H-1873              _______________________________________________

                                           SUBSTITUTE HOUSE BILL NO. 246

                        _______________________________________________

State of Washington                              49th Legislature                              1985 Regular Session

By House Committee on Social & Health Services (originally sponsored by Representatives Day, Vander Stoep, Brekke, Jacobsen, Lux, Unsoeld, D. Nelson, Armstrong, Dellwo, Niemi, Appelwick, Padden, Taylor, Lewis, Cole, Lundquist, May, Silver and Isaacson)

Read first time 2/18/85 and passed to Committee on Rules.

AN ACT Relating to licensing of nursing homes; and adding a new section to chapter 74.42 RCW.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:

NEW SECTION. Sec. 1.  A new section is added to chapter 74.42 RCW to read as follows:

          (1) The purpose of this section is to prohibit discrimination against medicaid recipients by nursing homes which have contracted with the department to provide skilled or intermediate nursing care services to medicaid recipients.

          (2) It shall be unlawful for any nursing home which has a medicaid contract with the department:

          (a) To require, as a condition of admission, assurance from the patient or any other person that the patient is not eligible for or will not apply for medicaid;

          (b) To deny or delay admission or readmission of a person to a nursing home because of his or her status as a medicaid recipient;

          (c) To transfer a patient, except from a private room to another room within the nursing home, because of his or her status as a medicaid recipient;

          (d) To transfer a patient to another nursing home because of his or her status as a medicaid recipient;

          (e) To discharge a patient from a nursing home because of his or her status as a medicaid recipient; or

          (f) To charge any amounts in excess of the medicaid rate from the date of eligibility, except for any supplementation permitted by the department by rule.

          (3) Any nursing home which has a medicaid contract with the department shall maintain one list of names of persons seeking admission to the facility.  The names on the list shall be placed in chronological order according to the date of request for admission.  This information shall be retained for one year from the month admission was requested.

          (4) The department may assess monetary penalties of a civil nature, not to exceed one thousand dollars for each violation of this section.

          (5) Because it is a matter of great public importance to protect senior citizens who need medicaid services from discriminatory treatment in obtaining long-term health care, any violation of this section shall be construed for purposes of the application of the consumer protection act, chapter 19.86 RCW, to constitute an unfair or deceptive act or practice or unfair method of competition in the conduct of trade or commerce.