Existing law provides for the licensing and regulation of long-term health care facilities, including, among others, skilled nursing facilities and intermediate care facilities, by the State Department of Public Health. A violation of those provisions is generally a crime. Existing law establishes the Medi-Cal program, which is administered by the State Department of Health Care Services and under which qualified low-income individuals receive health care services. The Medi-Cal program is, in part, governed and funded by federal Medicaid program provisions.
Existing law prohibits a long-term health care facility that participates as a provider under the Medi-Cal program from discriminating against a Medi-Cal patient on the basis of the source of payment for the facility’s services that are required to be provided to individuals entitled to
services under the Medi-Cal program. Existing law prohibits that facility from seeking to evict out of the facility, or transfer within the facility, any resident as a result of the resident changing their manner of purchasing the services from private payment or Medicare to Medi-Cal, except as specified.
This bill would require the facility to provide aid, care, service, or other benefits available under Medi-Cal to Medi-Cal beneficiaries in the same manner, by the same methods, and at the same scope, level, and quality as provided to the general public, regardless of payment source.
Existing federal regulations require certain nursing facilities to post their resident census on a daily basis.
This bill would require a long-term health care facility that participates as a provider under the Medi-Cal program to make publicly available its
current daily resident census, excluding any personally identifiable information. as defined. The bill would require the facility to make the information available either by posting it on the facility’s internet website, if one exists, and website or by providing the information to a requester within 24 hours of a request, as specified. The bill would exempt these requirements from the above-described and other related criminal penalties.
Existing
law requires that a contract of admission to a long-term health care facility state that, except in an emergency, a resident may not be involuntarily transferred or discharged from the facility unless the resident and, if applicable, the resident’s representative, are given reasonable notice in writing and transfer or discharge planning as required by law. Existing law requires that the written notice state the reason for the transfer or discharge.
This bill would require that the notice also include a specified statement relating to, among other things, restrictions on transfer or discharge from the facility because of a change discharge from the facility or transfer within the facility solely as a result of changing the manner of purchasing services from private payment or
Medicare to Medi-Cal payment, and certain resource information about facilities participating in Medi-Cal.