SMQT Emergency Preparedness (Appendix Z) 2 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Which four core elements form the framework of the CMS Emergency Preparedness rule in Appendix Z?
- Risk assessment and planning, policies and procedures, communication plan, training and testing (Correct answer)
- Hazard mitigation, evacuation routes, generator testing, staffing ratios
- Incident command, triage, decontamination, recovery
- Fire safety, infection control, security, utility management
Correct answer: Risk assessment and planning, policies and procedures, communication plan, training and testing
Appendix Z is built on emergency planning based on a risk assessment, policies and procedures, a communication plan, and training and testing.
Question 2: What approach must a facility's risk assessment use under Appendix Z?
- A fire-only approach
- An all-hazards approach covering facility-based and community-based risks (Correct answer)
- A single worst-case scenario approach
- An approach limited to natural disasters in the past 5 years
Correct answer: An all-hazards approach covering facility-based and community-based risks
CMS requires a documented, facility-based and community-based risk assessment using an all-hazards approach.
Question 3: In 2019 interpretive guidance, CMS clarified that the all-hazards approach should also include which hazard?
- Cybersecurity breaches only
- Workplace violence only
- Emerging infectious diseases (Correct answer)
- Labor strikes
Correct answer: Emerging infectious diseases
CMS updated the guidance to state that emerging infectious diseases (e.g., Ebola, influenza) belong in all-hazards planning.
Question 4: A surveyor finds that a hospital's emergency plan was reviewed 30 months ago. Under the 2019 burden-reduction rule, what is the hospital's required review frequency?
- Every 6 months
- Annually
- Every 3 years
- At least every 2 years (Correct answer)
Correct answer: At least every 2 years
Since 2019, most providers including hospitals review the plan at least every 2 years, so a 30-month gap is noncompliant.
Question 5: Which provider type must still review its emergency program annually after the 2019 rule changes?
- Long-term care facilities (Correct answer)
- Rural health clinics
- Home health agencies
- Ambulatory surgical centers
Correct answer: Long-term care facilities
CMS kept the annual review requirement for long-term care facilities.
Question 6: Policies and procedures for hospitals, CAHs, and LTC facilities must address subsistence needs for staff and patients. Which item is included?
- Recreational supplies for residents
- Food, water, medical and pharmaceutical supplies (Correct answer)
- Staff parking arrangements
- Visitor badges
Correct answer: Food, water, medical and pharmaceutical supplies
Subsistence needs include food, water, and medical and pharmaceutical supplies, whether patients evacuate or shelter in place.
Question 7: Which of the following is an example of an alternate energy need that hospital policies must address?
- Cell phone charging for visitors
- Powering the gift shop
- Maintaining temperatures to protect patient health and safety (Correct answer)
- Electric vehicle charging stations
Correct answer: Maintaining temperatures to protect patient health and safety
Policies must address alternate energy sources for temperature control, emergency lighting, fire detection, and sewage and waste disposal.
