Relating to oversight for long-term care facilities

The voting members of the safety council include the director of health and human services, or the director’s designee; the state long-term care ombudsman, or the ombudsman’s designee; the director of an area agency on aging, or the director’s designee; the state director of AARP, or the state director’s designee; three public members, appointed by the governor, and subject to confirmation by the senate; and two health care professions, appointed by the governor, and subject to confirmation by the senate. The safety council also includes the director of DIAL, or the director’s designee as a nonvoting member. The members shall annually elect a public member as the chairperson of the council. The safety council shall hold an organizational meeting in July each year and hold other meetings as necessary to enable the safety council to expeditiously discharge its duties. The bill provides that at the time DIAL serves notice on an applicant or licensee of a health care facility for denial, suspension, or revocation of a license, DIAL shall also notify the safety council. The safety council shall hold an informal conference with the applicant or licensee within working days of the mailing or service of notice to review the applicant’s or licensee’s history of violations for which a penalty was assessed, and the response by the applicant or licensee in correcting such violations. Following the informal conference and review, the council shall report its findings to DIAL including recommendations for departmental action, in accordance with which DIAL shall proceed. A facility may subsequently request a formal hearing. The bill also requires that at the time DIAL effects delivery of notice on an assisted living program applicant or certificate holder, based on the assisted living program having been issued notice of three violations in a 12-month period which presented imminent danger or a substantial probability of resultant death or physical harm to a tenant, and for which a penalty was assessed, DIAL shall also notify the long-term care facility safety council. As with health care facilities, the safety council shall hold an informal conference with the applicant or certificate holder within working days of the mailing or service of notice to review the applicant’s or certificate holder’s history of violations for which a penalty was assessed, and the response by the applicant or certificate holder in correcting such violations. Following the informal conference and review, the safety council shall report its findings to DIAL, including any recommendations for departmental action, with which DIAL shall proceed. An assisted living program may subsequently request a contested case hearing. The bill also requires DIAL to adopt and enforce administrative rules that set minimum standards for facilities with the approval of the safety council, rather than the approval of the council on health and human services. Additionally, the rules and standards must be formulated in consultation with the state long-term care ombudsman. The bill includes, as a duty of the state long-term care ombudsman, making recommendations to the long-term care facility safety council. The bill requires the long-term care facility safety council to study the feasibility of creating a special focus list for long-term care facilities in the state based on a review of special focus lists in other states, and to submit a report to the general assembly by February 1, 2026, including specific descriptions of successful special focus lists in other states, and recommendations for the creation of a special focus list in Iowa including necessary Code changes and the potential framework for the special focus list.