CERTIFICATION OF ENROLLMENT

SUBSTITUTE HOUSE BILL 2347

Chapter 235, Laws of 2024

68TH LEGISLATURE

2024 REGULAR SESSION

ADULT FAMILY HOMES—DEPARTMENT OF SOCIAL AND HEALTH SERVICES—INFORMATION ON WEBSITE

EFFECTIVE DATE: June 6, 2024

SUBSTITUTE HOUSE BILL 2347

AS AMENDED BY THE SENATE

ByHouse Health Care & Wellness (originally sponsored by Representatives Reeves, Harris, Chambers, Davis, Bateman, Doglio, Macri, and Reed)

AN ACT Relating to website information published by the department of social and health services regarding adult family homes; and amending RCW 70.128.280.

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

Sec. 1. RCW 70.128.280 and 2013 c 300 s 3 are each amended to read as follows:

(1) In order to enhance the selection of an appropriate adult family home, all adult family homes licensed under this chapter shall disclose the scope of, and charges for, the care, services, and activities provided by the home or customarily arranged for by the home. The disclosure must be provided to the home's residents and the residents' representatives, if any, prior to admission, and to interested prospective residents and their representatives upon request, using standardized disclosure forms developed by the department with stakeholders' input. The home may also disclose supplemental information to prospective residents and other interested persons.

(2)(a) The disclosure forms that the department develops must be standardized, reasonable in length, and easy to read. The form setting forth the scope of an adult family home's care, services, and activities must be available from the adult family home through a link to the department's website developed pursuant to this section. This form must indicate, among other categories, the scope of personal care and medication service provided, the scope of skilled nursing services or nursing delegation provided or available, any specialty care designations held by the adult family home, the customary number of caregivers present during the day and whether the home has awake staff at night, any particular cultural or language access available, and clearly state whether the home admits medicaid clients or retains residents who later become eligible for medicaid. The adult family home shall provide or arrange for the care, services, and activities disclosed in its form.

(b) The department must also develop a second standardized disclosure form with stakeholders' input for use by adult family homes to set forth an adult family home's charges for its care, services, items, and activities, including the charges not covered by the home's daily or monthly rate, or by medicaid, medicare, or other programs. This form must be available from the home and disclosed to residents and their representatives, if any, prior to admission, and to interested prospective residents and their representatives upon request.

(3)(a) If the adult family home decreases the scope of care, services, or activities it provides, due to circumstances beyond the home's control, the home shall provide a minimum of thirty days' written notice to the residents, and the residents' representative if any, before the effective date of the decrease in the scope of care, services, or activities provided.

(b) If the adult family home voluntarily decreases the scope of care, services, or activities it provides, and any such decrease will result in the discharge of one or more residents, then ninety days' written notice must be provided prior to the effective date of the decrease. Notice must be given to the residents and the residents' representative, if any.

(c) If the adult family home increases the scope of care, services, or activities it provides, the home shall promptly provide written notice to the residents, and the residents' representative if any, and shall indicate the date on which the increase is effective.

(4) When the care needs of a resident exceed the disclosed scope of care or services that the adult family home provides, the home may exceed the care or services previously disclosed, provided that the additional care or services are permitted by the adult family home's license, and the home can safely and appropriately serve the resident with available staff or through the provision of reasonable accommodations required by state or federal law. The provision of care or services to a resident that exceed those previously disclosed by the home does not mean that the home is capable of or required to provide the same care or services to other residents, unless required as a reasonable accommodation under state or federal law.

(5) An adult family home may deny admission to a prospective resident if the home determines that the needs of the prospective resident cannot be met, so long as the adult family home operates in compliance with state and federal law, including RCW 70.129.030(3) and the reasonable accommodation requirements of state and federal antidiscrimination laws.

(6) The department shall work with consumers, advocates, and other stakeholders to combine and improve existing web resources to create a more robust, comprehensive, and user-friendly website for family members, residents, and prospective residents of adult family homes in Washington. The department may contract with outside vendors and experts to assist in the development of the website. The website should be easy to navigate and have links to information important for residents, prospective residents, and their family members or representatives including, but not limited to: (a) Explanations of the types of licensed long-term care facilities, levels of care, and specialty designations; (b) lists of suggested questions when looking for a care facility; (c) warning signs of abuse, neglect, or financial exploitation; and (d) contact information for the department and the long-term care ((ombudsman [ombuds]))ombuds. In addition, the consumer oriented website should include a searchable list of all adult family homes in Washington, with links to ((inspection and investigation reports and any enforcement actions by the department for the previous three years))the following documents and information for the previous three years: (i) Deficiency-free inspection letters; (ii) statements of deficiency related to inspection visits; (iii) statements of deficiency related to complaint investigations requiring an attestation of correction; (iv) notices of return to compliance related to (ii) and (iii) of this subsection; and (v) enforcement action notices issued by the department. If a violation or enforcement remedy is deleted, rescinded, or modified under RCW 70.128.167 or chapter 34.05 RCW, the department shall make the appropriate changes to the information on the website as soon as reasonably feasible, but no later than thirty days after the violation or enforcement remedy has been deleted, rescinded, or modified. To facilitate the comparison of adult family homes, the website should also include a link to each licensed adult family home's disclosure form required by subsection (2)(a) of this section. The department's website should also include periodically updated information about whether an adult family home has a current vacancy, if the home provides such information to the department, or may include links to other consumer-oriented websites with the vacancy information.

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