Senate Bill sb0296c2

CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.
    Florida Senate - 2003                     CS for CS for SB 296

    By the Committees on Banking and Insurance; Health, Aging, and
    Long-Term Care; and Senator Saunders




    311-1931-03

  1                      A bill to be entitled

  2         An act relating to retirement communities;

  3         amending s. 400.235, F.S., relating to the Gold

  4         Seal Program; amending standards for evidence

  5         of financial soundness and stability of certain

  6         nursing home facilities; amending s. 400.141,

  7         F.S.; amending prerequisites that certain

  8         nursing homes must fulfill to qualify for

  9         sharing programming and staff with other

10         entities that are part of a retirement

11         community; authorizing the Agency for Health

12         Care Administration to adopt rules; amending

13         ss. 651.081, 651.085, F.S.; providing for the

14         establishment of a residents' organization;

15         providing for the purposes of such an

16         organization; requiring notice of a meeting or

17         ballot election to select a designated

18         representative to represent a residents'

19         organization before the governing body of a

20         continuing care provider; providing an

21         effective date.

22  

23  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:

24  

25         Section 1.  Paragraph (b) of subsection (5) of section

26  400.235, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:

27         400.235  Nursing home quality and licensure status;

28  Gold Seal Program.--

29         (5)  Facilities must meet the following additional

30  criteria for recognition as a Gold Seal Program facility:

31  

                                  1

CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.






    Florida Senate - 2003                     CS for CS for SB 296
    311-1931-03




 1         (b)  Evidence financial soundness and stability

 2  according to standards adopted by the agency in administrative

 3  rule. A nursing home that is part of the same corporate entity

 4  as a continuing care facility licensed under chapter 651 which

 5  meets the minimum liquid reserve requirements specified in s.

 6  651.035 and is accredited by a recognized accrediting

 7  organization under s. 651.028 and rules of the Office of

 8  Insurance Regulation satisfies this requirement as long as the

 9  accreditation is not provisional.

10  

11  A facility assigned a conditional licensure status may not

12  qualify for consideration for the Gold Seal Program until

13  after it has operated for 30 months with no class I or class

14  II deficiencies and has completed a regularly scheduled

15  relicensure survey.

16         Section 2.  Subsection (7) of section 400.141, Florida

17  Statutes, is amended to read:

18         400.141  Administration and management of nursing home

19  facilities.--Every licensed facility shall comply with all

20  applicable standards and rules of the agency and shall:

21         (7)  If the facility has a standard license licensure

22  status or is a Gold Seal facility, exceeds the minimum

23  required hours of licensed nursing and certified nursing

24  assistant direct care per resident per day staffing standards,

25  and is part of a continuing care facility licensed under

26  chapter 651 or a retirement community that offers other

27  services pursuant to part III, part IV, or part V on a single

28  campus, be allowed to share programming and staff.  At the

29  time of inspection and in the semiannual report required

30  pursuant to s. 400.141(15) relicensure, a continuing care

31  facility or retirement community that uses this option must

                                  2

CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.






    Florida Senate - 2003                     CS for CS for SB 296
    311-1931-03




 1  demonstrate through staffing records that minimum staffing

 2  requirements for the facility were met exceeded. Licensed

 3  nurses and certified nursing assistants who work in the

 4  nursing home facility may be used to provide services

 5  elsewhere on campus if the facility exceeds the minimum number

 6  of direct care hours required per resident per day and the

 7  total number of residents receiving direct care services from

 8  a licensed nurse or a certified nursing assistant does not

 9  cause the facility to violate the staffing ratios required

10  under s. 400.23(3)(a). Compliance with the minimum staffing

11  ratios shall be based on total number of residents receiving

12  direct care services, regardless of where they reside on

13  campus. If the facility receives a conditional license, it may

14  not share staff until the conditional license status ends.

15  This subsection does not restrict the agency's authority under

16  federal or state law to require additional staff if a facility

17  is cited for deficiencies in care which are caused by an

18  insufficient number of certified nursing assistants or

19  licensed nurses. The agency may adopt rules for the

20  documentation necessary to determine compliance with this

21  provision.

22         Section 3.  Section 651.081, Florida Statutes, is

23  amended to read:

24         651.081  Continuing care facilities residents'

25  organizations.--

26         (1)  Residents living in a facility holding a valid

27  certificate of authority under this chapter have the right of

28  self-organization, the right to be represented by an

29  individual of their own choosing, and the right to engage in

30  concerted activities for the purpose of keeping informed on

31  

                                  3

CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.






    Florida Senate - 2003                     CS for CS for SB 296
    311-1931-03




 1  the operation of the facility which is caring for them or for

 2  the purpose of other mutual aid or protection.

 3         (2)  A residents' organization created for the purpose

 4  of representing residents on matters set forth in s. 651.085

 5  may be established through an election in which the residents,

 6  as defined in this chapter, vote by ballot, either physically

 7  or by proxy. If the election is to be held during a meeting, a

 8  notice of the organizational meeting must be provided to all

 9  residents of the community at least 10 business days before

10  the meeting. Notice may be given through internal mailboxes,

11  communitywide newsletters, bulletin boards, in-house

12  television stations, and other similar means of communication.

13  An election for creating a residents' organization is valid if

14  at least 40 percent of the total resident population

15  participates in the election and a majority of the

16  participants vote affirmatively for the organization. The

17  initial residents' organization created under this section is

18  valid for at least 12 months. If the facility has a residents'

19  association, residents' council, or similarly organized body

20  with bylaws and elected officials, such organization must be

21  recognized as the residents' organization under this section

22  and s. 651.085. There shall be only one residents'

23  organization to represent residents before the governing body

24  of the provider as described in s. 651.085(2).

25         Section 4.  Subsection (2) of section 651.085, Florida

26  Statutes, is amended to read:

27         651.085  Quarterly meetings between residents and the

28  governing body of the provider; resident representation before

29  the governing body of the provider.--

30         (2)  A residents' organization formed pursuant to s.

31  651.081, members of which are elected by the residents, may

                                  4

CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.






    Florida Senate - 2003                     CS for CS for SB 296
    311-1931-03




 1  designate a resident to represent them before the governing

 2  body of the provider or organize a meeting or ballot election

 3  of the majority of the residents of the facility to determine

 4  whether to elect a resident to represent them before the

 5  governing body of the provider.  If a no residents'

 6  organization as described in s. 651.081 does not exist exists,

 7  any resident may organize a meeting or ballot election of the

 8  majority of the residents of the facility to determine whether

 9  to elect a resident to represent them before the governing

10  body and, if applicable, elect the representative.  The

11  residents' organization, or the resident that organizes

12  convenes a meeting or ballot election of residents to make the

13  determination or elect a representative, shall give all

14  residents of the facility notice at least 10 business days

15  before the meeting or election 7 days' notice in a conspicuous

16  place at the facility. Notice may be given through internal

17  mailboxes, communitywide newsletters, bulletin boards,

18  in-house television stations, and other similar means of

19  communication. An election of the representative is valid if

20  at least 40 percent of the total resident population

21  participates in the election and a majority of the

22  participants vote affirmatively for the representative. The

23  initial designated representative elected under this section

24  shall be elected to serve for a period of at least 12 months.

25         Section 5.  This act shall take effect upon becoming a

26  law.

27  

28  

29  

30  

31  

                                  5

CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.






    Florida Senate - 2003                     CS for CS for SB 296
    311-1931-03




 1          STATEMENT OF SUBSTANTIAL CHANGES CONTAINED IN
                       COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR
 2                          CS for SB 296

 3                                 

 4  The Committee Substitute provides the following changes:

 5  1.   Clarifies the circumstances under which a continuing care
         facility or retirement community may use direct care
 6       staff from nursing homes to serve residents who live
         elsewhere on campus if the staffing exceeds the minimum
 7       requirements.

 8  2.   Requires retirement communities that use shared staffing
         to report and demonstrate compliance with staffing
 9       requirements at the time of inspection and in the
         semiannual report, rather than at relicensure.
10  
    3.   Authorizes the Agency for Health Care Administration to
11       adopt rules for the documentation necessary to determine
         compliance with the staffing requirements.
12  

13  

14  

15  

16  

17  

18  

19  

20  

21  

22  

23  

24  

25  

26  

27  

28  

29  

30  

31  

                                  6

CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.