Memo: Signing of Bill S3185/A5848
Intake Process for Residential Health Care Facilities

Signing of Bill S3185/A5848

 

On Monday, August 2, 2021, Governor Andrew M. Cuomo signed into law S3185/A5848 as Chapter 344 of the Laws of 2021. The law, which takes effect on October 1, 2021, requires residential health care facilities to provide residents and their family members with a separate document as part of the intake application process that includes information for how one can look up complaints, citations, inspections, enforcement actions and penalties against a facility. The document must be in 12 point font and also provide a link to the website address for the New York State Nursing Home Profile and the nursing home compare website maintained by U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.  

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The sponsor’s memo indicates the legislation was born out of “Testimony at hearings revealed that many residents and their family members are unaware the Department of Health maintains information on compliance of residential health care facilities.” 

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To access text of law: https://legislation.nysenate.gov/pdf/bills/2021/S3185

 

On July 27, 2021, the Senate Committees on Aging, Health and Labor held a joint public hearing in Albany  on Nursing Home, Assisted Living, and Homecare Workforce – Challenges and Solutions. The hearing lasted more than eight hours during which representatives of nursing home industry, providers, unions and home health care workers testified. The video from the hearing and written testimony can be accessed at: https://www.nysenate.gov/calendar/public-hearings/july-27-2021/joint-public-hearing-nursing-home-assisted-living-and-homecare.