Next Steps for Vaccination. Today, Governor Mike DeWine spent a portion of his press conference outlining the state's planned "maintenance" program for congregate settings that participated in the Pharmacy Partnership for Long-Term Care stands. As stated in the release summarizing the press conference:

Governor DeWine announced that Ohio's maintenance COVID-19 vaccine program plan to ensure residents and staff within nursing homes and assisted living facilities have continuing access to the life-saving vaccine is nearly complete. The plan will outline how nursing homes and assisted living facilities will move forward to vaccinate new residents, new workers, and workers who initially declined the vaccine but are now willing to be vaccinated. The plan will leverage existing relationships between nursing homes, assisted living facilities, and the pharmacies that regularly provide them with prescription drugs.

In a briefing before the press conference, Director of Aging Ursel McElroy explained that the state intends to dedicate part of its vaccine allocation to the pharmacies on an ongoing basis. She envisions three pathways from which pharmacies and facilities can choose:

1. The pharmacy stores the vaccine, distributes it, administers it, and reports the vaccinations.
2. The pharmacy stores and distributes the vaccine, the facility administers it, and the pharmacy reports.
3. The pharmacy stores and distributes the vaccine, and the facility administers it and does the reporting.

Next week, Director McElroy anticipates that the state will offer a webinar on the new program and begin allocating vaccine to the participating long-term care pharmacies.

As we reported in yesterday's COVID-19 Update, it is not clear which long-term care pharmacies are enrolled as vaccine providers, which is how they would participate in the maintenance distribution. OHCA is attempting to gather this information to assist members in navigating this program. We would appreciate your help in the following ways:

• If you are with a long-term care pharmacy, please let us know if your pharmacy is enrolled with the Health Department (ODH) as a vaccine provider or plans to enroll in the near future.
• If you are with a SNF or assisted living community, please inquire of your pharmacy if they are enrolled or plan to enroll and let us know the results.

Also on the vaccination topic, ODH circulated their latest edition of the Ohio Vaccine Preparedness Office Weekly Update.

Monoclonal Antibodies Simplified. A recent one-page piece in the Journal of the American Medical Association on monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) explains the treatment for patients in understandable terms. It may be useful for residents, families, staff, or others who need clear information about mAbs.

Report on Federal Stimulus Legislation (from ANCOR's Shannon McCracken). This week, as the Senate turns to the second Impeachment Trial of Donald Trump, the House committees will begin to markup their respective pieces of the $1.9 trillion COVID-19 relief package. Last week, the House and Senate passed a budget resolution to lay the groundwork for the reconciliation process. This will allow Democrats to pass the relief package with just a simple majority vote in the Senate, instead of the 60 votes required for most legislation. Democrats are aiming to give President Biden a package by mid-March, prior to the expiration of the additional COVID-19 unemployment benefits. These markups are the first time we are seeing legislative text relating to the COVID-19 relief package.

As it relates to healthcare, the House Education and Labor Committee will markup its pieces of the reconciliation package today beginning at 3pm. The committee has released legislative proposals, an amendment in the nature of substitute, a fact sheet, and section-by-section summary. Of note, the $15 minimum wage provision will be reviewed by this Committee.

Wednesday through Friday, the House Ways and Means committee will markup its pieces of the reconciliation package. The legislative proposals that will be marked up can be found here [scroll to bottom of page]. The Ways and Means portion represents $941 billion of the $1.9 trillion package, and includes premium assistance for COBRA coverage, extension of tax credits for plan premiums purchased through the Marketplace, and funding for infection control support and "strike teams" for skilled nursing facilities.

The Energy and Commerce Committee is expected to hold its markup on Thursday, but that has not formally been announced. This Committee will have the most healthcare related provisions.

During all of the markups we expect that there will be a significant number of amendments that will force members to vote on various policies. However, the version that the Senate votes on is most likely to become law, so the language that is marked up today is not final. For further clarification on Senator Ernst's amendment to the minimum wage bill we reported on last Friday, please note that it is advisory and non-binding on committees. We will continue to keep you updated throughout the process.