Providence Memorial Hospital, the El Paso-based hospital where more than 750 babies and dozens of employees were exposed to tuberculosis earlier this month, is in "immediate jeopardy" status with CMS.
CMS cited the hospital for non-compliance in areas like infection control, patients' rights and governing, and sent a warning Sept. 18 saying the violations were "immediate jeopardy to patient health and safety," according to an El Paso Times report.
According to CMS, immediate jeopardy is "a situation in which the provider's noncompliance with one or more requirements of participation has caused, or is likely to cause, serious injury, harm, impairment, or death of a resident." If a correction plan is not filed by the hospital and accepted by CMS, a hospital in this status could lose its certification for Medicare and Medicaid reimbursement.
Providence Memorial submitted a correction plan to CMS Sept. 23.
"When regulatory agencies see something like this where there's an exposure, there's a lot of concern and there should be," the hospital's CEO, Eric Evans, told KVIA. "What I can tell you is we believe we have a very comprehensive action plan, we believe that the steps we have taken make our hospital safe. We expect, fully anticipate, that CMS will accept our action plan."