N.Y. Social Services Law § 461-g: Termination of admission agreements

§ 461-g. Termination of admission agreements. 1. No adult home,

residence for adults or enriched housing program which is subject to

certification and supervision of the department shall terminate the

admission agreement of any resident of such facility and involuntarily

discharge him therefrom except for the following reasons:

(a) the need of the resident for continual medical or nursing care

which the adult home, residence for adults or enriched housing program

cannot provide;

(b) behavior of the resident which poses imminent risk of death or

imminent risk of serious physical harm to such resident or any other

person;

(c) failure of the resident to make timely payment for all authorized

charges, expenses and other assessments, if any, for services including

use and occupancy of the premises, materials, equipment and food which

the resident has agreed to pay pursuant to the resident's admission and

services agreement;

(d) repeated behavior of the resident which directly impairs the

well-being, care or safety of the resident or any other resident or

which substantially interferes with the orderly operation of the

facility;

(e) the facility has had its operating certificate limited, revoked or

temporarily suspended pursuant to subdivision four of section four

hundred sixty-d of this article, or the operator has voluntarily

surrendered the operating certificate for the facility to the

department; or

(f) a receiver has been appointed pursuant to the provisions of

section four hundred sixty-one-f of this article and, as required by

such section, is providing for the orderly transfer of all residents in

the facility to other facilities or is making other provisions for the

residents' continued safety and care.

2. (a) No admission agreement shall be terminated and no resident of

an adult home, residence for adults or enriched housing program

involuntarily discharged for the reasons stated in paragraphs (a), (b),

(c), (d) or (e) of subdivision one of this section unless: (i) the

operator gives at least thirty days written notice, on a form prescribed

by the department, to the resident, the resident's next of kin and the

person designated in the admission agreement as the responsible party,

if any, that the resident's admission agreement will be terminated and

the resident discharged; (ii) such notice contains the reason for the

termination of the admission agreement, the date that the discharge will

occur, a statement that the resident has a right to object to the

termination of the resident's admission agreement and subsequent

discharge, and a statement that if the resident does not leave the

facility voluntarily, the operator, in order to terminate the admission

agreement and discharge the resident, will be required to originate a

proceeding pursuant to the provisions of section four hundred

sixty-one-h of this article; (iii) the operator furnishes to the

resident a list of free legal services agencies within the facility's

geographical area and a list of other available community resources

which provide resident advocacy services, including the social services

district, which lists shall be provided to the operator by the

department; and (iv) the operator institutes a special proceeding in

accordance with the provisions of section four hundred sixty-one-h of

this article.

(b) No admission agreement shall be terminated and the resident of an

adult home, residence for adults or enriched housing program

involuntarily discharged for the reason stated in paragraph (c) of

subdivision one of this section, if the reason that the resident failed

to pay the authorized charges was an interruption in the receipt by such

resident of any public benefits to which such resident is entitled,

unless the operator of the facility, during the thirty day notice period

provided for in subparagraph (i) of paragraph (a) of this subdivision,

as part of the provision of case management services, assists the

resident, who shall cooperate with the operator, in attempting to obtain

such public benefits or any supplemental public benefits which are

available to persons who have not received their regular public

benefits.

(c) The admission agreement of a resident in an enriched housing

program may be terminated and the resident discharged pursuant to the

provisions of this section and section four hundred sixty-one-h of this

article; provided, however, where such resident has an existing lease

with the landlord of the premises in which the program is housed, the

resident may not be involuntarily removed from the premises pursuant to

this section and section four hundred sixty-one-h of this article,

except in accordance with the provisions of such lease and applicable

law and regulation.

3. (a) Nothing in this section shall prohibit: (i) the removal of a

resident from a facility, for medical treatment or care, to a hospital,

nursing home or residential health care facility, as defined in section

twenty-eight hundred one of the public health law, or to a hospital as

defined in section 1.03 of the mental hygiene law; or (ii) the removal

from the facility of a resident whose behavior poses an imminent risk of

death or imminent risk of serious physical harm to such resident or any

other person, by a peace officer, acting pursuant to his special duties,

or a police officer, who is a member of an authorized police department

or force or a sheriff's department; or (iii) the removal from the

facility of a resident, whose behavior poses an imminent risk of death

or imminent risk of serious physical harm, to a location which ensures

the resident's safety, pursuant to regulations of the department.

(b) Such removal shall not be deemed to be a termination of the

admission agreement. Such removal shall not relieve the operator of the

facility from the requirement of proceeding, subsequent to the removal

of the resident, in accordance with this section and section four

hundred sixty-one-h of this article in order to terminate the admission

agreement to prevent the resident from returning to the facility. When

an operator proceeds subsequent to the removal of the resident from the

facility, to terminate the admission agreement, the written notice

required to be given to the resident by subparagraph (i) of paragraph

(a) of subdivision two of this section shall be personally delivered to

the resident at the location to which he has been removed. If personal

delivery is not possible, then such notice shall be served upon the

resident by any of the methods permitted by section three hundred eight

of the civil practice law and rules.