{"data":{"id":"us-ri/r.i.-gen.-laws-23-17.5-18","jurisdiction":"us-ri","citation":"R.I. Gen. Laws § 23-17.5-18","heading":"Development of responsibilities.","body":"All rights and responsibilities specified in §§ 23-17.5-3, 23-17.5-7, 23-17.5-15, and 23-17.5-17 shall devolve, in order of priority, to a patient’s guardian, next of kin, sponsoring agency(ies) or representative payor (except when the facility itself is the representative payor) for patients who are:\n(1) Adjudicated incompetent in accordance with state law; or\n(2) Found by the physician to be medically incapable of understanding their rights; or\n(3) Found to exhibit a communication barrier. If, however, the communication barrier is one of speaking a language other than English, then an attempt shall be made to find an interpreter to allow the patient to knowingly exercise his or her rights.","path":["Title 23 Health and Safety","Chapter 17.5 Rights of Nursing Home Patients"],"source_url":"https://webserver.rilegislature.gov/Statutes/TITLE23/23-17.5/23-17.5-18.htm","current_through":"site files published 2025-08-13","vintage":"","retrieved_at":"2026-09-05T19:56:45Z","sha256":"f18ac69482ee4c798f2c02d62eb0d3b04c66740d81093b72e16848690dd20e42","source_id":"us-ri","stale":true,"prev":"us-ri/r.i.-gen.-laws-23-17.5-17","next":"us-ri/r.i.-gen.-laws-23-17.5-19"},"notice":"GroundRules: Original legal text. Not legal advice."}