Bill Text: NJ A2207 | 2014-2015 | Regular Session | Amended
Bill Title: Expands definition and licensure requirements for health care service firms.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 7-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2014-06-26 - Substituted by S667 (2R) [A2207 Detail]
Download: New_Jersey-2014-A2207-Amended.html
ASSEMBLY, No. 2207
STATE OF NEW JERSEY
216th LEGISLATURE
INTRODUCED JANUARY 27, 2014
Sponsored by:
Assemblywoman VALERIE VAINIERI HUTTLE
District 37 (Bergen)
Assemblyman JOSEPH A. LAGANA
District 38 (Bergen and Passaic)
Assemblyman THOMAS P. GIBLIN
District 34 (Essex and Passaic)
Assemblyman CARMELO G. GARCIA
District 33 (Hudson)
Co-Sponsored by:
Assemblyman Coughlin and Assemblywoman Spencer
SYNOPSIS
Expands definition and licensure requirements for health care service firms.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
As reported by the Assembly Appropriations Committee on June 23, 2014, with amendments.
An Act concerning licensure of health care service firms and amending 1and supplementing1 P.L.2002, c.126.
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. Section 1 of P.L.2002, c.126 (C.34:8-45.1) is amended to read as follows:
1. a. Notwithstanding any other law or regulation to the contrary, an employment agency required to be licensed pursuant to P.L.1989, c.331 (C.34:8-43 et [seq.] al.), or any other firm, company, business, agency, or other entity that is not a home health care agency licensed pursuant to P.L.1971, c.136 (C.26:2H-1 et seq.) 1or a hospice licensed pursuant to P.L.1997, c.78 (C.26:2H-79 et seq.)1, which places or arranges for the placement of personnel to provide companion 1services1, health care, or personal care services in the personal residence of a person with a disability or a senior citizen age 60 or older, regardless of the title by which the provider of the [health care or personal care] services is known, shall be 1[considered] licensed as1 a Health Care Service Firm pursuant to 1[N.J.A.C.13:45B-14.1] N.J.A.C.13:45B-13.11 et seq. and shall be subject to the rules and regulations governing Health Care Service Firms adopted by the Division of Consumer Affairs in the Department of Law and Public Safety.
As used in this [subsection] section:
"Companion services" means 1non-medical,1 basic supervision and socialization services 1which do not include direct physical contact with the individual, and which are provided in the individual's home. Companion services may include the performance of household chores1.
"Health care services" means any services rendered for the purpose of maintaining or restoring an individual's physical or mental health or any [health related] health-related services, and for which a license or certification is required as a pre-condition to the rendering of such services[;] .
"Personal care services" 1[shall] means services performed by licensed or certified personnel for the purpose of assisting an individual with activities of daily living that may involve physical contact. Services1 include, but 1are1 not 1[be]1 limited to, bathing, toileting, transferring, dressing, grooming, and assistance with ambulation, exercise, or other aspects of personal hygiene.
b. 1[An agency or other entity which places or arranges for the placement of personnel in the personal residence of a person with a disability or a senior citizen age 60 years or older for the exclusive purpose of providing [companion,] housekeeping, meal preparation, shopping, laundry, cleaning, or transportation services shall not be considered a Health Care Service Firm pursuant to this act.] (Deleted by amendment, P.L. , c. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill)1
c. As a condition of 1[licensure] being licensed1 under P.L.1989, c.331 (C.34:8-43 et al.), a health care service firm shall obtain 1within 12 months of licensure1 accreditation from an accrediting body that is recognized by the 1[Commissioner of Human Services as an accrediting body for homemaker agencies participating in the Medicaid program, as set forth at N.J.A.C.10:60-1.2] Director of the Division of Consumer Affairs. For purposes of accreditation pursuant to this subsection, the accrediting body shall apply the standards set forth in N.J.A.C.13:37-14.1 et seq. and N.J.A.C.13:45B-13.1 et seq., as applicable1.
d. As a condition of licensure under P.L.1989, c.331 (C.34:8-43 et al.), a health care service firm that receives government funds for any services provided shall cause to be prepared an 1[annual]1 audit 1[of its financial transactions. The audit shall be conducted in accordance with the federal "Single Audit Act of 1984", Pub.L.98-502, as amended by the "Single Audit Act Amendments of 1996," Pub.L.104-156 (31 U.S.C. s.7501 et seq.), generally accepted auditing standards as specified in the Statements on Auditing Standards issued by the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants, and Government Auditing Standards issued by the Comptroller General of the United States] the third calendar year after licensure and every third year thereafter. The audit shall be conducted by a qualified certified public accountant and shall encompass an examination of the subject firm's financial records, financial statements, the general management of its operations, and its internal control systems. The audit shall be divided into two components: compliance and financial. The compliance component of the audit shall evaluate the firm's compliance with relevant laws and regulations governing health care service firms. The financial component shall include an audit of the financial statements and accompanying notes, as specified in the Statements on Auditing Standards issued by the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants. If the subject firm is a recipient of State Medicaid funds and is therefore required to submit an annual cost report, that cost report shall be included in the audit, and the auditor shall include an opinion on the accuracy of the cost report1.
(cf: P.L.2002, c.126, s.1)
12. (New section) The Director of the Division of Consumer Affairs in the Department of Law and Public Safety shall enter into a memorandum of understanding with an accrediting body authorized to accredit a health care service firm pursuant to subsection c. of section 1 of P.L.2002, c.126 (C.34:8-45.1). The memorandum of understanding shall establish the standards for accreditation and for reporting the results of audits performed pursuant to subsection d. of section 1 of P.L.2002, c.126 to the Division.1
13. (New Section) No more than three years after the enactment of P.L. , c. (pending before the Legislature as this bill), the Director of the Division of Consumer Affairs shall submit a written report to the Governor and to the Legislature pursuant to section 2 of P.L.1991, c.164 (C.52:14-19.1), providing a comprehensive review and analysis on the effectiveness of the licensure, accreditation, and audit provisions of P.L. , c. (pending before the Legislature as this bill).1
1[2.] 4.1 The Director of the Division of Consumer Affairs in the Department of Law and Public Safety, pursuant to the "Administrative Procedure Act," P.L.1968, c.410 (C.52:14B-1 et seq.), shall adopt rules and regulations necessary to effectuate the purposes of this act.
1[3.] 5.1 This act shall take effect on the first day of the 1[fourth] eighteenth1 month next following the date of enactment 1, but the Director of the Division of Consumer Affairs may take such anticipatory administrative action in advance thereof as shall be necessary for the implementation of this act1.
