NHSN Up To Date Changes Coming September 26th: (SNF)

Changes are coming to the surveillance definition of “Up to Date” in National Healthcare Safety Network (NHSN) reporting at the end of this month. Be advised this change is for reporting purposes only and does not apply to regulatory guidance issued by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS).

NHSN’s surveillance definition of up to date for COVID-19 vaccination data is based on the Center For Disease Control & Prevention (CDC) clinical considerations and up to date definition for the first day of the reporting quarter. The new definition of up to date that incorporates the updated (bivalent) booster doses will be applied on the first day of the next reporting quarter, which begins the week of September 26 – October 2, 2022.

NHSN must be able to standardize criteria and apply these definitions in a consistent manner; therefore, for the purpose of surveillance tracking, the NHSN surveillance definition must remain stable for a reporting quarter and will not be updated until the following quarter even if CDC’s clinical considerations and up to date definition change.

Please refer to COVID-19 Vaccination Modules: Understanding Key Terms for definitions of key terms related to COVID-19 vaccination for the purpose of NHSN public health surveillance. This document will be updated in the coming weeks to reflect the updated definition that will be applied beginning September 26 – October 2.