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The Joint Commission Standards Revision Process

The Joint Commission (JC) has proposed changes to the Environment of Care (EC) Standards. ASHE has submitted comments to the Joint Commission on these proposed changes. In addition, many ASHE members have taken the opportunity to comment. The official comment period ended November 1. The Joint Commission has closed their website where comments can be submitted.

ASHE received word that several hospitals were in the Emergency Management mode during the comment period due to wild fires and did not have the opportunity to comment. If you did not comment during the comment period, you are encouraged to still communicate your comments to the Joint Commission. 

As part of JC’s Standards Improvement Initiative, revisions are being made to each standard and element of performance (EP) as well as the rational for standards. In announcing the public review period, JC has stated that “No new standards requirements were introduced in this initiative; the field will not experience an increase in expectations as a result of these revisions.”

ASHE appreciates JC’s efforts to simplify and bring increased clarity to the standards as well as the opportunity to comment on the proposed changes.  The ASHE Advocacy team has reviewed the proposed changes to the EC standards, and believes that there have been many improvements, and some duplication has been eliminated. However, there are instances where the efforts to simplify and bring clarity have actually created greater ambiguity and increased compliance expectations.

The Proposed EC Standards
Click on the following to access documents outlining the proposed EC standards:

ASHE Comments on the Proposed Revised Standards
Following is ASHE’s response to specific proposed revision: