterogeneity, immediate concerns relate to the variation, both between and within states, for adhering to a critical regulation protecting older adults. © 2022 The Author(s).