Act No. 83

(H.658)

Health care; home health services; certificate of need

This act requires the commissioner of the department of banking, insurance, securities, and health care administration (BISHCA) and the commissioner of the department of disabilities, aging, and independent living (DAIL) to convene a work group of interested parties to develop objective criteria for certificate of need (CON) decisions regarding home health services and to report the work group's recommendations to the house committee on health care and the senate committee on health and welfare by December 15, 2011. The act prohibits anyone from granting a CON for the offering of home health services or for a new home health agency between the effective date of the act and June 30, 2013, unless the general assembly lifts the moratorium earlier. The act provides for two exceptions to the moratorium: for a continuing care retirement community operating under a certificate of authority and for a new home health agency if the commissioners of BISHCA and of DAIL certify that a serious and substantial lack of access to home health services exists in a particular county and the agencies serving that county have been given notice and an opportunity to either challenge the certification or remediate the problem.

The act specifies that it should not be construed to prevent existing home health agencies from seeking approval from BISHCA or DAIL to expand or contract their designated geographical regions or from merging; nor should be it be construed to prevent the BISHCA commissioner from granting a CON to a home health agency that had filed a letter of intent or had a CON application pending before the effective date of the act. To the criteria necessary for the BISHCA commissioner to grant any CON application, regardless of whether or not the application is for a new home health agency, for home health services, or for another service, the act adds a requirement that the applicant must demonstrate and the commissioner must find that the applicant has adequately considered the availability of affordable, accessible patient transportation services to any facility proposed in the application.

Date Signed by the Governor:  April 21, 2010

Effective Date:  On passage (April 21, 2010, the date on which the governor signed the bill)