Bill Text: NY S00886 | 2023-2024 | General Assembly | Introduced


Bill Title: Creates the district long-term care ombudsman council program to coordinate volunteer ombudsmen in each assembly district.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)

Status: (Introduced) 2024-01-03 - REFERRED TO AGING [S00886 Detail]

Download: New_York-2023-S00886-Introduced.html



                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________

                                           886

                               2023-2024 Regular Sessions

                    IN SENATE

                                     January 9, 2023
                                       ___________

        Introduced  by  Sen.  CLEARE -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
          printed to be committed to the Committee on Aging

        AN ACT to amend the elder law, in  relation  to  creating  the  district
          long-term care ombudsman council program

          The  People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-
        bly, do enact as follows:

     1    Section 1. Subparagraph 1 of paragraph (e) of subdivision 1 of section
     2  218 of the elder law, as added by chapter 259 of the laws  of  2018,  is
     3  amended, and a new paragraph (i) is added to read as follows:
     4    (1)  is  an employee or volunteer of the state office for the aging or
     5  of a designated local ombudsman entity, or a member of a district  long-
     6  term  care  ombudsman council program and represents the state long-term
     7  care ombudsman program;
     8    (i) "District council" or "district council program"  shall  mean  the
     9  district  long-term care ombudsman council program established in subdi-
    10  vision four of this section.
    11    § 2. The opening paragraph and subparagraph  7  of  paragraph  (d)  of
    12  subdivision 3 of section 218 of the elder law, as amended by chapter 259
    13  of the laws of 2018, are amended to read as follows:
    14    The  state  ombudsman,  personally  or  through  [authorized represen-
    15  tatives] the district long-term care ombudsman  council  program  estab-
    16  lished in subdivision four of this section, shall:
    17    (7)  develop a certification training program and continuing education
    18  for ombudsmen which at a minimum shall  specify  the  minimum  hours  of
    19  training,  the  annual  number  of hours of in-service training, and the
    20  content of the training, including, but not limited to, training  relat-
    21  ing  to  federal,  state, and local laws, regulations, and policies with
    22  respect to long-term care facilities in  the  state,  investigative  and
    23  resolution  techniques,  and  such other training-related matters as the
    24  state ombudsman determines to be appropriate, for the purposes of train-
    25  ing members of the district long-term  care  ombudsman  council  program

         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD03635-01-3

        S. 886                              2

     1  described  in subdivision four of this section, such training shall also
     2  include an overview of such program;
     3    §  3.  Subdivision  4  of  section 218 of the elder law, as amended by
     4  chapter 259 of the laws of 2018, is amended to read as follows:
     5    4. Local long-term  care  ombudsman  program  and  district  long-term
     6  ombudsman  council program.  (a) The state ombudsman, in accordance with
     7  applicable state contracting procedures, [may] shall designate an entity
     8  to operate a local long-term care ombudsman program  for  [one  or  more
     9  counties]  each  assembly district, and shall monitor the performance of
    10  each such entity. If the state office for the aging is aware or  becomes
    11  aware  of  any  evidence  that the designation of an entity to operate a
    12  long-term care ombudsman program by the state long-term  care  ombudsman
    13  would result in legal concerns or liability for the state office for the
    14  aging or office of the state long-term care ombudsman, the state ombuds-
    15  man will comply with the state office for the aging's determination that
    16  such designation should not be made.
    17    (b)  The  designated entity shall be an area agency on aging, a public
    18  agency or a private not-for-profit corporation which is  free  from  any
    19  conflict  of  interest that cannot be remedied. Any actual and potential
    20  conflicts of interest shall be identified and  addressed  in  accordance
    21  with subdivision ten of this section.
    22    (b-1)  The  state ombudsman shall create, in each assembly district, a
    23  district long-term care ombudsman  council  program  to  coordinate  the
    24  volunteers  of  each local long-term care ombudsman program within their
    25  district. Each district council shall consist of the following members:
    26    (i) a trained district coordinator, appointed by the state  ombudsman,
    27  to  serve  as  chair, who shall be paid an annual stipend of two hundred
    28  dollars;
    29    (ii) a trained district coordinator to serve as co-chair, appointed by
    30  the state ombudsman, who shall be paid an annual stipend of one  hundred
    31  fifty dollars;
    32    (iii)  a  trained district coordinator, appointed by the state ombuds-
    33  man, to serve as secretary, who shall be paid an annual stipend  of  one
    34  hundred fifty dollars; and
    35    (iv)  eight or more residents of such district, approved by the chair,
    36  co-chair, and secretary of the district council,  to  serve  as  trained
    37  district  advocates, each of whom shall be paid an annual stipend of one
    38  hundred fifty dollars.
    39    (b-2) The positions of long-term care ombudsman program volunteer  and
    40  district  long-term  care  ombudsman  council  program advocate shall be
    41  listed with the human resources departments of the department of health,
    42  state office of the aging, and any other relevant agency.  Such  listing
    43  shall be included on each such agency's website and marketing materials,
    44  and  such  listing shall be displayed on the department of labor website
    45  and in state run care facilities.
    46    (b-3) Information about the role and responsibility  of  the  district
    47  council  program  and  the  contact  information  of the members of such
    48  district council program providing services to a long-term care facility
    49  shall be included in the welcome packet of all  new  residents  to  such
    50  facility alongside the patient bill of rights.
    51    (c)(1)  Each  local long-term care ombudsman program shall be directed
    52  by a qualified individual who is employed and paid by the  local  entity
    53  and  who shall have the duties and responsibilities as provided in regu-
    54  lations, consistent with the provisions of this section and of Title VII
    55  of the federal older Americans act of 1965, as amended.   Such  director
    56  shall  work  with  the district council to carry-out the requirements of

        S. 886                              3

     1  this section. In addition, upon designation, the entity  is  responsible
     2  for  providing  for  adequate  and  qualified  staff,  which may include
     3  trained volunteers to perform the functions of the local long-term  care
     4  ombudsman program.
     5    (2)  No  local  program staff or district council staff, including the
     6  supervisor and any volunteers, shall perform or carry out the activities
     7  on behalf of the state long-term care ombudsman program or the  district
     8  long-term  ombudsman council program unless such staff has been verified
     9  as completing the training program developed by the state ombudsman  and
    10  has  been  approved by the state ombudsman as qualified to carry out the
    11  activities on behalf of the local program or district council program.
    12    (3) For purposes of the district council such trainings shall be given
    13  annually for all new recruits to such program and shall be available  in
    14  both  in-person  and  online  formats. Each council member shall also be
    15  required to complete two  or  more  professional  development  trainings
    16  annually.  Such professional development trainings shall be developed by
    17  the state ombudsman.
    18    (d) When the state ombudsman determines that a  local  long-term  care
    19  ombudsman  program does not meet the standards set forth in this section
    20  and in any related regulations, the  state  ombudsman,  in  coordination
    21  with  the state office for the aging, may refuse, suspend, or remove the
    22  designation of the local [ombudsmen] ombudsman entity. Prior  to  taking
    23  such  action,  the  state  ombudsman  shall  send  to the affected local
    24  program a notice of the state ombudsman's intentions to refuse, suspend,
    25  or remove the designation; provided, however, if the  state  office  for
    26  the  aging is aware or becomes aware of evidence that the designation or
    27  continued designation of an entity to operate a long-term care ombudsman
    28  program would result in legal concerns or liability for the state office
    29  for the aging or the office of the state long-term care  ombudsman,  the
    30  state ombudsman will comply with the state office for the aging's deter-
    31  mination  that  such  designation should not be made or that such desig-
    32  nation be refused, suspended, or removed.
    33    (e) The state ombudsman shall develop a grievance process to offer  an
    34  opportunity  for  reconsideration of any decision to refuse, suspend, or
    35  remove the designation of a local ombudsman entity. Notwithstanding  the
    36  grievance  process,  the  state  ombudsman shall make the final determi-
    37  nation to designate or to refuse, suspend, or remove the designation  of
    38  a local ombudsman entity; provided, however, if the state office for the
    39  aging  is aware or becomes aware of any evidence that the designation of
    40  an entity to operate a long-term care ombudsman  program  by  the  state
    41  long-term  care  ombudsman or that the failure of the state ombudsman to
    42  refuse, suspend, or remove the designation of a local  ombudsman  entity
    43  would result in legal concerns or liability for the state office for the
    44  aging  or  the  office  of the state long-term care ombudsman, the state
    45  ombudsman will comply with the state office  for  the  aging's  determi-
    46  nation that such designation should not be made or that such designation
    47  be refused, suspended, or removed.
    48    (f)  Each district shall receive the sum of eight hundred ten thousand
    49  dollars annually for the purposes of administrating the  district  long-
    50  term care ombudsman council program.
    51    §  4.  Subdivision  14  of section 218 of the elder law, as amended by
    52  chapter 776 of the laws of 2022, is amended to read as follows:
    53    14. Annual report. (a) On or before March thirty-first,  two  thousand
    54  five,  and  annually thereafter, the state ombudsman shall submit to the
    55  governor, commissioner of the federal administration on  aging,  speaker
    56  of  the  assembly,  temporary  president  of the senate, director of the

        S. 886                              4

     1  state office for the aging, commissioner of the  department  of  health,
     2  and  the  commissioner of children and family services a report and make
     3  such report available to the public:
     4    [(a)]  (i)  describing the activities carried out by the office of the
     5  state long-term care ombudsman during the prior calendar year;
     6    [(b)] (ii) containing and analyzing data relating  to  complaints  and
     7  conditions in long-term care facilities and to residents for the purpose
     8  of identifying and resolving significant problems, including an examina-
     9  tion  of  any  recurring  complaints  to determine if there are systemic
    10  issues in such facilities;
    11    [(c)] (iii) evaluating the problems experienced by, and the complaints
    12  made by or on behalf of, residents;
    13    [(d)] (iv) containing recommendations  for  appropriate  state  legis-
    14  lation,  rules  and regulations and other action based on data collected
    15  pursuant to this section, concerns raised by residents and  families  of
    16  residents,  and  observations  made when visiting long-term care facili-
    17  ties, to improve the quality of the care  and  life  of  the  residents,
    18  protecting  the  health,  safety and welfare and rights of the residents
    19  and resolving resident complaints and identified problems or barriers;
    20    [(e)] (v) containing an analysis of the success of the long-term  care
    21  ombudsman program, including success in providing services to residents;
    22    [(f)]  (vi)  describing barriers that prevent the optimal operation of
    23  the ombudsman program;
    24    [(g)] (vii) describing any organizational conflicts of interest in the
    25  ombudsman program that have been  identified  and  the  steps  taken  to
    26  remove or remedy such conflicts;
    27    [(h)] (viii) containing all complaints received by the state ombudsman
    28  relating  to  long-term  care  facilities  including  but not limited to
    29  complaints that suggest  the  possible  occurrence  of  physical  abuse,
    30  mistreatment,  neglect  or  Medicaid fraud, listed by type of complaint,
    31  facility name and by region;
    32    [(i)] (ix) containing the number of  visits  to  each  long-term  care
    33  facility,  listed by facility name and by region, and names of long-term
    34  care facilities that did not receive any visits in the prior year; and
    35    [(j)] (x) any other matters as the state  ombudsman,  in  consultation
    36  with  the  director  of the state office for the aging, determines to be
    37  appropriate.
    38    (b) On or before March thirty-first,  two  thousand  twenty-five,  and
    39  annually  thereafter,  each  district  long-term  care ombudsman council
    40  program shall submit to the attorney general  a  report  and  make  such
    41  report available to the public:
    42    (i)  describing  the  activities  carried  out by the district council
    43  program during the prior calendar year;
    44    (ii) containing and analyzing data relating to complaints  and  condi-
    45  tions  in  long-term care facilities and to residents for the purpose of
    46  identifying and resolving significant problems;
    47    (iii) evaluating the problems experienced by, and the complaints  made
    48  by or on behalf of, residents;
    49    (iv)  containing  recommendations  for  appropriate state legislation,
    50  rules and regulations and other action to improve  the  quality  of  the
    51  care  and  life  of  the  residents,  protecting  the health, safety and
    52  welfare and rights of the residents and  resolving  resident  complaints
    53  and identified problems or barriers;
    54    (v)  containing  an  analysis  of  the success of the district council
    55  program, including success in providing services to residents;

        S. 886                              5

     1    (vi) describing barriers that prevent the  optimal  operation  of  the
     2  district council program;
     3    (vii)  describing  any  organizational  conflicts  of  interest in the
     4  district council program that have been identified and the  steps  taken
     5  to remove or remedy such conflicts;
     6    (viii)  any  other  matters  as  the district council determines to be
     7  appropriate; and
     8    (ix) in the cases of new nursing homes that are opening in  a  partic-
     9  ular  district  under a different name or with ownership from a previous
    10  facility that was closed or  cited  for  issues  by  the  department  of
    11  health,  provide recommendations for the nursing home to be approved for
    12  opening.
    13    § 5. This act shall take effect on the one hundred eightieth day after
    14  it shall have become a law.  Effective immediately, the addition, amend-
    15  ment and/or repeal of any rule or regulation necessary for the implemen-
    16  tation of this act on its effective date are authorized to be  made  and
    17  completed on or before such effective date.
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