CMS recently released the final edition of its fire safety requirements for health care facilities. | Courtesy of Shutterstock
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Amanda Rupp | May 4, 2016

CMS releases finalized fire safety requirements for health care facilities

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) recently released its final rule concerning fire protection guidelines, which will update the fire protection guidelines at several health care facilities.

The goal of the guidelines is to improve the protection that is offered to patients who have Medicare and who live in facilities. CMS is using this opportunity to improve the safety and health of all of its families, patients and staff members throughout the U.S.

The new guidelines will also be implemented in long term care (LTC) facilities, hospitals, inpatient hospice facilities, critical access hospitals (CAHs), religious non-medical health care institutions (RNHCI), programs for all inclusive care for the elderly (PACE), ambulatory surgical centers (ASCs) and intermediate care facilities for individuals and intellectual disabilities (ICF-IID).

“This final rule meets health care facilities’ desire to modernize their environments while also ensuring the necessary steps to provide patients and staff with the appropriate level of safety,” Kate Goodrich, director of the Center for Clinical Standards and Quality, CMS, said. “Health care facilities can now be more home-like while ensuring that the most modern fire protection practices are in place.”

The rule accepts updated provisions from the 2012 edition of the Life Safety Code from the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA). The new guidelines also include the Health Care Facilities Code 2012 edition from the NFPA.

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