Notice: This CMS-approved document has been submitted - Philips ...

CMS-1403-FC
Therefore, we proposed that each rehabilitation agency
establish procedures to be followed by personnel in an
emergency that cover immediate care of the patient, persons
to be notified, and reports to be prepared.
The following is a summary of the comments received
concerning Emergency care and our responses.
Comment: Most commenters concurred with our proposed
changes to the emergency care standard. Specifically, the
commenters supported our proposed elimination of the
requirement that rehabilitation agencies retain a physician
on call for emergencies. The commenters cited difficulty
in recruiting physicians for this role, and stated that it
is often impractical to contact a physician in the rare
case of an emergency. One commenter also supported the
revisions to the emergency provisions because they allow
facilities to develop emergency care plans most appropriate
for an individual facility’s location and patient
population.
Response: We thank the commenters for their support,
and agree that these revisions will allow facilities to plan
for, and respond to, emergency care situations in
appropriate ways. As a result of the public comments, we
are finalizing the provision as proposed with slight non-
policy revisions for grammatical purposes. We are also
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