Title 19 — Health
55 chapters · 745 sections in this title.
19 V.I.C. § 218 Community partnerships
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The Commissioner of Health may form community partnerships with other governmental departments and agencies and private organizations and, through such partnerships, seek grants from the United States Secretary of Health and Human Services for the purchase of AED training for use…
19 V.I.C. § 219 Who shall maintain an AED
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(a) Any department, agency or instrumentality of the branches of the Government of the Virgin Islands with a staff of forty or more employees shall maintain an AED on the premises. (b) Notwithstanding subsection (a) of this section, each public high school with an inter-scholasti…
19 V.I.C. § 220 Short title
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This chapter shall be known as and may be cited as “The Virgin Islands Cardiac Arrest Survival Act”.
19 V.I.C. § 220a AED registry; training
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(a) The V.I. Department of Health must establish an official AED registry for the territory not later than 30 days after the enactment of this Act, which must, at a minimum, provide the location and type of AED. The official AED registry shall be known and may be cited as the “Al…
19 V.I.C. § 221 Definitions
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(1) “Ambulatory surgical facility” means a facility, not a part of a hospital, including “freestanding facilities”, which provides surgical treatment to patients not requiring hospitalization. (2) “Bad debt” means the unreimbursed cost to the Corporation of providing health care …
19 V.I.C. § 222 Purpose of chapter
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(1) The purpose of this chapter is to provide for the development, establishment and enforcement of standards for:(1) the care and treatment of individuals in and by health facilities and health services;(2) a certificate of need program which applies to the determination of comm…
19 V.I.C. § 223 Certificate of need
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No person, organization or governmental unit, acting severally or jointly with any other person, organization or governmental unit shall establish, construct, or expand a health facility or health service, or incur capital expenditure on behalf of a health facility or health serv…
19 V.I.C. § 224 Application for license; fee
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An application for a certificate of need shall be made to the Commissioner upon forms provided by the Commissioner and shall be accompanied by written proposals, drawings, layouts, permits and any other documents required by the Commissioner as set forth in rules and regulations …
19 V.I.C. § 225 Issuance and renewal of certificate of need: Posting
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Upon receipt of an application for a certificate of need and fee as provided for in section 224 of this chapter, the Commissioner shall review such application to determine whether the proposed establishment, construction, or expansion of a health facility or health service, or i…
19 V.I.C. § 226 Denial or revocation of certificate of need; hearing and determination
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(a) The Commissioner, after notice and opportunity given to the applicant to be heard, may refuse to issue a certificate of need or suspend or revoke a certificate of need, in any case in which he finds there has been a substantial failure to comply with the requirements establis…
19 V.I.C. § 227 Judicial review of commissioner's decision on certificate of need
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Any party to the proceeding referred to in section 226 of this title who is aggrieved by the decision of the Commissioner may, within 30 calendar days after the mailing or service of notice of the decision as provided in such section, file a notice of appeal in the Superior Court…
19 V.I.C. § 228 Licenses
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No organization or governmental unit, acting severally or jointly with any other organization or governmental unit, shall establish, conduct or maintain a health facility or health service in the Virgin Islands without a license as provided in this chapter. It shall be unlawful f…
19 V.I.C. § 229 Application for health facility/service license
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(1) Applications for license shall be on the form specified by the Commissioner, shall be sent to the Commissioner and shall be accompanied by satisfactory proof that the principal sponsor of the health facility or health service:(1) is twenty-one years of age or over;(2) is of g…
19 V.I.C. § 230 Penalties
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(a) The Commissioner may deny, revoke, or suspend a license based upon proof that the health service or facility is:(1) guilty of fraud or deceit in procuring or attempting to procure a license to provide the health service;(2) guilty of a felonious act;(3) incompetent by reason …
19 V.I.C. § 231 Disciplinary proceedings
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Upon the filing of a sworn complaint with the Commissioner charging a health facility or health service with having been guilty of any action specified by this chapter as grounds for disciplinary action, the Commissioner shall appoint a committee to investigate the charge and con…
19 V.I.C. § 232 Review of consumer complaints
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(a) The Commissioner shall act upon every complaint which it receives from a patient, user or consumer of services concerning the quality of health care provided by the health facility or health service. Every board in the Virgin Islands responsible for licensing health professio…
19 V.I.C. § 236 Quality assurance program
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(a) Every hospital shall maintain program for the identification and prevention of medical malpractice. Such a program shall include the following:(1) The establishment of a Quality Assurance Committee, hereinafter, the “Committee”, with the responsibility to review services rend…
19 V.I.C. § 237 Investigations of health care providers by hospitals
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(a) Prior to granting professional privileges to or hiring any health care provider, a hospital shall obtain from the health care provider the following information:(1) The names of any hospital or medical facility with or at which the health care provider had or has any associat…
19 V.I.C. § 238 Use of government owned medical facilities by medical education institutions
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(a) A hospital or other medical facility owned by the Government of the Virgin Islands shall not be used as a teaching facility by or for medical education institutions unless:(1) the sponsoring medical educational institution has entered into a written contract with the Governme…
19 V.I.C. § 239 Contracts for management and administration of government hospital facilities
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Any contract for the management and administration of any government hospital facility shall be approved by the governing board of such facility. The term of such contract shall not exceed three (3) years, but may be renewed. The contract shall be let pursuant to the bidding requ…
19 V.I.C. § 240 Findings and purpose
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(a) The Legislature of the Virgin Islands hereby declares that:(a) Quality, comprehensive health care should be available to every resident of, and visitor to, the Virgin Islands.(b) Efficient, affordable health care delivery must be available and accessible throughout the Virgin…
19 V.I.C. § 241 Definitions
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(a) As used in this chapter, unless a different meaning is clearly otherwise required from the text:(a) “Board” means the Boards of Directors of the V.I. Government Hospitals and Health Facilities Corporation.(b) “Corporation” means the V.I. Government Hospitals and Health Facili…
19 V.I.C. § 242 Corporation purposes
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(a) It is the purpose of the V.I. Governmental Hospitals and Health Facilities Corporation to:(a) provide quality, comprehensive health care through the efficient management of hospitals and health facilities; and(b) formulate and coordinate major health care hospital policy for …
19 V.I.C. § 243 V.I. Government Hospitals and Health Facilities Corporation
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(a) There is hereby created the Virgin Islands Government Hospitals and Health Facilities Corporation. The corporation is a body corporate and politic constituting a public benefit corporation of the Government of the Virgin Islands. It shall have those powers and duties expressl…
19 V.I.C. § 244 Powers of the corporation
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(a) The V.I. Government Hospitals and Health Facilities Corporation shall have the power to:(a) sue and be sued subject to the limitations and requirements of existing law applicable to the Government of the Virgin Islands; Provided That, the Corporation may report any individual…
19 V.I.C. § 244a Chief Executive Officer as head of the hospitals; appointment of personnel; negotiation of collective bargaining agreements
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(a) The Chief Executive Officer shall serve as the head of the hospital to which he is appointed and shall:(a) appoint and remove the Medical Director, and the Chief Financial Officer with the advice and consent of the respective District Board;(b) appoint and remove all manageri…
19 V.I.C. § 245 Relationship of the corporation to the V.I. Government
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(a) The V.I. Government Hospitals and Health Facilities Corporation is a public entity of the Government of the Virgin Islands and shall be exempt from taxation on the moneys and properties of the corporation or any properties under its jurisdiction, control, or supervision. (b) …
19 V.I.C. § 245a Competitive bidding
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(a) All purchases and contracts for supplies or services and equipment, except for personal services, made by the Corporation or the respective District Boards, including contracts for facilities of the Corporation, shall be made after advertisement for bids sufficiently in advan…
19 V.I.C. § 245b Exemption of corporation's property from execution, liens or taxes
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(a) All property of the corporation, including funds, shall be exempt from judicial process of every kind, including, without limitation, attachment, levy, execution and sale by virtue of an execution, and no judgment shall be a lien or charge against the corporation's property o…
19 V.I.C. § 246 Duties of the corporation
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(a) It is the duty of the corporation and the corporation shall:(a) submit to the Governor and the Legislature, within 120 days after the close of each fiscal year, a complete and detailed report of its operations and accomplishments, receipts and expenditures, assets and liabili…
19 V.I.C. § 247 Restrictions of the corporation
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(a) No member of the Board of Directors or either District Governing Board shall have any interest, directly or indirectly, as principal, surety, or otherwise, in any contract, the expense or consideration whereof is payable out of funds of the corporation. (b) Nothing in this ch…
19 V.I.C. § 248 Protection of the corporation
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(a) Members of the Board, committees and employees of the hospital while acting within the scope of their authority as directors, officers, committee members or employees shall not be subject to any personal or civil liability resulting from the exercise of any of the corporation…
19 V.I.C. § 249 Termination of the corporation
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The corporation and its corporate existence shall continue until terminated by law. Upon termination, all corporate rights, property, assets and funds shall thereupon vest in and be possessed by the Government of the Virgin Islands.
19 V.I.C. § 251 Short title
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This subchapter may be cited as “The Virgin Islands Caregiver Advice, Record and Enabling Act” or “The V.I. CARE Act.”
19 V.I.C. § 252 Purpose
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The purpose of this subchapter is to facilitate the discharge of patients who require long-term caregiver services, provide notice to, and involve caregivers in the hospital’s discharge plans for the patient, and assist patients and their caregivers by providing discharge plans t…
19 V.I.C. § 253 Definitions
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(a) “Admission” means the formal acceptance by a hospital or other inpatient health care facility of a patient who is placed in an inpatient setting to be provided with a room, medical care, treatment, or observation for at least forty-eight consecutive hours. (b) “Post Discharge…
19 V.I.C. § 254 Caregiver—opportunity to designate
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(a) A hospital shall provide each patient or, if applicable, the patient’s legal guardian with at least one opportunity to designate at least one caregiver no later than 24 hours after the patient’s entry into a hospital and prior to the patient’s discharge or transfer to another…
19 V.I.C. § 255 Notice to designated caregiver
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(a) A hospital shall notify the patient’s caregiver of the patient’s discharge or transfer to another hospital or facility as soon as practicable, but not later than 24 hours before the patient’s actual discharge or transfer to the other facility. (b) A notification of a patient’…
19 V.I.C. § 256 Instruction to designated caregiver
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(a) As soon as practicable, but not later than 24 hours before a patient’s discharge from a hospital, the hospital shall consult with the caregiver and the patient regarding the caregiver’s capabilities and limitations and issue a discharge plan that describes a patient’s after-c…
19 V.I.C. § 257 Non-interference with powers of existing health care directives
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Nothing in this subchapter may be construed to affect the rights of an agent operating under a valid power-of-attorney or health care directive, as provided under chapter 11 of this title.
19 V.I.C. § 258 Limitations
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Nothing in this subchapter may be construed to create a private right of action against a hospital, a hospital employee, or an individual with whom a hospital has a contractual relationship, or to otherwise supersede or replace exiting rights or remedies under any other provision…
19 V.I.C. § 259 Regulations
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The Department of Human Services shall promulgate regulations to implement this subchapter, including, regulations to further define the content and scope of any instruction provided to caregivers.
19 V.I.C. § 261 Hospital Accounts
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(a) Each District Board shall establish and maintain separate bank accounts and may make direct fiscal disbursement from such accounts to pay all necessary costs and obligations of the health care facilities under its jurisdiction. Revenues generated by each hospital and health f…
19 V.I.C. § 262 Procurement of gifts, grants and loans
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The Board of Directors may secure gifts for and loans to the District Boards from private individuals, foundations and federal government agencies and may use such gifts, grants and loans for any lawful purpose specified by the donor or lender and may form for-profit subsidiaries…
19 V.I.C. § 271 Definitions
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As used in this chapter, unless the context otherwise requires—“Commissioner” means the Commissioner of Health of the Virgin Islands.“Medical care” means medical, surgical, dental and nursing services, and other remedial services recognized by law, in the home, office, hospital, …
19 V.I.C. § 272 Schedule of fees for medical care
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(a) A schedule of fees for medical care provided by the Department of Health shall be established by the Commissioner, subject to approval by the Governor. Such fees shall be based upon actual costs of services rendered and medical supplies used in the treatment of patients, and …
19 V.I.C. § 273 Payment required
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All persons except those entitled to full or partial medical care under the provisions of this chapter shall be required to pay full fees for medical care on a current basis and in accordance with the schedule of fees.
19 V.I.C. § 274 Regulations for credit facilities
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(a) Subject to the approval of the V.I. Government Hospitals and Health Facilities Corporation, the Hospital Administrator shall provide by regulation for the extending of credit facilities to persons required to pay the full or partial costs of medical care. Such regulations sha…
19 V.I.C. § 275 Disposal of fees
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All fees, collected under the provisions of this chapter, shall be remitted to the Commissioner of Finance and covered into the Treasury of the Virgin Islands in the special fund designated “The Health Revolving Fund”, provided for by section 3017 of Title 33.
19 V.I.C. § 276 Exemptions
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(a) Subject to approval by the V.I. Government Hospitals and Health Facilities Corporation, the Hospital Administrator may exempt wards of the Government and persons suffering from chronic and communicable diseases specified by the Hospital Administrator, the control and care of …