FINAL BILL REPORT

                  SSB 5799

                          C 260 L 95

                      Synopsis as Enacted

Brief Description:  Modifying adult family homes licensure.

Sponsors:  Senate Committee on Human Services & Corrections (originally sponsored by Senators McDonald, Wojahn, Cantu and West).

Senate Committee on Human Services & Corrections

House Committee on Health Care

Background:  Adult family homes are alternatives to institutional care for many elderly and developmentally disabled people that provide a higher degree of independent living at a much lower cost.  Since 1989, the stated policy of the Legislature has been to encourage the establishment of humane, safe, and home-like adult family homes for people with functional limitations.

Current law requires adult family homes to be licensed by the Department of Social and Health Services (DSHS).  DSHS regulates adult family homes through rules overseen by the Aging and Adult Services Administration.

Summary:  The findings and intent section of the adult family homes chapter is expanded to recognize that adult family homes serve different populations, such as the elderly and the developmentally disabled, which each have different needs and capacities.

The Department of Social and Health Services (DSHS) is directed to adopt rules that recognize the differences in the populations and that are appropriate to those differing needs and capacities.  DSHS must consult with all of its divisions and administrations serving the various populations living in adult family homes when developing the rules.

The definition of adult family home provider is clarified to expressly include corporations, associations, partnerships, and limited liability companies.  Minimum qualifications are established for the entity providers and modified for individual providers.

Included in the minimum qualifications for all providers are the satisfactory completion of a department approved training and continuing education training as specified by the department, special care training, and a complete criminal background check.  The department is required to establish, by rule, standards for licensing nonresident providers and multiple facility operators that must be equal to recognized national certification standards.  Adult family home providers are required to ensure that any person who has unsupervised access to any resident is given a criminal background check, that activities are offered for residents in the home, and that staff are competent and receive necessary training.

The limit on the number of homes a provider may operate is removed, and DSHS is given the authority to establish by rule the type and number of homes a provider may operate.

All adult family homes must be registered with the Department of Health and, by January 1, 1996, are covered under the Uniform Disciplinary Act.

Votes on Final Passage:

Senate    48 1

House     96 0 (House amended)

Senate    39 0 (Senate concurred)

Effective:  July 23, 1995

          January 1, 1996 (Sections 7-11)