N.Y. Public Health Law § 2803-z: Transfer, discharge and voluntary discharge requirements for residential health care facilities

* § 2803-z. Transfer, discharge and voluntary discharge requirements

for residential health care facilities. 1. (a) No residential health

care facility shall transfer or discharge a resident unless such

transfer or discharge is necessary for the resident's health, safety, or

welfare, such transfer or discharge is necessary to preserve the health,

safety, or welfare of other residents, the facility discontinues

operation or the resident has failed to pay or make arrangements for

payment for a stay at the facility, unless stated otherwise by this

section.

(b) Prior to a facility initiating a transfer or discharge of a

resident, the facility shall use its best efforts, including compliance

with applicable federal and state regulations, to secure appropriate

placement or a residential arrangement for the resident, other than

temporary housing assistance. For purposes of this section, "temporary

housing assistance" shall include but not be limited to a family

shelter, a shelter for adults, a hotel, an emergency apartment, a

domestic violence shelter, or a safe house for refugees. No residential

health care facility shall initiate a transfer or discharge of a

resident to the home of another individual without the written consent

of the resident and the other individual and the other individual has

received and acknowledged the comprehensive discharge plan to address

the resident's needs.

(c) At least thirty days prior to a facility-initiated transfer or

discharge, the residential health care facility shall provide written

notification of the transfer or discharge to the resident, the

resident's lawful representative, if any, a family member of the

resident, if known, and the long-term care ombudsman under section two

hundred eighteen of the elder law. The notification shall be in a

language and manner that is understandable to the resident and shall

state the basis for the transfer or discharge, which shall be recorded

in the resident's clinical record.

(d) A resident may be transferred or discharged if the facility is

unable to meet the needs of the resident. In that case, the resident's

clinical record shall document (i) the specific need or needs that

cannot be met, (ii) the facility's attempts to meet the resident's

needs, and (iii) the services available at the receiving facility.

(e) When a resident is being transferred or discharged because the

resident cannot be cared for safely, or is a danger to others, prior

notice may be provided less than thirty days prior to the transfer or

discharge but shall be provided as soon as practicable prior to transfer

or discharge. The facility shall document in the resident's clinical

record the risks to the resident or others if the resident were to

remain in the facility.

(f) A residential health care facility may transfer or discharge a

resident because the resident does not need residential health care

facility services.

2. Where the resident's transfer or discharge is initiated by the

resident and the clinical record notes that a family member or

designated representative has requested notification, and such

notification is otherwise lawful, the residential health care facility

shall notify the family member or designated representative of the

resident's voluntary transfer or discharge as soon as practicable after

the resident initiates the voluntary transfer or discharge process and

in no event more than forty-eight hours thereafter. The notice shall not

be provided if the resident specifically requests that the family member

or designated representative not be notified.

3. A residential health care facility shall not compel or attempt to

compel an individual to voluntarily transfer or discharge from the

facility. In the event a resident seeks a voluntary transfer or

discharge, the facility shall document, as part of the resident's

medical records, the reason the resident is seeking a transfer or

discharge. If the resident declines to provide a reason, the facility

shall document that in the resident's medical record.

4. Nothing in this section shall diminish a resident's rights to

independent personal decisions and knowledge of available choices, nor

shall it diminish the facility's responsibility to encourage and assist

in the fullest possible exercise of those rights under section two

thousand eight hundred three-c of this article, or other applicable law.

* NB There are 2 § 2803-z's