When Gov. Ralph Northam allowed the Commonwealth of Virginia’s public health emergency (PHE) to expire on June 30, 2021, the expiration removed the authority the Virginia Board of Nursing (BON) had to accept applications for the temporary nurse aide to certified nursing assistant TNA2CNA test pathway. It is important to remember, however, that per QSO-21-17, CMS is not ending the current nurse aide waiver.

VHCA-VCAL has been discussing with policy makers whether the BON could be granted the authority to accept those applications to be deemed eligible to take the National Nurse Aide Assessment Program (NNAAP) examination through the 120 days after the expiration of the federal PHE or the CMS 1135 waiver, whichever date comes first.

In the QSO memo, CMS has recognized that time worked by nurse aides during the PHE may count towards meeting the federal 75-hour training requirement. CMS has also clarified that the four-month regulatory timeframe for completing the nurse aide training and competency evaluation requirements after hire will be reinstated when the blanket waiver ends and will start at that time. Nurse aides will have the full four-month period starting from the end of the blanket waiver to successfully complete the required training and certification, regardless of the amount of time worked during the time the waiver was in effect.

As described in this article, CMS could decide to phase out any of the 1135 waivers prior to the end of the federal PHE if it determines they are no longer needed, but the agency has not done so with the alternate nurse aide training pathway waiver.