The Wisconsin Department of Health Services (DHS) is pursuing several strategies simultaneously to assist acute care, skilled nursing, long term care, and assisted living facilities in mitigating volume surge challenges being experienced due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Effective October 4, 2021, DHS is offering facilities supplemental temporary agency staffing. DHS has established a stepwise process to request staffing services to assist with managing a facility’s staffing shortage this year.

Request Process to Obtain Temporary Agency Staffing Services

1. Acute care, skilled nursing, long term care, and assisted living facilities will submit an initial interest request to DHS Health Staffing to receive the Agreement to Participate in Wisconsin DHS Surge Staffing Service and the Facility Eligibility for Services Questionnaire.
2. Facilities will complete and return the Facility Eligibility for Services Questionnaire.
   • Please be as specific as possible in documenting what the facility has done to mitigate staffing shortages to date.
   • Note that the information collected on the Facility Eligibility for Service Questionnaire is for informational purposes only. Your answers will not disqualify you from participating in the Wisconsin DHS Agency Staffing Resource program.
3. After receiving the completed Facility Eligibility for Service Questionnaire, DHS will request that the facility submit a Scope of Work detailing the services requested. DHS will then match the requesting facility with an appropriate temporary agency staffing vendor.
4. While DHS will subsidize a percentage of the temporary agency staffing services, the facility will be responsible for reimbursing DHS for 40% of the facilities total temporary agency staffing costs.

For additional information, to submit a request, or to submit a question related to staffing assistance requests please contact DHS Health Staffing.