{"data":{"id":"us-ky/krs-205.510","jurisdiction":"us-ky","citation":"KRS 205.510","heading":"Definitions for medical assistance law.","body":"As used in this chapter as it pertains to medical assistance unless the context clearly\nrequires a different meaning:\n(1) \"Behavioral health professional\" means a person authorized to provide mental\nhealth or substance use disorder services under the laws of the Commonwealth;\n(2) \"Chiropractor\" means a person authorized to practice chiropractic under the laws of\nthe Commonwealth;\n(3) \"Council\" means the Advisory Council for Medical Assistance;\n(4) \"Dentist\" means a person authorized to practice dentistry un der laws of the\nCommonwealth;\n(5) \"Health professional\" means a physician, physician assistant, nurse, doctor of\nchiropractic, behavioral health professional, optometrist, dentist, or allied health\nprofessional who is licensed in Kentucky;\n(6) \"Medical car e\" as used in this chapter means essential medical, surgical,\nchiropractic, dental, optometric, podiatric, telehealth, and nursing services, in the\nhome, office, clinic, or other suitable places, which are provided or prescribed by\nphysicians, optometrists , podiatrists, or dentists licensed to render such services,\nincluding drugs and medical supplies, appliances, laboratory, diagnostic and\ntherapeutic services, nursing -home and convalescent care, hospital care as defined\nin KRS 205.560(1)(a), and such othe r essential medical services and supplies as\nmay be prescribed by such persons; but not including abortions, or induced\nmiscarriages or premature births, unless in the opinion of a physician such\nprocedures are necessary for the preservation of the life of  the woman seeking such\ntreatment or except in induced premature birth intended to produce a live viable\nchild and such procedure is necessary for the health of the mother or her unborn\nchild. However, this section does not authorize optometrists to perform any services\nother than those authorized by KRS Chapter 320;\n(7) \"Nurse\" means a person authorized to practice professional nursing under the laws\nof the Commonwealth;\n(8) \"Nursing home\" means a facility which provides routine medical care in which\nphysicians regularly visit patients, which provide nursing services and procedures\nemployed in caring for the sick which require training, judgment, technical\nknowledge, and skills beyond that which the untrained person possesses, and which\nmaintains complete r ecords on patient care, and which is licensed pursuant to the\nprovisions of KRS 216B.015;\n(9) \"Optometrist\" means a person authorized to practice optometry under the laws of\nthe Commonwealth;\n(10) \"Other persons eligible for medical assistance\" may include  the categorically needy\nexcluded from monetary payment status by state requirements and classifications of\nmedically needy individuals as permitted by federal laws and regulations and as\nprescribed by administrative regulation of the secretary for health and family\nservices or his designee;\n(11) \"Pharmacist\" means a person authorized to practice pharmacy under the laws of the\nCommonwealth;\n(12) \"Physician\" means a person authorized to practice medicine or osteopathy under the\nlaws of the Commonwealth;\n(13) \"Podiatrist\" means a person authorized to practice podiatry under the laws of the\nCommonwealth;\n(14) \"Primary-care center\" means a facility which provides comprehensive medical care\nwith emphasis on the prevention of disease and the maintenan ce of the patients'\nhealth as opposed to the treatment of disease;\n(15) \"Public assistance recipient\" means a person who has been certified by the\nDepartment for Community Based Services of the Cabinet for Health and Family\nServices as being eligible for, and a recipient of, public assistance under the\nprovisions of this chapter;\n(16) \"Telehealth\" means the same as in KRS 211.332;\n(17) \"Telehealth consultation\" means a medical or health consultation, for purposes of\npatient diagnosis or treatment, that meets the definition of telehealth in this section;\n(18) \"Third party\" means an individual, institution, corporation, company, insurance\ncompany, personal representative, administrator, executor, trustee, or public or\nprivate agency, including, but not limited  to, a reparation obligor and the assigned\nclaims bureau under the Motor Vehicle Reparations Act, Subtitle 39 of KRS\nChapter 304, who is or may be liable to pay all or part of the medical cost of injury,\ndisease, or disability of an applicant or recipient of medical assistance provided\nunder Title XIX of the Social Security Act, 42 U.S.C. sec. 1396 et seq.; and\n(19) \"Vendor payment\" means a payment for medical care which is paid by the Cabinet\nfor Health and Family Services directly to the authorized person or institution which\nrendered medical care to an eligible recipient.","path":["KRS Chapter 205"],"source_url":"https://apps.legislature.ky.gov/law/statutes/statute.aspx?id=51050","current_through":"Includes enactments through the 2026 Regular Session","vintage":"09/05/2026","retrieved_at":"2026-09-05T20:52:03Z","sha256":"736c4777feef9d914b3348b946ffbe6486ca9a3887b43651213317cb1a18957c","source_id":"us-ky","stale":false,"prev":"us-ky/krs-205.470","next":"us-ky/krs-205.512"},"notice":"GroundRules: Original legal text. Not legal advice."}