There is often confusion about the process to submit waiver and equivalency requests and how long approved ones are valid, according to an article on the FacilityCare website.
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) recently implemented changes on how the accreditation organizations processed waiver and equivalency requests.
In 2012 CMS notified Healthcare Facilities Accreditation Program (HFAP) that it can no longer approve equivalencies.
It wasn’t until July 2014, that CMS told The Joint Commission the same rules.