Insights & Resources

March 11, 2021 | Alerts

NYS Proposed Legislation Could Impact Nursing Homes

NYS Proposed Legislation Could Impact Nursing Homes

Two bills that have recently passed the New York State Assembly propose strict new requirements and prohibitions that would greatly impact the ownership and operation of nursing homes in New York.  Bills A5842 and A5684A propose broad notice and disclosure requirements on nursing homes, and impact the establishment of new nursing homes.  The bills have been delivered to the Senate for action.  If passed by the Senate and signed into law by Governor Cuomo, the bills would:

  • Prohibit approval of applications for new nursing homes or applications to increase resident capacity by a for-profit entity.
  • Require disclosure to prospective or current residents of any contracts or services provided by an entity in which an owner of the licensed operator or a family member has an interest. Operators would also have to provide notice, including to the Department of Health and residents, before entering into these arrangements.
  • Require notice to the Department of Health before entering into a contract related to the management or operations of the nursing home, including contracts with staffing agencies. Notice must also be provided to all residents and staff within 5 days after signing such contracts.
  • Adds additional CON requirements on the establishment of new nursing homes, including:
    • New notice and public hearing requirements on establishment applications.
    • Expanded disclosure requirements regarding character and competence reviews, and establishing new quality standards for approvals.
  • Require any new owner, operator or management company to retain all employees of the nursing home, at the same wage and benefit level, for at least 60 days, except for cause. This requirement would not apply to the Administrator and Director of Nursing.

Garfunkel Wild has been regularly tracking and monitoring the status of these bills and certain other proposed nursing home legislation, a list of which can be found here.

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Should you have any questions regarding the above, please contact the Garfunkel Wild attorney with whom you regularly work, or contact us at [email protected].