Florida Administrative Code › 59 - AGENCY FOR HEALTH CARE ADMINISTRATION › 59C - Certificate of Need › Chapter 59C-1 - PROCEDURES FOR THE ADMINISTRATION OF SECTIONS 408.031-408.045, FLORIDA STATUTES, HEALTH FACILITY AND SERVICES DEVELOPMENT ACT › Section 59C-1.036 - Nursing Facility Beds

Current through Reg. 50, No. 138; July 16, 2024
(1) Agency
				Intent. This rule implements Section
				408.034(3),
				F.S., which requires the Agency to develop uniform need methodologies for
				Certificate of Need (CON) review of proposals, and Section
				408.036(1)(a),
				F.S., which requires Certificate of Need review of proposals for the addition
				of nursing facility beds licensed under Chapter 400, F.S. The rule regulates
				the construction of new nursing facilities, the addition of new nursing
				facility beds, and conversion of other health care facility bed types to
				nursing facility beds, including conversion of licensed sheltered nursing
				facility beds in continuing care facilities regulated under Section
				651.118, F.S. Projects for the
				addition of sheltered nursing home beds are excluded from this rule and
				regulated under Rule 59C-1.037, F.A.C. It is the
				intent of the Agency to ensure the availability of nursing facility services to
				all persons needing such services, regardless of ability to pay. Nothing in
				this rule is intended to interpret, modify, limit or expand Florida law
				regarding standing, or the right of an existing health care provider to
				initiate or intervene in a formal Administrative Hearing challenging intended
				Agency action on a Certificate of Need application for nursing facility beds
				regulated under this rule.
(2) CON
				Reviews. Proposals for nursing facility beds seeking licensure under Chapter
				400, F.S., will be comparatively reviewed to each other. This rule contains a
				methodology for determining the numeric need for nursing facility beds proposed
				to be licensed under Chapter 400, F.S. An application for nursing facility beds
				seeking licensure under Chapter 400, F.S., will not be approved in the absence
				or insufficiency of a numeric need indicated by the formula in subsection (4)
				of this rule, unless the absence or insufficiency of numeric need is outweighed
				by other information presented in a Certificate of Need application showing
				special circumstances consistent with applicable and relevant criteria in
				Section 408.035, F.S.
(3) General Provisions.
(a) Planning Horizon. The future need for
				nursing facility beds shall be determined twice a year and published by the
				Agency as a Fixed Bed Need Pool for the applicable planning horizon. The
				planning horizon for applications submitted between January 1 and June 30 is
				January of the year 3 years subsequent to the year the application is
				submitted; the planning horizon for applications submitted between July 1 and
				December 31 is July of the year 3 years subsequent to the year the application
				is submitted.
(b) Batching Cycles.
				Proposals for nursing facility beds seeking licensure under Chapter 400, F.S.,
				will be reviewed in the batching cycles for "Other Beds and Programs" described
				in paragraph 59C-1.008(1)(g),
				F.A.C.
(c) Population Estimates.
				The estimates of current and projected population used in this rule shall be
				the most recent estimates published by the Executive Office of the Governor and
				available to the Agency at least 3 weeks prior to publication of the Fixed Bed
				Need Pool. The estimate of projected population is the estimate for the
				planning horizon. The estimate of current population is the estimate for
				January of the year the application is submitted when the planning horizon is
				January; the estimate of current population is the estimate for July of the
				year the application is submitted when the planning horizon is July.
(d) Subdistrict Need Determination. The
				Agency will use the subdistrict designation shown in Rule
				59C-2.200, F.A.C., for Agency
				service Districts 1 through 11 respectively in projecting need for nursing
				facility beds licensed under Chapter 400, F.S.
(e) Geographically Contiguous Subdistricts
				within a District. If nursing home need is determined by the bed need formula
				contained in this rule in continguous subdistricts within a District, the
				applicant may aggregate the subdistrict's need for a new community nursing home
				pursuant to Section 408.034(6),
				F.S.
1. If need is aggregated from two
				subdistricts, the proposed nursing home site must be located in the subdistrict
				with the greatest published need as determined by the bed need formula
				contained in this rule.
2. If need
				is aggregated from more than two subdistricts, the location of the proposed
				nursing home site must provide reasonable geographic access for residents in
				the aggregated subdistricts given the relative bed need in each
				subdistrict.
(f)
				Geographically Underserved Areas. In a competitive Certificate of Need review
				within the nursing facility subdistrict as defined in Rule
				59C-2.200, F.A.C., the Agency
				shall award a Certificate of Need if the applicant meets all applicable
				criteria for a geographically underserved area as specified in Section
				408.032(15),
				F.S., and if the applicant meets applicable statutory Certificate of Need
				review criteria specified in Section
				408.035, F.S., including bed
				need according to the relevant bed need formula contained in this rule. If an
				applicant is awarded a Certificate of Need based on the provisions of this
				paragraph, the applicant shall agree that the nursing facility will be located
				in a county without a nursing facility, or in the center of an area within the
				subdistrict with a radius of at least 20 miles which meets the definition of a
				geographically underserved area. The center of the geographically underserved
				area shall be the proposed nursing facility location in the
				application.