Enrolled HB 511: Relating to the certificate of need program for health care facilities; and providing for an effective date.
00Enrolled HB 511 01 Relating to the certificate of need program for health care facilities; and providing for an 02 effective date. 03 _______________ 04 * Section 1. AS 18.07.031(a) is amended to read: 05 (a) Except as provided in (c) and (d) of this section, a person may not make 06 an expenditure of $1,000,000 or more for any of the following unless authorized under 07 the terms of a certificate of need issued by the department: 08 (1) construction of a health care facility; 09 (2) alteration of the bed capacity of a health care facility; or 10 (3) addition of a category of health services provided by a health care 11 facility. 12 * Sec. 2. AS 18.07.031(c) is amended to read: 13 (c) Notwithstanding (a) of this section, a person who is lawfully operating a 14 health care facility that is an ambulatory surgical facility at a site may make an
01 expenditure of any amount in order to relocate the services of that facility to a new site 02 in the same community without obtaining a certificate of need as long as neither the 03 bed capacity nor the number of categories of health services provided at the new site is 04 greater. [HOWEVER, NOTWITHSTANDING THE EXPENDITURE THRESHOLD 05 IN (a) OF THIS SECTION, A PERSON MAY NOT USE THE SITE FROM WHICH 06 THE HEALTH CARE FACILITY RELOCATED FOR ANOTHER HEALTH CARE 07 FACILITY UNLESS AUTHORIZED UNDER A CERTIFICATE OF NEED ISSUED 08 BY THE DEPARTMENT.] 09 * Sec. 3. AS 18.07.031 is amended by adding new subsections to read: 10 (d) Beginning July 1, 2005, the $1,000,000 expenditure threshold in (a) of this 11 section is increased by $50,000 annually on July 1 of each year up to and including 12 July 1, 2014. 13 (e) In (a) of this section, "expenditure" includes the purchase of property 14 occupied by or the equipment required for the health care facility and the net present 15 value of a lease for space occupied by or the equipment required for the health care 16 facility; "expenditure" does not include costs associated with routine maintenance and 17 replacement of equipment at an existing health care facility. 18 * Sec. 4. AS 18.07.035 is amended by adding new subsections to read: 19 (b) The department may require a person who intends to submit an application 20 under (a) of this section to submit a letter of intent to the department, except in the 21 case of an application for an emergency or temporary certificate of need authorized 22 under AS 18.07.071. 23 (c) The department shall notify the applicant in writing when the application is 24 complete under this chapter. 25 * Sec. 5. AS 18.07.043 is amended to read: 26 Sec. 18.07.043. Standard of review for applications for certificates of need 27 relating to nursing homes, [AND] nursing home beds, and residential psychiatric 28 treatment centers. (a) The department shall develop review standards for an 29 application for a certificate of need, or for a modification of a certificate of need, 30 issued under this chapter for a health care facility that is a nursing home or residential 31 psychiatric treatment center, or that has nursing home beds.
01 (b) In developing the review standards under (a) of this section, the 02 department shall consider whether 03 (1) a public process and existing appropriate statewide, regional, and 04 local plans were included in planning and designing the residential psychiatric 05 treatment center, the additional nursing home beds, or the nursing home [HEALTH 06 CARE FACILITY]; 07 (2) the residential psychiatric treatment center, the additional 08 nursing home beds, or the nursing home [HEALTH CARE FACILITY] meets 09 minimum required use rates for, as applicable, the residential psychiatric treatment 10 center or new nursing beds, and the effect on use rates for existing nursing home 11 beds; 12 (3) the residential psychiatric treatment center, the facility 13 proposing additional nursing home beds, or the nursing home [HEALTH CARE 14 FACILITY] demonstrates consideration of the community, regional, and statewide 15 needs for, as applicable, the residential psychiatric treatment center or the new 16 nursing home beds; 17 (4) the residential psychiatric treatment center, the additional 18 nursing home beds, or the nursing home [HEALTH CARE FACILITY] meets the 19 minimum number of, as applicable, residential psychiatric treatment beds or new 20 nursing beds that should be required in a facility to ensure efficiency and economies of 21 scale; 22 (5) the residential psychiatric treatment center, the facility 23 proposing additional nursing home beds, or the nursing home [HEALTH CARE 24 FACILITY] demonstrates the proposed service will provide a quality of care 25 equivalent to existing community, regional, or statewide services; 26 (6) the residential psychiatric treatment center, the facility 27 proposing additional nursing home beds, or the nursing home [HEALTH CARE 28 FACILITY] demonstrates financial feasibility, including long-term viability, and what 29 the financial effect will be on consumers and the state; and 30 (7) the sponsor has demonstrated cost effectiveness through 31 considering the availability of appropriate, less costly alternatives of providing the
01 services planned. 02 (c) The department shall grant a sponsor a certificate of need or modify a 03 certificate of need that authorizes a residential psychiatric treatment center or 04 nursing home beds, or that is for a health care facility that is a nursing home, if the 05 department finds that the sponsor meets the standards established in or under this 06 chapter. 07 * Sec. 6. AS 18.07 is amended by adding a new section to read: 08 Sec. 18.07.045. Time standards for review of applications for certificates 09 of need. (a) The following time standards apply for a review by the department of an 10 application for a certificate of need under this chapter: 11 (1) the department may defer commencement of the review process 12 under this chapter for an application for a period not to exceed 60 days after the 13 determination that the application is complete in order to allow the department to 14 receive and consider concurrent applications from each person who has submitted a 15 letter of intent to submit an application proposing an activity that is similar to the 16 activity proposed by the application in the geographic area; 17 (2) the department shall review the application made under this chapter 18 and submit an analysis and recommendation to the commissioner within 60 days after 19 the date that notification under AS 18.07.035(c) is sent to the applicant stating that the 20 application is complete. 21 (b) The commissioner may extend the time periods set out in (a) of this section 22 for not more than 30 days for any of the following reasons: 23 (1) the applicant amends the application under this chapter; 24 (2) the department requests an extension of time within which to 25 prepare its findings and recommendations on the application; the commissioner may 26 grant only one extension under this paragraph. 27 * Sec. 7. AS 18.07.111(8) is amended to read: 28 (8) "health care facility" means a private, municipal, state, or federal 29 hospital, psychiatric hospital, independent diagnostic testing facility, residential 30 psychiatric treatment center, tuberculosis hospital, skilled nursing facility, kidney 31 disease treatment center (including freestanding hemodialysis units), intermediate care
01 facility, and ambulatory surgical facility; the term excludes 02 (A) an Alaska Pioneers' Home administered by the Department 03 of Health and Social Services [ADMINISTRATION] under [AS 44.21.020(9) 04 AND] AS 47.55; and 05 (B) the offices of private physicians or dentists whether in 06 individual or group practice; 07 * Sec. 8. AS 18.07.111 is amended by adding a new paragraph to read: 08 (10) "residential psychiatric treatment center" means a secure or semi- 09 secure psychiatric facility or inpatient program in a psychiatric facility that is licensed 10 by the Department of Health and Social Services and that provides therapeutically 11 appropriate and medically necessary diagnostic, evaluation, and treatment services 12 (A) 24 hours a day for children with severe emotional or 13 behavioral disorders; 14 (B) under the direction of a physician; and 15 (C) under a professionally developed and supervised individual 16 plan of care designed to achieve the recipient's discharge from inpatient status 17 at the earliest possible time that is intensively and collaboratively delivered by 18 an interdisciplinary team involving medical, mental health, educational, and 19 social service components. 20 * Sec. 9. The uncodified law of the State of Alaska is amended by adding a new section to 21 read: 22 APPLICABILITY. (a) AS 18.07.031(d), enacted by sec. 3 of this Act, applies to a 23 health care facility that enters into a lease agreement for the space occupied or equipment 24 required for that facility on or after the effective date of this Act. 25 (b) AS 18.07.035(b) and (c) and 18.07.045, enacted by secs. 4 and 6 of this Act, 26 respectively, apply to a certificate of need application filed with the Department of Health and 27 Social Services after the effective date of this Act. 28 (c) AS 18.07.043, as amended by sec. 5 of this Act, does not apply to a health care 29 facility that is a residential psychiatric treatment center that is under construction before the 30 effective date of this Act if the facility is in compliance with all other applicable federal, state, 31 and local laws. For purposes of this subsection, "under construction" means that
01 (1) the owner of the facility has for the facility 02 (A) complete architectural plans approved by the applicable agency; 03 (B) a building permit if required; 04 (2) the foundation of the facility is being or has been laid; and 05 (3) the construction of the facility is completed within two years after the 06 effective date of this Act. 07 * Sec. 10. This Act takes effect immediately under AS 01.10.070(c).