CMS Revises Surveyor Guidance on Advance Directives – F 155

CMS has issued S&C Memorandum 13-16-NF regarding advance directives.  Revisions have been made to guidance on F 155 in Appendix PP of the State Operations Manual and the associated training slides since the release of S&C 12-47 on September 27, 2012.  The revisions include:

o    Removal of the term "right to accept" when referring to medical and surgical treatment.
o    Addition of guidance specific to experimental research.
o    Clarification that §483.10(b)(8) applies only to adult residents and not all residents regardless of age.
o    Addition of definition for "Investigational or experimental drugs."
o    Updating the Investigative Protocol.
o    Updating the Power Point training slides/

To read the memo, see https://www.cms.gov/Medicare/Provider-Enrollment-and-Certification/SurveyCertificationGenInfo/Downloads/Survey-and-Cert-Letter-13-16.pdf.