Title HSC — California Health & Safety Code

(a) The Director of Health Services, or his or her designee, shall administer this article. (b) The director may adopt regulations as are necessary to implement this article. These regulations may be adopted as emergency regulations in accordance with the rulemaking provisions of…

(a) The quality assurance fee assessed and collected pursuant to this article shall be deposited in the General Fund. (b) Notwithstanding subdivision (a), commencing August 1, 2013, the quality assurance fee assessed and collected pursuant to this article shall be deposited in th…

(a) The Long-Term Care Quality Assurance Fund is hereby created in the State Treasury. Notwithstanding Section 13340 of the Government Code, moneys in the fund shall be continuously appropriated, without regard to fiscal year, to the State Department of Health Care Services for t…

The Legislature finds and declares that the transfer trauma which accompanies the abrupt and involuntary transfer of patients from one nursing home to another should be avoided when reasonable alternatives exist. It is the intent of the Legislature in enacting this article to pro…

(a) It is the intent of the Legislature in enacting this section to empower the state department to take quick, effective action to protect the health and safety of residents of long-term health care facilities and to minimize the effects of transfer trauma that accompany the abr…

As used in this article, “long-term health care facility” means any skilled nursing facility, intermediate care facility, intermediate care facility/developmentally disabled, intermediate care facility/developmentally disabled habilitative, intermediate care facility/developmenta…

(a) Whenever circumstances exist indicating that continued management of a long-term health care facility by the current licensee would present a substantial probability or imminent danger of serious physical harm or death to the patients, or there exists in the facility a condit…

The state department shall investigate within 30 days of receipt of a complaint alleging that circumstances permitting a petition for receivership under Section 1327 exist in a long-term health care facility. The result of the investigation shall be documented by the state depart…

In the event that the state department proceeds with a receivership petition, the state department shall hold an informational meeting in the affected community for residents, family members, and interested parties.

Subdivision (b) of Section 1327 shall not be construed to prohibit the state department from including on its list of qualified receivers a consortium of community agencies that includes one or more licensed nursing home administrators, as long as the consortium is established as…

No person shall impede the operation of a receivership created under Section 1327. There shall be an automatic stay for a 60-day period subsequent to the appointment of a receiver, of any action that would interfere with the functioning of the facility, including, but not limited…

(a) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the receiver shall be liable only for damages resulting from gross negligence in the operation of the facility or intentional tortious acts. (b) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the State of California shall be liable onl…

(a) When a receiver is appointed, the licensee may, at the discretion of the court, be divested of possession and control of the facility in favor of the receiver. The receiver appointed pursuant to this article: (1) May exercise those powers and shall perform those duties ordere…

(a) A receiver may not be required to honor any lease, mortgage, or secured transaction entered into by the licensee of the facility and another party if the court finds that the agreement between the parties was entered into for a collusive, fraudulent purpose or that the agreem…

A monthly accounting shall be made by the receiver to the state department of all moneys received and expended by the receiver on or before the 15th day of the following month or as ordered by the court, and the remainder of income over expenses for such month shall be returned t…

(a) The receiver shall be appointed for an initial period of not more than six months. The initial six-month period may be extended for additional periods not exceeding six months, as determined by the court pursuant to this section. At the end of four months, the receiver shall …

The salary of the receiver shall be set by the court commensurate with long-term health care facility industry standards, giving due consideration to the difficulty of the duties undertaken, and shall be paid from the revenue coming to the facility. If the revenue is insufficient…

(a) To the extent state funds are advanced for the salary of the receiver or for other expenses in connection with the receivership, as limited by subdivision (d) of Section 1329, the state shall be reimbursed from the revenues accruing to the facility or to the licensee or an en…

(a) Nothing in this article shall impair the right of the owner of a long-term health care facility to dispose of his or her property interests in the facility, but any facility operated by a receiver pursuant to this article shall remain subject to such administration until term…

The state department shall adopt regulations for the administration of this article. Nothing in this article shall impair the authority of the state department to temporarily suspend licenses under Section 1296 or to reach a voluntary agreement with the licensee for alternate man…

(a) Notwithstanding any other law, a long-term health care facility shall give written notice to the affected residents or to the guardians of the affected residents at least 60 days prior to any change in the status of the license or in the operation of the facility resulting in…

(a) After notifying its affected residents, the facility shall, in response to inquiries made by prospective residents or their representatives, include notification of the change in the status of the license or the operation of the facility. (b) The facility shall give written n…

(a) Before residents are transferred due to any change in the status of the license or operation of a facility, including a facility closure or voluntary or involuntary termination of a facility’s Medi-Cal or Medicare certification, the facility shall take reasonable steps to tra…

(a) In the event of an emergency, such as earthquake, fire, or flood that threatens the safety or welfare of the residents in a facility, the facility shall do all of the following: (1) Notify, as soon as possible, family members, guardians of residents, the State Department of P…

Failure to comply with the requirements in Sections 1336 to 1336.3, inclusive, shall be subject to issuance of citations and imposition of civil penalties pursuant to Chapter 2.4 (commencing with Section 1417), and Sections 72701 and following of the California Administrative Cod…

(a) The Legislature finds that the quality of patient care in skilled nursing and intermediate care facilities is dependent upon the competence of the personnel who staff its facilities. The Legislature further finds that direct patient care in skilled nursing and intermediate ca…

A skilled nursing facility or intermediate care facility shall adopt an approved training program that meets standards established by the department. The approved training program shall consist of at least all of the following: (a) An orientation program to be given to newly empl…

(a) A person who provides instruction or training, at a skilled nursing facility or intermediate care facility or in an educational institution, as part of a certified nurse assistant precertification training program described in Section 1337.1 or 1337.3 may be any licensed voca…

(a) An online or distance learning nurse assistant training program shall comply with all of the following requirements: (1) Provide online instruction in which the trainees and the approved instructor are online at the same or similar times and which allows them to use real-time…

(a) An applicant for certification as a certified nurse assistant shall comply with each of the following: (1) Be at least 16 years of age. (2) Have successfully completed a training program approved by the department, which includes an examination to test the applicant’s knowled…

(a) (1) The department shall prepare and maintain a list of approved training programs for nurse assistant certification. The list shall include training programs conducted by skilled nursing facilities or intermediate care facilities, as well as local agencies and education prog…

Every skilled nursing or intermediate care facility shall designate a licensed nurse as a director of staff development who shall be responsible for the management of the approved training program.

(a) Approved training programs shall be conducted during the normal working hours of the nurse assistant unless the nurse assistant receives at least the normal hourly wage for any additional time spent in the training program. (b) On or after September 1, 1978, only the followin…

(a) Certificates issued under this article shall be renewed every two years and renewal shall be conditional upon the occurrence of all of the following: (1) The certificate holder submitting documentation of completion of 48 hours of in-service training every two years obtained …

(a) The state department shall investigate complaints concerning misconduct by certified nurse assistants and may take disciplinary action pursuant to Section 1337.9. (b) The state department shall maintain a registry that includes the certification status of all certified nurse …

(a) The Legislature finds and declares all of the following: (1) Recidivism is reduced when criminal offenders are given the opportunity to secure employment and engage in a trade, occupation, or profession. (2) It is in the interest of public safety to assist in the rehabilitati…

(a) The state department shall, through the Medi-Cal program, provide rate adjustments to skilled nursing or intermediate care facilities for the portion of additional costs attributable to the requirements of Sections 1337.1, 1337. 3, and 1337.5 with respect to Medi-Cal patients…

The state department shall assign sufficient qualified employees to supervise and evaluate training programs required by this article.

(a) The state department shall convene a work group to develop recommendations to the department on ways to expand the availability of training programs and certified nurse assistants available for hire in the state. The work group shall investigate, but not be limited to investi…

The State Director of Health Services may adopt emergency regulations pursuant to Chapter 3.5 (commencing with Section 11340) of Part 1 of Division 3 of Title 3 of the Government Code to implement this article. The adoption of the regulations shall be deemed to be an emergency an…

(a) (1) (A) A criminal record clearance shall be conducted for all nurse assistants by the submission of fingerprint images and related information to the state department for processing at the Department of Justice. The licensing and certification program shall issue an All Faci…

(a) For purposes of Section 668.14 of Title 34 of the Code of Federal Regulations, the required minimum number of hours, or the equivalent, established in this state for educational or training programs for certification training programs for nurse assistants, pursuant to Section…

The Legislature hereby finds and declares that: (a) In many areas, small, rural general acute care hospitals are experiencing financial difficulties brought upon partially because of governmental regulations and underutilization of acute care beds. (b) Closure of such facilities,…

(a) The department may request and maintain employment information for nurse assistants and direct care staff of intermediate care facilities/developmentally disabled, other than state-operated intermediate care facilities/developmentally disabled that secure criminal record clea…

Health systems agencies shall do all of the following: (a) Verify information in the health service plan received from hospitals in their respective health service area. (b) Within 45 days make a recommendation, including findings, to the state department regarding the need for, …

Any primary health service hospital, or any group thereof, may submit a health service plan to the state department when a public meeting, which satisfies the following criteria, has been conducted in the community by the hospital with respect to such hospital’s health service pl…

A primary health service hospital may request waivers pursuant to subdivision (d) of Section 1339.7, and Section 1339.25, authorization for swing beds pursuant to Section 1339.8 and seek the benefits pursuant to subdivision (l) of Section 1339.7 by submitting a health service pla…

A primary health service hospital may amend its health service plan. Such amendments shall be subject to the provisions of subdivision (c) of Section 1337.7 and Section 1339.13. Amendments shall not be made to such plan solely for the purpose of circumventing sanctions administer…

The primary health service hospital shall operate under the following requirements: (a) The primary health service hospital shall be subject to the regulations contained in Division 5 (commencing with Section 70001) of Title 22 of the California Administrative Code that are not w…

(a) In accordance with the procedures prescribed in subdivision (h) of Section 1339.7, the state department shall terminate a hospital’s health service plan or its designation as a primary health service hospital, or both, when it finds that the hospital is not in compliance with…