Authorizes increased equity withdrawals by certain non-public residential health care facilities, the official text

S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   5369
 
                        2025-2026 Regular Sessions
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                             February 21, 2025
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  Sen.  RIVERA -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
   printed to be committed to the Committee on Health
 
 AN ACT to amend the public health law, in relation to equity withdrawals
   by non-public residential health care facilities;  and  to  amend  the
   state finance law, in relation to establishing the nursing home worker
   recruitment and safety fund
 
   THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section 1. Paragraphs (b) and (c) of subdivision 5 of section 2808  of
 the public health law, as amended by section 36 of part B of chapter 109
 of the laws of 2010, are amended to read as follows:
   (b) On and after April first, two thousand ten, no non-public residen-
 tial  health  care facility may withdraw equity or transfer assets which
 in the aggregate exceed:
   (I) three percent of such facility's total reported annual revenue for
 patient care services, based on the facility's most  recently  available
 reported  data,  without prior written notification to the commissioner;
 OR
   (II) IN THE CASE OF A RESIDENTIAL HEALTH CARE FACILITY WHICH, OVER THE
 TWO IMMEDIATELY PRECEDING SUCCESSIVE QUARTERS, HAS BEEN  COMPLIANT  WITH
 THE  MINIMUM  STAFFING  LEVEL REQUIREMENTS PRESCRIBED BY SECTION TWENTY-
 EIGHT HUNDRED NINETY-FIVE-B OF THIS CHAPTER, FIVE PERCENT OF SUCH FACIL-
 ITY'S TOTAL REPORTED ANNUAL REVENUE FOR PATIENT CARE SERVICES, BASED  ON
 THE  FACILITY'S  MOST  RECENTLY  AVAILABLE  REPORTED DATA, WITHOUT PRIOR
 WRITTEN NOTIFICATION TO THE COMMISSIONER.  Notification shall be made in
 a form acceptable to the department by certified or registered mail.
   (c) Notwithstanding any inconsistent provision of this subdivision, on
 and after April first,  two  thousand  ten,  no  non-public  residential
 health  care facility, whether operated as a for-profit facility or as a
 not-for-profit facility, may withdraw equity or transfer assets which in
 the aggregate exceed:
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD04752-01-5
 S. 5369                             2
 
   (I) three percent of such facility's total reported annual revenue for
 patient care services, based on the facility's most  recently  available
 reported  data,  without the prior written approval of the commissioner;
 OR
   (II) IN THE CASE OF A RESIDENTIAL HEALTH CARE FACILITY WHICH, OVER THE
 TWO  IMMEDIATELY  PRECEDING SUCCESSIVE QUARTERS, HAS BEEN COMPLIANT WITH
 THE MINIMUM STAFFING LEVEL REQUIREMENTS PRESCRIBED  BY  SECTION  TWENTY-
 EIGHT HUNDRED NINETY-FIVE-B OF THIS CHAPTER, FIVE PERCENT OF SUCH FACIL-
 ITY'S  TOTAL REPORTED ANNUAL REVENUE FOR PATIENT CARE SERVICES, BASED ON
 THE FACILITY'S MOST RECENTLY  AVAILABLE  REPORTED  DATA,  WITHOUT  PRIOR
 WRITTEN NOTIFICATION TO THE COMMISSIONER.  The commissioner shall make a
 determination to approve or disapprove a request for withdrawal of equi-
 ty or assets under this subdivision within sixty days of the date of the
 receipt  of  a written request from the facility. Requests shall be made
 in a form acceptable to the department by certified or registered  mail.
 In  reviewing  such requests the commissioner shall consider the facili-
 ty's overall financial condition, any indications of financial distress,
 whether the facility is delinquent in any payment owed  to  the  depart-
 ment,  whether  the  facility  has  been cited for immediate jeopardy or
 substandard quality of care, and such other factors as the  commissioner
 deems  appropriate. In addition to any other remedy or penalty available
 under this chapter, and after opportunity for a hearing, the commission-
 er may require replacement of the withdrawn equity  or  assets  and  may
 impose  a penalty for violation of the provisions of this subdivision in
 an amount not to exceed ten percent  of  any  amount  withdrawn  without
 prior approval.
   §  2.  Section  2895-b of the public health law is amended by adding a
 new subdivision 5 to read as follows:
   5. FINES AND CIVIL  PENALTIES.  (A)  ALL  FINES  AND  CIVIL  PENALTIES
 COLLECTED BY THE COMMISSIONER PURSUANT TO THIS SECTION SHALL BE DEPOSIT-
 ED  INTO  A  NURSING HOME WORKER RECRUITMENT AND SAFETY FUND ESTABLISHED
 PURSUANT TO SECTION NINETY-NINE-SS OF THE STATE FINANCE LAW  TO  ENHANCE
 THE QUALITY OF EMPLOYMENT FOR RESIDENTIAL HEALTH CARE FACILITY EMPLOYEES
 AND  ASSIST  IN  THE  RECRUITMENT  AND SAFETY OF RESIDENTIAL HEALTH CARE
 FACILITY STAFF.
   (B) THE COMMISSIONER SHALL DISTRIBUTE MONIES MADE AVAILABLE  FOR  THIS
 PURPOSE  UNDER  THIS  SUBDIVISION IN THE FORM OF GRANTS TO PROVIDERS. IN
 DETERMINING THE FUNDING FOR PROVIDERS, THE COMMISSIONER  SHALL  CONSIDER
 CRITERIA INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, THE OVERALL CENSUS OF A FACILITY
 AND  THE  RATE  REGION  THE FACILITY IS LOCATED WITHIN. THE COMMISSIONER
 SHALL PROMULGATE THE RULES AND REGULATIONS  NECESSARY  FOR  IMPLEMENTING
 THE PROGRAM.
   § 3. The state finance law is amended by adding a new section 99-ss to
 read as follows:
   § 99-SS. NURSING HOME WORKER RECRUITMENT AND SAFETY FUND. 1.  THERE IS
 HEREBY  ESTABLISHED IN THE JOINT CUSTODY OF THE COMMISSIONER OF TAXATION
 AND FINANCE AND THE COMPTROLLER, A SPECIAL  FUND  TO  BE  KNOWN  AS  THE
 "NURSING HOME WORKER RECRUITMENT AND SAFETY FUND".
   2.  MONEY  ALLOCATED TO THE NURSING HOME WORKER RECRUITMENT AND SAFETY
 FUND SHALL BE KEPT SEPARATE AND SHALL NOT BE COMMINGLED WITH  ANY  OTHER
 FUNDS IN THE CUSTODY OF THE STATE COMPTROLLER.
   3.  SUCH  FUND SHALL CONSIST OF ALL FINES AND CIVIL PENALTIES RECEIVED
 BY THE DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH, PURSUANT TO THE PROVISIONS OF SECTION TWEN-
 TY-EIGHT HUNDRED NINETY-FIVE-B OF THE PUBLIC HEALTH LAW  AND  ALL  OTHER
 MONEYS  APPROPRIATED,  CREDITED,  OR  TRANSFERRED THERETO FROM ANY OTHER
 FUND OR SOURCE PURSUANT TO LAW. NOTHING CONTAINED IN THIS SECTION  SHALL
 S. 5369                             3
 
 PREVENT  THE  STATE  FROM  RECEIVING  GRANTS,  GIFTS OR BEQUESTS FOR THE
 PURPOSES OF THE FUND AS DEFINED IN THIS SECTION AND DEPOSITING THEM INTO
 THE FUND ACCORDING TO LAW. ANY INTEREST RECEIVED BY THE  COMPTROLLER  ON
 MONEYS  ON  DEPOSIT IN SUCH FUND SHALL BE RETAINED IN AND BECOME PART OF
 SUCH FUND.
   4. MONEYS IN SUCH FUND SHALL BE EXPENDED ONLY  TO  PROVIDE  GRANTS  TO
 ENHANCE  THE  QUALITY OF EMPLOYMENT FOR RESIDENTIAL HEALTH CARE FACILITY
 EMPLOYEES AND ASSIST IN THE RECRUITMENT AND SAFETY OF RESIDENTIAL HEALTH
 CARE FACILITY STAFF.
   5. MONEYS SHALL BE PAYABLE FROM THE FUND ON THE AUDIT AND  WARRANT  OF
 THE COMPTROLLER ON VOUCHERS APPROVED OR CERTIFIED BY THE COMMISSIONER OF
 HEALTH,  OR BY AN OFFICER OR EMPLOYEE OF THE DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH DESIG-
 NATED BY THE COMMISSIONER.
   § 4. This act shall take effect immediately.