US · guidance
CMS SOM App. J, Tag W445
(i) Actually evacuate clients during at least one drill each year on each shift;
Guidance §483.470(i)(2)(i)
All clients totally evacuate the building at least once per year per shift, regardless of the
occupancy chapter under which the building falls.
All facilities, regardless of their size require actual evacuation. "Actually evacuate", as used in
this standard, applies to all clients. The drills are conducted not only to rehearse the clients and
staff for a fire emergency (see §483.470(i)(2)(v)), but for other disasters such as hurricanes,
tornadoes, floods, etc. Such disasters would require the entire occupancy to be evacuated, and,
therefore, the actual evacuation must be practiced, as required.
History
Rev. 135, Issued: 02-27-15, Effective: 04-27-15, Implementation: 04-27-15
Provenance
- Source
- cms.gov
- Retrieved
- 2026-07-22
- Edition
- som-2026-07-22
- Content hash
067b6c2fdce3d47a6c6fcf54d22beb53b8316f10d6e84fa07eda960c35f3f7db
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