H. B. 2049
(By Delegates Caputo and Longstreth)
[Introduced February 11, 2009; referred to the
Committee on Senior Citizen Issues then Health and Human
Resources.]
A BILL to amend and reenact §16-5E-2 and §16-5E-6 of the Code of
West Virginia, 1931, as amended, all relating to providing
that a legally unlicensed personal care home may house up to
four unrelated residents if there is at least one full-time
employee working at the home.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That §16-5E-2 and §16-5E-6 of the Code of West Virginia, 1931,
as amended, be amended and reenacted, all to read as follows:
ARTICLE 5E. REGISTRATION AND INSPECTION OF SERVICE PROVIDERS IN
LEGALLY UNLICENSED HEALTH CARE HOMES.
§16-5E-2. Definitions.
As used in this article, unless a different meaning appears
from the context:
(a) "Director" means the Secretary of the Department of Health
and Human Resources or his or her designee.
(b) "Limited and intermittent nursing care" means direct hands
on nursing care of an individual who needs no more than two hours
of nursing care per day for a period of no longer than 90
consecutive days per episode, which may only be provided when the
need for such care meets the following factors: (1) The resident
requests to remain in the home; (2) the resident is advised of the
availability of other specialized health care facilities to treat
his or her condition; and (3) the need for such care is the result
of a medical pathology or a result of normal aging process.
Limited and intermittent nursing care shall be provided under the
supervision of a registered professional nurse and in accordance
with rules promulgated by the director.
(c) "Nursing care" means those procedures commonly employed in
providing for the physical, emotional and rehabilitational needs of
the ill or otherwise incapacitated which require technical skills
and knowledge beyond that which the untrained person possesses,
including, but not limited to, such procedures as: Irrigations;
catheterization; special procedures contributing to rehabilitation;
and administration of medication by any method prescribed by a
physician which involves a level of complexity and skill in
administration not possessed by the untrained person.
(d) "Personal assistance" means personal services, including,
but not limited to, the following: Help in walking, bathing,
dressing, feeding or getting in or out of bed, or supervision required because of the age or physical or mental impairment of the
resident.
(e) "Resident" means an individual who is provided services,
whether or not for a fee, by a service provider, but resident does
not include a person receiving services provided by another who is
related to him or her or the spouse thereof by blood or marriage,
within the degree of consanguinity of the second cousin.
Residents, who are incapable of self-preservation, shall be housed
only on a ground floor level of the home with direct egress to the
outside. A registered unlicensed health care home shall: (1)
Provide residents at the time of admission with the name, address
and telephone number of the offices of health facility licensure
and certification, the state long-term care ombudsman, and adult
protective services, all within the Department of Health and Human
Resources; and (2) advise residents both orally and in writing of
their right to file a complaint with the aforementioned entities.
(f) "Self-preservation" means that a person is at least
capable of removing him or her self from situations involving
imminent danger, such as fire.
(g) "Service provider" means the individual administratively
responsible for providing to consumers for a period of more than 24
hours, whether for compensation or not, services of personal
assistance for one to three residents and who may require limited
and intermittent nursing care, including those individuals who qualify for and are receiving services coordinated by a licensed
hospice:
Provided, That services utilizing equipment which
requires auxiliary electrical power in the event of a power failure
may not be used unless the home has a backup power generator:
Provided, however, That a service provider may house one to four
unrelated residents if the service provider has at least one full-
time employee working at the home.
§16-5E-6. Enforcement; criminal penalties.
(a) Any service provider who fails to register with the
director shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction
thereof, shall be fined not less than $500.00 or more than
$2,500.00 or imprisoned in jail not less than 10 days, or more than
30 days after notice by certified mail by the director to such
service provider of the requirements of this article.
(b) Any person who interferes with or impedes in any way the
lawful enforcement of the provisions of this article is guilty of
a misdemeanor and, upon conviction thereof, shall be fined not less
than $500.00 or more than $2,500.00 or imprisoned in the jail not
less than 10 days, or more than 30:
Provided, That prior to July
1, 1989, no such penalty may be imposed upon a service provider
until thirty days after notice by certified mail by the director to
the service provider at the requirements of this article.
(c) If after investigating a complaint, the director
determines that the home is housing more than
three four residents, the director shall assess a civil penalty of $50.00 per day per the
number of residents exceeding
three four. Each day the violation
continues, after the date of citation shall constitute a separate
violation. The date of citation is the date the facility receives
the written statement of deficiencies.
(d) The director may in his or her discretion bring an action
to enforce compliance with the provisions of this article.
(e) The circuit court of Kanawha County or the circuit court
of the county in which the conduct occurred shall have jurisdiction
in all civil enforcement actions brought under this article and may
order equitable relief without bond.
NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to provide that a legally
unlicensed personal care home may house up to four unrelated
residents if there is at least one full-time employee working at
the home.
Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken from
the present law, and underscoring indicates new language that would
be added.