NY Pub Health L § 2895-B (2021)
2021 New York Laws PBH - Public Health Article 28-D - Practice of Nursing Home Administration Title 1 - General Provisions and Public Policy 2895-B - Nursing Home Staffing Levels.

§  2895-b.  Nursing  home  staffing levels. 1. Definitions. As used in this section, the following terms shall have the following meanings:  (a) "Certified nurse aide" means any person included  in  the  nursing home  nurse  aide  registry  pursuant  to  section  twenty-eight hundred three-j of this chapter.  (b) "Licensed nurse" means a registered professional nurse or licensed practical nurse licensed pursuant to article one hundred thirty-nine  of the education law.  (c) "Staffing hours" means the hours reported by a nursing home to the federal  Centers  for Medicare and Medicaid Services through the payroll based journal for long-term care facilities.  (d) "Nurse aides" means any person who is included in the  nurse  aide hour   component  of  the  payroll  based  journal  for  long-term  care facilities but has not yet been certified as a certified nurse aide.   2. Staffing standards. (a)  The  commissioner  shall,  by  regulation, establish staffing standards for nursing home minimum staffing levels to meet applicable standards of service and care and to provide services to attain  or  maintain  the  highest  practicable  physical,  mental,  and psychosocial well-being of each resident  of  the  facility.  Compliance shall  be  determined  quarterly  by  comparing the daily average of the number of hours provided  per  resident,  per  day,  using  the  federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services payroll based journal and the facility's average daily census on a daily basis.  (b)  The  commissioner shall establish, by regulation, civil penalties for facilities out of compliance  with  minimum  staffing  levels.  Such regulations shall include a range of penalties to account for mitigating factors which shall include:  (i)  extraordinary  circumstances  facing the facility, including, but not limited to, whether the facility  has  suffered  through  a  natural disaster  or  other  catastrophic event, an officially declared national emergency, or state or municipal emergency declared pursuant to  article two-B of the executive law, which has been initially declared subsequent to  the  effective  date  of  this  section, or other such conditions or unforeseen circumstances as determined by the commissioner;  (ii) the frequency and nature of non-compliance; and  (iii) the existence  of  an  acute  labor  supply  shortage  within  a particular  region.  When  determining if there is an acute labor supply shortage within a specific region in a specific quarter,  or  a  shorter period of time as determined by the commissioner, the commissioner shall take  into consideration the following factors: regional labor supply of available  certified  nurse  aides,  licensed   practical   nurses   and registered  nurses;  regional  pay  rates  for  the  relevant  titles as determined  by  the  federal  department  of  labor,  bureau  of   labor statistics;   and  evidence  that  the  facility  attempted  to  procure sufficient staffing.  (c)  At  least  thirty  days  before  any  action  is  taken  by   the commissioner  under  paragraph (b) of this subdivision, the commissioner shall post the assessed penalties, and any mitigating factors that  were considered in assessing the penalty on the department's website.  (d) In determining whether a nursing home has violated its obligations under this section, it shall not be a defense that such nursing home was unable   to  secure  sufficient  staff  if  the  lack  of  staffing  was foreseeable and could be prudently  planned  for,  or  involved  routine staffing  needs  that  arose  due  to typical staffing patterns, typical levels of absenteeism, or time off typically approved  by  the  employer for vacation, holidays, sick leave, and personal leave.  (e)  A  civil  penalty  shall  not be imposed under this section until after April first, two thousand twenty-two;  (f) Every nursing home shall:  (i) comply with the staffing standards under this section; and  (ii) employ sufficient staffing levels to meet applicable standards of service and care and to provide service and care and to provide services to  attain  or  maintain  the  highest practicable physical, mental, and psychosocial well-being of each resident of the facility.  (g) Staffing standards established under this subdivision shall, at  a minimum,  be  the staffing standards established under subdivision three of this section.  (h) The  minimum  staffing  standard  includes  the  hours  which  are required  to  be  reported  by a nursing home to the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services through the  payroll  based  journal  for long-term  care for certified nursing assistants and licensed nurses. In determining  compliance  with  the   staffing   standards   under   this subdivision,  an  individual  shall  not  be  counted  while  performing administrative services as defined in  the  payroll  based  journal  for long-term care facilities.   3.  Statutory  standard.  (a)  Beginning  January  first, two thousand twenty-two every nursing home  shall  maintain  daily  average  staffing hours  equal  to  3.5  hours of care per resident per day by a certified nurse aide, a licensed nurse or a nurse aide; provided that out of  such 3.5  hours, no less than 2.2 hours of care per resident per day shall be provided by a certified nurse aide or a nurse aide, and no less than 1.1 hours of care per resident per day  shall  be  provided  by  a  licensed nurse.  (b)  Beginning January first, two thousand twenty-three and thereafter every nursing home shall maintain daily average staffing hours equal  to 3.5  hours  of  care per resident per day by a certified nurse aide or a licensed nurse; provided that out of such 3.5 hours, no  less  than  2.2 hours  of  care  per  resident  per day shall be provided by a certified nurse aide, and no less than 1.1 hours of  care  per  resident  per  day shall be provided by a licensed nurse.   4. Public disclosure of staffing levels. (a) A nursing home shall post information  regarding  nurse  staffing that the facility is required to make available to the public under section twenty-eight  hundred  five-t of  this chapter. Information under this paragraph shall be displayed in a form approved by the department and be posted in  a  manner  which  is visible  and  accessible  to residents, their families and the staff, as required by the commissioner.  (b) A nursing home shall post a summary of this section,  provided  by the  department,  in proximity to each posting required by paragraph (a) of this subdivision.