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hb945_00_IN
As Introduced
136th
General Assembly
Regular
Session
H. B. No. 945
2025-2026
Representatives White, A., Roemer
To
amend sections 3712.01, 3712.03, 3712.04, 3712.06, and 3712.062 and
to enact sections 3712.20 and 3712.21 of the Revised Code
regarding
the regulation of hospice care programs.
BE
IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF OHIO:
Section
1.
That
sections 3712.01, 3712.03, 3712.04, 3712.06, and 3712.062 be amended
and sections 3712.20 and 3712.21 of the Revised Code be enacted to
read as follows:
Sec.
3712.01.
As
used in this chapter:
(A)
"Hospice care program" means a coordinated program of home,
outpatient, and inpatient care and services that is operated by a
person or public agency and that provides the following care and
services to hospice patients, including services as indicated below
to hospice patients' families, through a medically directed
interdisciplinary team, under interdisciplinary plans of care
established pursuant to section 3712.06 of the Revised Code, in order
to meet the physical, psychological, social, spiritual, and other
special needs that are experienced during the final stages of
illness, dying, and bereavement:
(1)
Nursing care by or under the supervision of a registered nurse;
(2)
Physical, occupational, or speech or language therapy, unless waived
by the department of health pursuant to rules adopted under division
(A) of section 3712.03 of the Revised Code;
(3)
Medical social services by a social worker under the direction of a
physician;
(4)
Services of a home health aide;
(5)
Medical supplies, including drugs and biologicals, and the use of
medical appliances;
(6)
Physician's services;
(7)
Short-term inpatient care, including both palliative and respite care
and procedures;
(8)
Counseling for hospice patients and hospice patients' families;
(9)
Services of volunteers under the direction of the provider of the
hospice care program;
(10)
Bereavement services for hospice patients' families.
"Hospice
care program" does not include a pediatric respite care program
or a pediatric transition care program.
(B)
"Hospice patient" means a patient, other than a pediatric
respite care patient, who has been diagnosed as terminally ill, has
an anticipated life expectancy of six months or less, and has
voluntarily requested and is receiving care from a person or public
agency licensed under this chapter to provide a hospice care program.
(C)
"Hospice patient's family" means a hospice patient's
immediate family members, including a spouse, brother, sister, child,
or parent, and any other relative or individual who has significant
personal ties to the patient and who is designated as a member of the
patient's family by mutual agreement of the patient, the relative or
individual, and the patient's interdisciplinary team.
(D)
"Interdisciplinary team" means a working unit composed of
professional and lay persons that includes at least a physician, a
registered nurse, a social worker, a member of the clergy or a
counselor, and a volunteer.
(E)
"Palliative care" means specialized care for a patient of
any age who has been diagnosed with a serious or life-threatening
illness that is provided at any stage of the illness by an
interdisciplinary team working in consultation with other health care
professionals, including those who may be seeking to cure the
illness, and that aims to do all of the following:
(1)
Relieve the symptoms, stress, and suffering resulting from the
illness;
(2)
Improve the quality of life of the patient and the patient's family;
(3)
Address the patient's physical, emotional, social, and spiritual
needs;
(4)
Facilitate patient autonomy, access to information, and medical
decision making.
(F)
"Physician" means a person authorized under Chapter 4731.
of the Revised Code to practice medicine and surgery or osteopathic
medicine and surgery.
(G)
"Attending physician" means the physician identified by the
hospice patient, pediatric respite care patient, hospice patient's
family, or pediatric respite care patient's family as having primary
responsibility for the medical care of the hospice patient or
pediatric respite care patient.
(H)
"Registered nurse" means a person registered under Chapter
4723. of the Revised Code to practice professional nursing.
(I)
"Social worker" means a person licensed under Chapter 4757.
of the Revised Code to practice as a social worker or independent
social worker.
(J)
"Pediatric respite care program" means a program operated
by a person or public agency that provides inpatient respite care and
related services, including all of the following services, only to
pediatric respite care patients and, as indicated below, pediatric
respite care patients' families, in order to meet the physical,
psychological, social, spiritual, and other special needs that are
experienced during or leading up to the final stages of illness,
dying, and bereavement:
(1)
Short-term inpatient care, including both palliative and respite care
and procedures;
(2)
Nursing care by or under the supervision of a registered nurse;
(3)
Physician's services;
(4)
Medical social services by a social worker under the direction of a
physician;
(5)
Medical supplies, including drugs and biologicals, and the use of
medical appliances;
(6)
Counseling for pediatric respite care patients and pediatric respite
care patients' families;
(7)
Bereavement services for respite care patients' families.
"Pediatric
respite care program" does not include a pediatric transition
care program or hospice care program.
(K)
"Pediatric transition care program" means a program
operated by a person or public agency that arranges for the provision
of health care and related services in a private home setting,
including all of the following services, only to pediatric transition
care patients, who are not related by birth or adoption to the person
that arranges for the provision of health care and related services,
and, as indicated below, the parents of pediatric transition care
patients, in order to meet the physical, psychological, social,
spiritual, and other special needs of children who have been
diagnosed with life-threatening diseases and conditions:
(1)
Inpatient care and procedures;
(2)
Skilled nursing care;
(3)
Nursing care by or under the supervision of a registered nurse;
(4)
Physician's services;
(5)
Medical supplies, including drugs and biologicals, and the use of
medical appliances;
(6)
For a pediatric transition care patients' parents, counseling,
education, and visitation to promote reunification.
"Pediatric
transition care program" does not include a hospice care program
or a pediatric respite care program.
(L)
"Pediatric respite care patient" means a patient, other
than a hospice patient, who is less than twenty-seven years of age
and to whom all of the following conditions apply:
(1)
The patient has been diagnosed with a disease or condition that is
life-threatening and is expected to shorten the life expectancy that
would have applied to the patient absent the patient's diagnosis,
regardless of whether the patient is terminally ill.
(2)
The diagnosis described in division (L)(1) of this section occurred
while the patient was less than eighteen years of age.
(3)
The patient, or the parent or guardian of the patient if the patient
is under eighteen years of age or under guardianship, has voluntarily
requested and is receiving care from a person or public agency
licensed under this chapter to provide a pediatric respite care
program.
(M)
"Pediatric transition care patient" means a patient, other
than a hospice patient, who is less than twenty-seven years of age
and to whom all of the following conditions apply:
(1)
The patient has been diagnosed with a disease or condition that is
life-threatening and is expected to shorten the life expectancy that
would have applied to the patient absent the patient's diagnosis,
regardless of whether the patient is terminally ill.
(2)
The diagnosis described in division (M)(1) of this section occurred
when the patient was less than eighteen years of age.
(3)
The patient, or the parent or guardian of the patient if the patient
is under eighteen years of age or under guardianship, has voluntarily
requested and is receiving care from a person or public agency
registered under this chapter to provide a pediatric transition care
program.
(N)
"Pediatric respite care patient's family" means a pediatric
respite care patient's family members, including a spouse, brother,
sister, child, or parent, and any other relative or individual who
has significant personal ties to the patient and who is designated as
a member of the patient's family by mutual agreement of the patient,
the relative or individual, and the patient's interdisciplinary team.
(O)
"Skilled nursing care" means procedures that require
technical skills and knowledge beyond those the untrained person
possesses and that are commonly employed in providing for the
physical, mental, and emotional needs of the ill or otherwise
incapacitated. "Skilled nursing care" includes the
following:
(1)
Irrigations, catheterizations, application of dressings, and
supervision of special diets;
(2)
Objective observation of changes in the patient's condition as a
means of analyzing and determining the nursing care required and the
need for further medical diagnosis and treatment;
(3)
Special procedures contributing to rehabilitation;
(4)
Administration of medication by any method ordered by a physician,
such as hypodermically, rectally, or orally, including observation of
the patient after receipt of the medication;
(5)
Carrying out other treatments prescribed by the physician that
involve a similar level of complexity and skill in administration.
(P)
"Medical director" means the physician responsible for
overseeing the clinical care, regulatory compliance, and medical
quality of a hospice care program.
Sec.
3712.03.
(A)
In accordance with Chapter 119. of the Revised Code, the director of
health shall adopt, and may amend and rescind, rules:
(1)
Providing for the licensing of persons or public agencies providing
hospice care programs within this state by the department of health
and for the suspension and revocation of licenses;
(2)
Establishing
a license fee and license renewal fee for hospice care programs,
neither of which shall, except as provided in division (B) of this
section, exceed six hundred dollars. The fees shall cover the
three-year period during which an existing license is valid as
provided in division (B) of section 3712.04 of the Revised Code.
(3)
Establishing an inspection fee for hospice care programs not to
exceed, except as provided in division (B) of this section, one
thousand seven hundred fifty dollars;
(4)
(3)
Establishing requirements for hospice care program facilities and
services;
(5)
(4)
Establishing procedures a hospice care program must follow while
investigating a sign of suspected diversion of controlled substances
containing opioids pursuant to division (B)(5) of section 3712.062 of
the Revised Code;
(6)
(5)
Establishing requirements for reporting to a local law enforcement
agency pursuant to division (B)(6) of section 3712.062 of the Revised
Code the results of an investigation of suspected diversion;
(7)
(6)
Providing for a waiver of the requirement for the provision of
physical, occupational, or speech or language therapy contained in
division (A)(2) of section 3712.01 of the Revised Code when the
requirement would create a hardship because such therapy is not
readily available in the geographic area served by the provider of a
hospice care program;
(8)
(7)
Providing for the granting of licenses to provide hospice care
programs to persons and public agencies that are accredited or
certified to provide such programs by an entity whose standards for
accreditation or certification equal or exceed those provided for
licensure under this chapter and rules adopted under it;
(9)
(8)
Establishing interpretive guidelines for each rule adopted under this
section.
(B)
Subject
to the approval of the controlling board, the director may establish
fees in excess of the maximum amounts specified in this section,
provided that the fees do not exceed those amounts by greater than
fifty per cent
The
department of health may adopt rules exempting hospice care programs
located in rural areas from the prohibition against an individual
serving as the medical director for more than two hospice care
programs pursuant to section 3712.20 of the Revised Code
.
(C)
The department of health shall:
(1)
Grant, suspend, and revoke licenses for hospice care programs in
accordance with this chapter and rules adopted under it;
(2)
Make such inspections as are necessary to determine whether hospice
care program facilities and services meet the requirements of this
chapter and rules adopted under it; and
(3)
Implement and enforce provisions of this chapter and rules adopted
under it as such provisions apply to hospice care programs.
Sec.
3712.04.
(A)
Every person or public agency that proposes to provide a hospice care
program shall apply to the department of health for a license.
Application shall be made on forms prescribed and provided by the
department
,
shall include such information as the department requires,
and shall be accompanied by
the
a
license
fee
established
by rules of the director of health adopted under division (A) of
section 3712.03 of the Revised Code
of
seven hundred dollars
.
The name of the hospice care program on the application shall match
the name of the program listed on any certification through the
United States centers for medicare and medicaid services, and the
application shall include all of the following information:
(1)
The name of any person owning thirty per cent or more of the hospice
care program;
(2)
The name of the chief administrator of the hospice care program;
(3)
The name of the medical director;
(4)
Any other names the program uses;
(5)
The following information pertaining to any person that owns thirty
per cent or more of the hospice care program, the chief
administrator, and the medical director:
(a)
Professional discipline;
(b)
Suspension or revocation of the health care facility license of a
facility that was owned in whole or in part by the person or where
the chief administrator or medical director served as an
administrator or medical director;
(c)
Whether the person, chief administrator, or medical director has been
charged with, convicted of, or pleaded guilty to a crime pertaining
to health care fraud or abuse.
(6)
Evidence that a criminal records check has been requested pursuant to
division (E) of this section for each person that owns thirty per
cent or more of the hospice care program, the chief administrator,
and the medical director.
(7)
Any other information required by the department, including
information described in division (F) of this section.
The
department shall grant a license to the applicant if the applicant is
in compliance with this chapter and rules adopted under it.
The department shall not grant a license to the applicant if the
department has evidence that the applicant or any person that owns
thirty per cent or more of the hospice care program, the chief
administrator, or the medical director has been excluded from
participation in medicare or medicaid or convicted of or pleaded
guilty to a crime pertaining to health care fraud or abuse.
(B)
Each
person or public agency applying for a hospice care program license
under this section shall, upon license approval, immediately post a
surety bond with the department in the amount of one hundred thousand
dollars and shall maintain the bond for five years after the initial
license is granted. The bond shall be for the payment of civil
penalties or costs resulting from enforcement actions.
(C)
A
license granted under this section shall be valid for
three
years
one
year
.
Application for renewal of a license shall be
accompanied by a seven hundred dollar renewal fee and shall be
made at least ninety days before the expiration of the license in the
same manner as for an initial license, except that, if the program
provides hospice care and services in a hospice patient's home, the
application for renewal shall include written evidence demonstrating
that the applicant is in compliance with section 3712.062 of the
Revised Code.
The
application for renewal shall include all information required for
initial licensure under division (A) of this section.
The
department shall renew the license if the applicant meets the
requirements of this chapter and rules adopted under it.
(C)
(D)
Subject to Chapter 119. of the Revised Code, the department may
suspend or revoke a license
if
the
for
any of the following reasons:
(1)
The
licensee
made any material misrepresentation in the application for the
license or no longer meets the requirements of this chapter or rules
adopted under it
.
(2)
Any person that owns thirty per cent or more of the hospice care
program has been excluded from participation in medicare or medicaid
or has been convicted of or pleaded guilty to a crime pertaining to
health care fraud or abuse.
(3)
Another hospice care program is licensed at the same business
address.
(4)
The hospice care program was subject to a reduced annual payment
penalty by the United States centers for medicare and medicaid
services for failure to meet hospice quality reporting requirements.
(5)
In the preceding twelve months, the hospice care program did not
provide services to any patient.
(6)
The chief administrator of the hospice care program is recorded as
the chief administrator for another hospice care program.
(7)
Except as permitted by rule, the medical director is recorded as the
medical director for more than two hospice care programs.
(8)
In the preceding thirty-six months, the hospice care program reported
a hospice aggregate cap utilization rate greater than eighty per cent
of the hospice aggregate cap set by the United States centers for
medicare and medicaid services
.
(D)
(E)
Each person or public agency applying for a hospice care program
license under this section shall request that the superintendent of
the bureau of criminal identification and investigation conduct a
criminal records check of each person owning thirty per cent or more
of the hospice care program, the chief administrator of the hospice
care program, and the medical director in the same manner as a
criminal records check is requested for an applicant pursuant to
section 3712.09 of the Revised Code.
(F)
If the person or public agency applying for a hospice care program
license under this section has a primary residence or business
address that is located outside of this state, the department may
require the submission of both of the following:
(1)
The results of any inspection or survey conducted on a hospice care
program that shares at least thirty per cent ownership with the
hospice care program for which the person or public agency is seeking
a license;
(2)
Disclosure of negative performance history for any chief
administrator of the hospice care program or medical director in the
ten years preceding the date of application, including professional
discipline and any charge, conviction, or guilty plea for a crime
pertaining to health care fraud or abuse.
(G)
A
hospital, nursing home, home for the aged, county medical care
facility, or other health facility or agency that provides a hospice
care program shall be licensed to provide a hospice care program
under this section.
(E)
(H)
A nursing home licensed under Chapter 3721. of the Revised Code that
does not hold itself out to be a hospice, does not hold itself out as
providing a hospice care program, does not use the term hospice to
describe or refer to its activities or facilities, and that does not
provide all of the services enumerated in division (A) of section
3712.01 of the Revised Code is not subject to the licensing
provisions of this chapter.
(I)(1)
A hospice care program licensed under this section shall not undergo
any change in ownership for at least five years after the date the
license is first issued, unless an owner is deceased. Any change in
ownership of more than thirty per cent ownership interest shall be
accompanied by a change in ownership application. The application
shall be made on forms prescribed and provided by the department and
shall include all information required for initial licensure under
division (A) of this section.
(2)
If the hospice care program applying for a change in ownership has a
surety bond with the department pursuant to division (B) of this
section, that surety bond shall be maintained for five years after
the change in ownership application is approved by the department. If
the hospice care program does not have a surety bond with the
department, the license holder shall post a surety bond with the
department in the amount of one hundred thousand dollars and shall
maintain the bond for five years after the change in ownership
application is approved by the department. The bond shall be for the
payment of civil penalties or costs resulting from enforcement
actions.
(3)
Within six months after approving a change in ownership application,
the department shall conduct a survey of the hospice care program for
compliance with the requirements of this chapter or rules adopted
under it.
Sec.
3712.06.
Any
person or public agency licensed under section 3712.04 of the Revised
Code to provide a hospice care program shall:
(A)
Provide a planned and continuous hospice care program, the medical
components of which shall be under the direction of a physician;
(B)
Ensure that care
from a nurse licensed under Chapter 4723. of the Revised Code
is available
within
two hours
twenty-four
hours a day and seven days a week;
(C)
Establish an interdisciplinary plan of care for each hospice patient
and the patient's family that:
(1)
Is coordinated by one designated individual who shall ensure that all
components of the plan of care are addressed and implemented;
(2)
Addresses maintenance of patient-family participation in decision
making; and
(3)
Is periodically reviewed by the patient's attending physician and by
the patient's interdisciplinary team.
(D)
Have an interdisciplinary team or teams that provide or supervise the
provision of care and establish the policies governing the provision
of the care;
(E)
Provide bereavement counseling for hospice patients' families;
(F)
Not discontinue care because of a hospice patient's inability to pay
for the care;
(G)
Maintain central clinical records on all hospice patients under its
care; and
(H)
Provide care in individuals' homes, on an outpatient basis, and on a
short-term inpatient basis.
A
provider of a hospice care program may include pharmacist services
among the other services that are made available to its hospice
patients.
A
provider of a hospice care program may arrange for another person or
public agency to furnish a component or components of the hospice
care program pursuant to a written contract. When a provider of a
hospice care program arranges for a hospital, a home providing
nursing care, or home health agency to furnish a component or
components of the hospice care program to its patient, the care shall
be provided by a licensed, certified, or accredited hospital, home
providing nursing care, or home health agency pursuant to a written
contract under which:
(1)
The provider of a hospice care program furnishes to the contractor a
copy of the hospice patient's interdisciplinary plan of care that is
established under division (C) of this section and specifies the care
that is to be furnished by the contractor;
(2)
The regimen described in the established plan of care is continued
while the hospice patient receives care from the contractor, subject
to the patient's needs, and with approval of the coordinator of the
interdisciplinary team designated pursuant to division (C)(1) of this
section;
(3)
All care, treatment, and services furnished by the contractor are
entered into the hospice patient's medical record;
(4)
The designated coordinator of the interdisciplinary team ensures
conformance with the established plan of care; and
(5)
A copy of the contractor's medical record and discharge summary is
retained as part of the hospice patient's medical record.
Any
hospital contracting for inpatient care shall be encouraged to offer
temporary limited privileges to the hospice patient's attending
physician while the hospice patient is receiving inpatient care from
the hospital.
(I)
Notify a veteran, spouse, surviving spouse, or representative on
behalf of the veteran, seeking services from the hospice care agency
that the veteran, spouse, or surviving spouse, may be eligible for
health care or financial benefits through the United States
department of veterans affairs and provide the veteran, spouse,
surviving spouse, or representative with information about
congressionally chartered veterans service organizations or the
county veterans service office that can assist with investigating and
applying for benefits through the United States department of
veterans affairs. As used in this division, "veteran" has
the same meaning as in section 5901.01 of the Revised Code.
(J)
Maintain a commercial office independent from any other business that
has both:
(1)
Visible signage;
(2)
Basic operational infrastructure including secure file storage and a
telephone line that is answered twenty-four hours a day and seven
days a week.
Sec.
3712.062.
(A)
Each hospice care program licensed under this chapter that provides
hospice care and services in a hospice patient's home shall establish
a written policy establishing procedures to be followed in preventing
the diversion of controlled substances containing opioids that are
prescribed to its hospice patients. The policy shall include
procedures for the disposal of any such drugs prescribed to a hospice
patient as part of the patient's interdisciplinary plan of care that
are relinquished to the program after the patient's death or that
otherwise are no longer needed by the patient. The policy shall
require that the disposal be documented by a program employee and
conducted in any of the following ways:
(1)
Performed by a program employee and witnessed by the patient or
patient's family member;
(2)
Performed by the patient or patient's family member and witnessed by
a program employee;
(3)
Performed by a program employee and witnessed by another program
employee.
(B)
As part of a hospice patient's interdisciplinary plan of care
required by section 3712.06 of the Revised Code, each hospice care
program that provides hospice care and services in the patient's home
shall do all of the following:
(1)
Before providing hospice care and services, distribute a copy of the
written policy established under division (A) of this section to the
patient and patient's family and discuss the procedures included in
the policy with the patient and patient's family;
(2)
Assess the patient, the patient's family, and the care environment
for any risk factors associated with diversion;
(3)
Maintain records of controlled substances containing opioids
prescribed to the patient and included in the patient's
interdisciplinary plan of care, including accurate counts of the
numbers dispensed and used;
(4)
Monitor the use and consumption of controlled substances containing
opioids prescribed to the patient and included in the patient's
interdisciplinary plan of care, including prescription refills, for
signs of diversion;
(5)
Investigate any sign of suspected diversion in accordance with rules
adopted under division (A)(5) of section 3712.03 of the Revised Code.
(6)
Report the results of an investigation of suspected diversion to the
local law enforcement agency with jurisdiction over the territory in
which the hospice patient's home is located in accordance with rules
adopted under division (A)(6) of section 3712.03 of the Revised Code;
(7)
Before providing hospice care and services, inform the patient and
the patient's family that the hospice care program will dispose of
any controlled substances containing opioids that are no longer
needed by the patient and were included in the patient's
interdisciplinary plan of care;
(8)
After the patient's death or when no longer needed by the patient,
request, in writing, that the patient or patient's family relinquish
to the program for disposal any remaining controlled substances
containing opioids that were included in the patient's
interdisciplinary plan of care to the program;
(9)
Report to the local law enforcement agency with jurisdiction over the
territory in which the hospice patient's home is located the quantity
and type of any remaining controlled substances containing opioids
that were included in the patient's interdisciplinary plan of care
and were not relinquished to the program by the patient or patient's
family.
(C)
If a hospice care program complies with divisions (B)(8) and (9) of
this section, none of the following shall be liable in damages to any
person or government entity in a civil action for injury, death, or
loss to person or property that allegedly arises from an action or
omission relative to this section unless the action or omission
constitutes willful or wanton misconduct: the program; a program
employee, officer, or director; or a prescriber of controlled
substances containing opioids that were included in the patient's
interdisciplinary plan of care.
(D)
No person who receives a written request under division (B)(8) of
this section shall fail to relinquish controlled substances
containing opioids that were included in a patient's
interdisciplinary plan of care.
(E)
Following a report from a hospice program under division (B)(9) of
this section, the local law enforcement agency with jurisdiction over
the territory in which the hospice patient's home is located shall
investigate and dispose of the remaining controlled substances
containing opioids that were reported to the agency pursuant to
division (B)(9) of this section.
(F)
After a review of the written evidence submitted under division
(B)
(C)
of section 3712.04 of the Revised Code with an application for
license renewal, if the department determines that the program is not
in compliance with this section, the department may suspend the
program's license for not more than six months and impose a fine not
to exceed twenty thousand dollars.
(G)
Not later than one year after the effective date of this section, the
director of health shall adopt rules in accordance with Chapter 119.
of the Revised Code establishing standards and procedures for the
submission and review of the written evidence required by division
(B)
(C)
of section 3712.04 of the Revised Code for renewal of a hospice care
program license.
Sec.
3712.20.
(A)(1)
No individual shall serve as the chief administrator for more than
one hospice care program licensed under section 3712.04 of the
Revised Code unless each hospice care program for whom the individual
serves as the chief administrator shares at least fifty per cent
ownership in common.
(2)
No individual shall serve as the medical director for more than two
hospice care programs licensed under section 3712.04 of the Revised
Code unless each hospice care program for whom the individual serves
as the medical director shares at least fifty per cent ownership in
common, except that the department of health may adopt rules
exempting hospice care programs located in rural areas from this
prohibition.
(B)
Any person or public agency licensed under section 3712.04 of the
Revised Code to provide a hospice care program shall notify the
department of health within ten calendar days of employing a new
chief administrator or medical director.
Sec.
3712.21.
(A)The
department of health
,
in consultation with associations representing hospice care programs,
shall do both of the following:
(1)
Select a set of hospice care measures to be monitored by the
department using data available through the United States centers for
medicare and medicaid services, including measures that capture:
(a)
Live discharge rates;
(b)
Length of stay;
(c)
Family satisfaction;
(d)
Service delivery;
(e)
Transitions of care.
(2)
Establish thresholds for measures selected under division (A)(1) of
this section that require the department to conduct a survey of the
program within six months for compliance with the requirements of
this chapter and rules adopted under it.
(B)
On a quarterly basis, the department shall monitor the measures
selected under division (A)(1) of this section for hospice care
programs licensed under section 3712.04 of the Revised Code and may
contract with a data management company to fulfill this requirement.
Section
2.
That
existing sections 3712.01, 3712.03, 3712.04, 3712.06, and 3712.062 of
the Revised Code are hereby repealed.
Section
3.
(A)
Except as provided in division (B) of this section, the Department of
Health shall not do either of the following until six months after
the effective date of this section:
(1)
Issue a new license under section 3712.04 of the Revised Code to a
person or public agency that proposes to provide a hospice care
program;
(2)
Accept an application for a hospice care program change of ownership,
unless an owner is deceased.
(B)
The Department of Health may issue a license under section 3712.04 of
the Revised Code within six months after the effective date of this
section if the Department determines there is a demonstrated need in
the geographic area the hospice care program would serve.
(C)
Notwithstanding division (I)(3) of section 3712.04 of the Revised
Code, for applications for change in ownership of a hospice care
program that are filed within fifteen months after the effective date
of this section, the Department of Health has until the date that is
twenty-four months after the effective date of this section to
complete the change of ownership survey required under that division.