BILL ANALYSIS
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|SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | AB 2629|
|Office of Senate Floor Analyses | |
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CONSENT
Bill No: AB 2629
Author: Bonnie Lowenthal (D)
Amended: 6/16/10 in Senate
Vote: 21
SENATE HUMAN SERVICES COMMITTEE : 5-0, 6/22/10
AYES: Liu, Emmerson, Romero, Runner, Yee
SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE : Senate Rule 28.8
ASSEMBLY FLOOR : 72-0, 5/20/10 (Consent) - See last page
for vote
SUBJECT : Residential facilities
SOURCE : Community Residential Care Association of
California
DIGEST : This bill clarifies admission and retention
requirements for temporarily bedridden individuals in adult
residential care facilities and residential care facilities
for the chronically ill.
ANALYSIS :
Existing law:
1. Establishes the California Community Care Act to govern
the licensing of community care facilities, including
residential facilities, adult day programs, therapeutic
CONTINUED
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day services, foster family agencies, foster family
homes, child care centers and family child care homes,
and other community and residential services.
2. Establishes the Department of Social Services (DSS) as
the entity overseeing residential care facilities,
including the following categories:
Residential care facilities for the elderly
(RCFEs).
Community care facilities, including adult
residential care facilities.
Residential care facilities for the
chronically-ill.
3. Requires a prospective applicant for licensure as a
residential care facility to secure and maintain fire
clearance approval from the local fire enforcement
agency or the State Fire Marshal.
4. Defines "bedridden" as either requiring assistance in
turning and repositioning in bed, or being unable to
transfer independently to and from bed, except in
facilities with appropriate and sufficient staff,
mechanical devices if necessary, and safety precautions
as determined by DSS.
5. Allows a bedridden individual to be admitted to, and
remain in, a facility if the facility secures and
maintains an appropriate fire clearance. A fire
clearance will be issued to a facility in which a
bedridden individual resides if the fire safety
requirements are met, or alternative methods of
protection are approved.
6. Specifies that residents who are unable to transfer
independently to and from bed, but who do not need
assistance to turn or reposition in bed, shall be
considered nonambulatory for determining the appropriate
fire safety requirements.
7. Prohibits an RCFE from admitting or retaining a resident
if the resident requires 24-hour, skilled nursing or
intermediate care.
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8. Allows an RCFE to retain a bedridden resident beyond 14
days if all of the following requirements are satisfied:
A. The facility notifies DSS in writing regarding the
temporary illness or recovery from surgery.
B. The facility submits to DSS, the notification and
a physician and surgeon's written statement to the
effect that the resident's illness or recovery is of
a temporary nature. The statement must contain an
estimated date upon which the resident will no longer
be confined to a bed.
C. DSS determines that the health and safety of the
resident is adequately protected in the facility and
that the transfer to a higher level of care is not
necessary.
D. Allowing the resident to remain at the RCFE does
not expand the scope of care and supervision of an
RCFE.
9. Requires an RCFE admitting or retaining a bedridden
resident to notify the local fire authority within 48
hours of the resident's admission or, in the case of
retaining a bedridden individual, the estimated length
of time the resident will retain his or her bedridden
status in the facility.
This bill:
1. Specifies that the status of being bedridden shall not
include a temporary illness or recovery from surgery
that persists for less than two weeks.
2. Specifies that no client shall be admitted to or
retained in a residential facility if he/she requires
24-hour skilled nursing care.
3. Allows a bedridden client to be retained in a
residential facility in excess of 14 days if the
following requirements are met:
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A. The facility notifies DSS in writing that the
person is recovering from a temporary illness or
surgery.
B. The facility submits to DSS a physician and
surgeon's written statement to the effect that the
client's illness or recovery is of a temporary
nature. The statement must contain an estimated date
upon which the illness or recovery is expected to end
or upon which the client is expected to no longer be
confined to bed.
C. DSS determines that the client's health and safety
is adequately protected in the facility and that
transfer to a higher level of care is not necessary.
4. Specifies that by allowing temporarily bedridden
individuals to remain in a residential care facility,
the scope of care and supervision of that facility is
not expanded.
5. States that notwithstanding the length of stay of a
bedridden client, every residential facility admitting
or retaining a bedridden client shall, within 48 hours
of the client's admission or retention in the facility,
notify the local fire authority of the estimated length
of time that the client will be bedridden.
6. Makes clarifying, technical changes to existing law.
Background
DSS is responsible for licensing several types of
residential facilities, however only RCFEs have flexibility
when it comes to admitting or retaining a temporarily
bedridden resident. This bill will extend the same
allowances for temporarily bedridden residents or clients
that exist in RCFEs to adult residential facilities and
residential care facilities for the chronically-ill
licensed by DSS.
Residential care facilities are currently allowed to admit
and retain "bedridden" residents provided the facility
meets certain criteria, including fire safety precautions.
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This bill does not expand the admission or retention
criteria for those facilities, nor does it relax existing
standards for fire safety, care, or staffing.
California has approximately 5,310 licensed adult
residential facilities, with a total capacity of 41,364
residents. In addition, DSS licenses 21 residential care
facilities for the chronically-ill, with a total capacity
of 347 residents.
Prior Legislation
AB 762 (Lowenthal), Chapter 471, Statutes of 2009,
clarified the fire clearance requirements for bedridden
residents of RCFEs to distinguish between residents who are
nonambulatory and residents who are unable to turn or
reposition in bed.
AB 749 (Wolk), Chapter 477, Statutes of 2008, required
RCFEs to have an emergency plan that includes specific
provisions and is available, upon request, to residents
onsite and available to local emergency responders.
SB 1896 (Ortiz), Chapter 817, Statutes of 2000, revised the
definition of "bedridden" to mean either requiring
assistance in turning and repositioning in bed, or being
unable to independently transfer to and from bed, except in
facilities with appropriate and sufficient care staff and
other precautions. The bill also allowed a bedridden
person to be admitted to, and remain in, an RCFE that
secures and maintains an appropriate fire clearance.
FISCAL EFFECT : Appropriation: No Fiscal Com.: Yes
Local: Yes
SUPPORT : (Verified 7/29/10)
Community Residential Care Association of California
(source)
Department of Social Services
ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT : According to the author's office,
this bill will provide uniformity across licensed,
non-medical, adult community care facilities regarding fire
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safety protections for nonambulatory residents who wish to
remain in their "home" when they have a condition that
renders them temporarily bedridden.
ASSEMBLY FLOOR :
AYES: Adams, Ammiano, Anderson, Arambula, Bass, Beall,
Bill Berryhill, Tom Berryhill, Blakeslee, Block,
Blumenfield, Bradford, Brownley, Buchanan, Caballero,
Charles Calderon, Carter, Chesbro, Conway, Cook, Coto,
Davis, De Leon, DeVore, Emmerson, Eng, Feuer, Fong,
Fuentes, Fuller, Furutani, Gaines, Galgiani, Garrick,
Gilmore, Hagman, Hall, Hayashi, Hernandez, Hill, Huber,
Huffman, Jeffries, Jones, Knight, Lieu, Logue, Bonnie
Lowenthal, Ma, Mendoza, Miller, Monning, Nestande,
Niello, Nielsen, Norby, V. Manuel Perez, Portantino,
Ruskin, Salas, Saldana, Silva, Skinner, Smyth, Solorio,
Audra Strickland, Swanson, Torlakson, Torres, Torrico,
Tran, Yamada
NO VOTE RECORDED: De La Torre, Evans, Fletcher, Harkey,
Nava, Villines, John A. Perez, Vacancy
CTW:mw 8/3/10 Senate Floor Analyses
SUPPORT/OPPOSITION: SEE ABOVE
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