CMS changes certain Life Safety Code requirements, effective immediately
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) issued a memorandum allowing hospitals and nursing homes to comply with certain sections of the National Fire Protection Agency’s (NFPA) 2012 edition of the Life Safety Code® (LSC).
The CMS policy regarding Capacity of the Means of Egress; Cooking Facilities; Heating, Ventilating, and Air Conditioning; and Furnishings, Mattresses, and Decorations, has changed. These changes will:
- increase the amount of wall space that may be covered by combustible decorations;
- permit gas fireplaces in common areas;
- permit permanent seating groupings of furniture in corridors;
- allow kitchens, serving less than 30 residents, to be open to corridors as long as they are contained within smoke compartments.
The changes, which are meant for facilities to be able to give patients and residents a better quality of life and more autonomy, seem as if they are geared toward nursing home facilities. New and existing health care occupancies can submit a waiver to CMS for compliance with the new changes.
For more details about which LSC standard sections CMS will consider waivers for, read the official CMS Memorandum here.