NY Pub Health L § 2807-I (2021)
2021 New York Laws PBH - Public Health Article 28 - Hospitals 2807-I - Service and Quality Improvement Grants.

§  2807-i.  Service  and  quality  improvement  grants.  1.  Grants to facilitate cooperative ventures for sharing  administrative,  management and  operational services. a. Notwithstanding any inconsistent provision of  law  to  the  contrary,  within  amounts  available  therefor,   the commissioner  shall make grants pursuant to this subdivision to eligible applicants   to   facilitate   cooperative    ventures    for    sharing administrative,   management  and  operational  services  among  general hospitals and other health care providers. Funded projects shall include two or more hospitals and may also include other health  care  providers in  coordination with those hospitals. Funded projects shall be designed to demonstrate the extent to which such cooperative  arrangements  would result in a reduction in costs to the facilities involved.   b.  In order to be eligible to receive a grant under this subdivision, applicants shall prepare and submit to the commissioner  a  proposal  at such  time,  in  such  manner  and  containing  such  information as the commissioner may require, including:  (i) a statement that such providers desire to negotiate and enter into a voluntary agreement;  (ii)  a  description  of  the  nature  and  scope  of  the  activities contemplated in the cooperative agreement;  (iii) a description of the financial arrangement between the providers that are parties to the agreement;  (iv)  a  description  of  the  geographic area generally served by the providers;  (v) a description  of  the  anticipated  benefits  and  advantages  to providers and to health care consumers;  (vi)  a  description  of how the proposal will be coordinated with the regional health plan; and  (vii)  any   other   information   determined   appropriate   by   the commissioner.   c.  In  awarding grants under this subdivision, the commissioner shall assure that there is a sufficiently representative geographic  and  size distribution of grantees, including urban, rural and suburban grantees.   d. Amounts provided under a grant awarded under this subdivision shall only  be  used  for  the  planning  of  cooperative  ventures and shared services.   e. Grantees shall submit reports to the commissioner in such form  and at  such  times  as  the commissioner may by regulation require, for the purpose of evaluating the operations and results of such program.   f. The commissioner in evaluating proposals pursuant to  this  section shall   give   primary  consideration  to  the  financial  condition  of applicants; provided however, that an  applicant's  financial  condition shall not be the sole grounds for approval or rejection.   2.   Management   information   systems  grants.  Notwithstanding  any inconsistent provision of law to the contrary, within amounts  available therefor,   the   commissioner   shall  make  grants  pursuant  to  this subdivision to general hospitals, not to  exceed  two  hundred  thousand dollars  per hospital, for the purposes of expanding and improving their information management capabilities. In order to be eligible for  grants pursuant  to  this subdivision, general hospitals which have experienced operating losses for the  past  two  consecutive  years,  provided  such operating  losses  have  been  at  least  two percent of such hospital's operating expenses, shall submit proposals which demonstrate that:   a. hospital management, productivity, and operations would be enhanced by improvements to the hospital's current management information  system capabilities;   b. the cost of providing services would be contained or patient access to care or the quality of patient care would be improved;    c.  such  hospital's  clinical,  management  and  finance  information systems would be integrated; and   d. cost finding and cost accounting capabilities would be enhanced.   3.  Continuous  quality improvement grants. Grants shall be awarded to general hospitals,  within  amounts  available  therefor,  to  establish programs  to  improve  quality assurance activities. Such programs shall seek  to  promote  and  encourage  continuous  quality  improvement   by integrating   traditional  medical  staff  review  functions  with  risk management and infection control activities. Grants  shall  be  used  to support the following:   a. the establishment of a mission statement, an accompanying long term strategic  plan  and allocation of institutional resources which reflect the institution's commitment to continuous quality improvement;   b. the establishment of  quality  improvement  activities  which  will enhance  all institutional processes, including clinical, managerial and support functions;   c. activities which support a multidisciplinary collaborative approach to quality improvement;   d. integration of management information  systems  to  improve  health care delivery; and   e.  an educational program on continuous quality improvement to inform staff of the institution's mission and plan for quality.   4. Equitable distribution. Funding shall  as  far  as  practicable  be equitably  distributed  among  applicants  in  urban, suburban and rural areas of the state.