(a) (1) By August 1, 2011, the department shall develop the Skilled Nursing Facility Quality and Accountability Supplemental Payment System, subject to approval by the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, and the availability of federal, state, or other funds.
(2) (A) The system shall be utilized to provide supplemental payments to skilled nursing facilities that improve the quality and accountability of care rendered to residents in skilled nursing facilities, as defined in subdivision (c) of Section 1250 of the Health and Safety Code, and to penalize those facilities that do not meet measurable standards.
(B) A freestanding pediatric subacute care facility, as defined in Section 51215.8 of Title 22 of the California Code of Regulations, shall be exempt from the Skilled Nursing Facility Quality and Accountability Supplemental Payment System.
(C) Notwithstanding any other law, special program services for the mentally disordered that are entitled to receive the supplemental payment under Section 51511.1 of Title 22 of the California Code of Regulations shall continue to be exempt from the Skilled Nursing Facility Quality and Accountability Supplemental Payment System.
(3) The system shall be phased in, beginning with the 2010–11 rate year.
(4) The department may utilize the system to do all of the following:
(A) Assess overall facility quality of care and quality of care improvement, and assign quality and accountability payments to skilled nursing facilities pursuant to performance measures described in subdivision (i).
(B) Assign quality and accountability payments or penalties relating to quality of care, or direct care staffing levels, wages, and benefits, or both.
(C) Limit the reimbursement of legal fees incurred by skilled nursing facilities engaged in the defense of governmental legal actions filed against the facilities.
(D) Publish each facility’s quality assessment and quality and accountability payments in a manner and form determined by the director, or their designee.
(E) Beginning with the 2011–12 fiscal year, establish a base year to collect performance measures described in subdivision (i).
(F) Beginning with the 2011–12 fiscal year, in coordination with the State Department of Public Health, publish the direct care staffing level data and the performance measures required pursuant to subdivision (i).
(5) The department, in coordination with the State Department of Public Health, shall report to the relevant Assembly and Senate budget subcommittees by May 1, 2016, information on the quality and accountability supplemental payments, including, but not limited to, its assessment of whether the payments are adequate to incentivize quality care and to sustain the program.
(b) (1) There is hereby created in the State Treasury, the Skilled Nursing Facility Quality and Accountability Special Fund. The fund shall contain moneys deposited pursuant to subdivisions (g) and (j) to (m), inclusive. Notwithstanding Section 16305.7 of the Government Code, the fund shall contain all interest and dividends earned on moneys in the fund.
(2) Notwithstanding Section 13340 of the Government Code, the fund shall be continuously appropriated without regard to fiscal year to the department for making quality and accountability payments, in accordance with subdivision (n), to facilities that meet or exceed predefined measures as established by this section through December 31, 2022.
(3) Upon appropriation by the Legislature, moneys in the fund may also be used for any of the following purposes:
(A) To cover the administrative costs incurred by the State Department of Public Health for positions and contract funding required to implement this section.
(B) To cover the administrative costs incurred by the State Department of Health Care Services for positions and contract funding required to implement this section.
(C) To provide funding assistance for the Long-Term Care Ombudsman Program activities pursuant to Chapter 11 (commencing with Section 9700) of Division 8.5.
(c) Any appropriation associated with Chapter 717 of the Statutes of 2010 is not intended to implement Section 1276.65 of the Health and Safety Code.
(d) (1) There is hereby appropriated for the 2010–11 fiscal year, one million nine hundred thousand dollars ($1,900,000) from the Skilled Nursing Facility Quality and Accountability Special Fund to the California Department of Aging for the Long-Term Care Ombudsman Program activities pursuant to Chapter 11 (commencing with Section 9700) of Division 8.5. It is the intent of the Legislature for the one million nine hundred thousand dollars ($1,900,000) from the fund to be in addition to the four million one hundred sixty-eight thousand dollars ($4,168,000) proposed in the Governor’s May Revision for the 2010–11 Budget. It is further the intent of the Legislature to increase this level of appropriation in subsequent years to provide support sufficient to carry out the mandates and activities pursuant to Chapter 11 (commencing with Section 9700) of Division 8.5.
(2) The department, in partnership with the California Department of Aging, shall seek approval from the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services to obtain federal Medicaid reimbursement for activities conducted by the Long-Term Care Ombudsman Program. The department shall report to the fiscal committees of the Legislature during budget hearings on progress being made and any unresolved issues during the 2011–12 budget deliberations.
(e) There is hereby created in the Special Deposit Fund established pursuant to Section 16370 of the Government Code, the Skilled Nursing Facility Minimum Staffing Penalty Account. The account shall contain all moneys deposited pursuant to subdivision (f).
(f) (1) Beginning with the 2010–11 fiscal year, the State Department of Public Health shall use the direct care staffing level data it collects to determine whether a skilled nursing facility has met the nursing hours or direct care service hours per patient per day requirements pursuant to Section 1276.5 or 1276.65, as applicable, of the Health and Safety Code.
(2) (A) Beginning with the 2010–11 fiscal year, the State Department of Public Health shall assess a skilled nursing facility, licensed pursuant to subdivision (c) of Section 1250 of the Health and Safety Code, an administrative penalty if the State Department of Public Health determines that the skilled nursing facility fails to meet the nursing hours or direct care service hours per patient per day requirements pursuant to Section 1276.5 or 1276.65, as applicable, of the Health and Safety Code, as follows:
(i) Twenty-five thousand dollars ($25,000) if the facility fails to meet the requirements for 5 percent or more of the audited days up to 49 percent.
(ii) Fifty thousand dollars ($50,000) if the facility fails to meet the requirements for over 49 percent or more of the audited days.
(B) (i) If the skilled nursing facility does not dispute the determination or assessment, the penalties shall be paid in full by the licensee to the State Department of Public Health within 30 days of the facility’s receipt of the notice of penalty and deposited into the Skilled Nursing Facility Minimum Staffing Penalty Account.
(ii) The State Department of Public Health may, upon written notification to the licensee, request that the department offset any moneys owed to the licensee by the Medi-Cal program or any other payment program administered by the department to recoup the penalty provided for in this section.
(C) (i) If a facility disputes the determination or assessment made pursuant to this paragraph, the facility shall, within 15 days of the facility’s receipt of the determination and assessment, simultaneously submit a request for appeal to both the department and the State Department of Public Health. A request for an appeal may be made by a facility based upon a determination that does not result in an assessment. The request shall include a detailed statement describing the reason for appeal and include all supporting documents the facility will present at the hearing.
(ii) Within 10 days of the State Department of Public Health’s receipt of the facility’s request for appeal, the State Department of Public Health shall submit, to both the facility and the department, all supporting documents that will be presented at the hearing.
(D) The department shall hear a timely appeal and issue a decision as follows:
(i) The hearing shall commence within 60 days from the date of receipt by the department of the facility’s timely request for appeal.
(ii) The department shall issue a decision within 120 days from the date of receipt by the department of the facility’s timely request for appeal.
(iii) The decision of the department’s hearing officer, when issued, shall be the final decision of the State Department of Public Health.
(E) The appeals process set forth in this paragraph shall be exempt from Chapter 4.5 (commencing with Section 11400) and Chapter 5 (commencing with Section 11500), of Part 1 of Division 3 of Title 2 of the Government Code. Sections 100171 and 131071 of the Health and Safety Code do not apply to appeals under this paragraph.
(F) If a hearing decision issued pursuant to subparagraph (D) is in favor of the State Department of Public Health, the skilled nursing facility shall pay the penalties to the State Department of Public Health within 30 days of the facility’s receipt of the decision. The penalties collected shall be deposited into the Skilled Nursing Facility Minimum Staffing Penalty Account.
(G) The assessment of a penalty under this subdivision does not supplant the State Department of Public Health’s investigation process or issuance of deficiencies or citations under Chapter 2.4 (commencing with Section 1417) of Division 2 of the Health and Safety Code.
(g) The State Department of Public Health shall transfer, on a monthly basis, all penalty payments collected pursuant to subdivision (f) into the Skilled Nursing Facility Quality and Accountability Special Fund.
(h) This section does not impact the effectiveness or utilization of Section 1278.5 or 1432 of the Health and Safety Code relating to whistleblower protections, or Section 1420 of the Health and Safety Code relating to complaints.
(i) (1) Beginning in the 2010–11 fiscal year, the department, in consultation with representatives from the long-term care industry, organized labor, and consumers, shall establish and publish quality and accountability measures, benchmarks, and data submission deadlines by November 30, 2010.
(2) The supplemental payment methodology developed pursuant to this section shall include, but not be limited to, the following requirements and performance measures:
(A) Beginning in the 2011–12 fiscal year:
(i) Immunization rates.
(ii) Facility acquired pressure ulcer incidence.
(iii) The use of physical restraints.
(iv) Compliance with the nursing hours or direct care service hours per patient per day requirements pursuant to Section 1276.5 or 1276.65, as applicable, of the Health and Safety Code.
(v) Resident and family satisfaction.
(vi) Direct care staff retention, if sufficient data is available.
(B) If this act is extended beyond the dates on which it becomes inoperative and is repealed, in accordance with Section 14126.033, the department, in consultation with representatives from the long-term care industry, organized labor, and consumers, beginning in the 2013–14 rate year, shall incorporate additional measures into the system, including, but not limited to, quality and accountability measures required by federal health care reform that are identified by the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.
(C) The department, in consultation with representatives from the long-term care industry, organized labor, and consumers, may incorporate additional performance measures, including, but not limited to, the following:
(i) Compliance with state policy associated with the United States Supreme Court decision in Olmstead v. L.C. ex rel. Zimring (1999) 527 U.S. 581.
(ii) Direct care staff retention, if not addressed in the 2012–13 rate year.
(iii) The use of chemical restraints.
(D) Beginning with the 2015–16 fiscal year, the department, in consultation with representatives from the long-term care industry, organized labor, and consumers, shall incorporate direct care staff retention as a performance measure in the methodology developed pursuant to this section.
(E) (i) Beginning with the 2020–21 fiscal year, and only to the extent any necessary federal approvals are obtained, the department may incorporate an additional performance measure based upon a facility’s compliance with any requirements related to the COVID-19 Public Health Emergency described in All Facility Letters issued by the State Department of Public Health. The department shall consult with the State Department of Public Health in determining a facility’s compliance for purposes of this subparagraph.
(ii) For purposes of this subparagraph, “COVID-19 Public Health Emergency” means the federal Public Health Emergency declaration made pursuant to Section 247d of Title 42 of the United States Code on January 30, 2020, entitled “Determination that a Public Health Emergency Exists Nationwide as the Result of the 2019 Novel Coronavirus,” and any renewal of that declaration.
(j) (1) Beginning with the 2010–11 rate year, and pursuant to subparagraph (B) of paragraph (5) of subdivision (a) of Section 14126.023, the department shall set aside savings achieved from setting the professional liability insurance cost category, including any insurance deductible costs paid by the facility, at the 75th percentile. From this amount, the department shall transfer the General Fund portion into the Skilled Nursing Facility Quality and Accountability Special Fund. A skilled nursing facility shall provide supplemental data on insurance deductible costs to facilitate this adjustment, in the format and by the deadlines determined by the department. If this data is not provided, a facility’s insurance deductible costs will remain in the administrative costs category.
(2) Notwithstanding paragraph (1), for the 2012–13 rate year only, savings from capping the professional liability insurance cost category pursuant to paragraph (1) shall remain in the General Fund and shall not be transferred to the Skilled Nursing Facility Quality and Accountability Special Fund.
(k) For the 2013–14 rate year, if there is a rate increase in the weighted average Medi-Cal reimbursement rate, the department shall set aside the first 1 percent of the weighted average Medi-Cal reimbursement rate increase for the Skilled Nursing Facility Quality and Accountability Special Fund.
(l) If this act is extended beyond the dates on which it becomes inoperative and is repealed, for the 2014–15 rate year, in addition to the amount set aside pursuant to subdivision (k), if there is a rate increase in the weighted average Medi-Cal reimbursement rate, the department shall set aside at least one-third of the weighted average Medi-Cal reimbursement rate increase, up to a maximum of 1 percent, from which the department shall transfer the General Fund portion of this amount into the Skilled Nursing Facility Quality and Accountability Special Fund.
(m) Beginning with the 2015–16 rate year, and each subsequent rate or calendar year thereafter for which this article is operative, an amount equal to the amount deposited in the fund pursuant to subdivisions (k) and (l) for the 2014–15 rate year shall be deposited into the Skilled Nursing Facility Quality and Accountability Special Fund, for the purposes specified in this section.
(n) (1) (A) Beginning with the 2013–14 rate year, and through the conclusion of the rate period from August 1, 2020, to December 31, 2020, inclusive, the department shall pay a supplemental payment, by April 30 of each applicable rate year, to skilled nursing facilities based on all of the criteria in subdivision (i), as published by the department, and according to performance measure benchmarks determined by the department in consultation with stakeholders.
(B) For the 2021 and 2022 calendar years, the department shall pay a supplemental payment, by April 30 of each applicable calendar year, to qualified skilled nursing facilities based on the criteria in subdivision (i), as published by the department, and according to performance measure benchmarks determined by the department in consultation with stakeholders.
(C) (i) The department may convene a diverse stakeholder group, including, but not limited to, representatives from consumer groups and organizations, labor, nursing home providers, advocacy organizations involved with the aging community, staff from the Legislature, and other interested parties, to discuss and analyze alternative mechanisms to implement the quality and accountability payments provided to nursing homes for reimbursement.
(ii) The department shall articulate in a report to the fiscal and appropriate policy committees of the Legislature the implementation of an alternative mechanism as described in clause (i) at least 90 days prior to any policy or budgetary changes, and seek subsequent legislation in order to enact the proposed changes.
(2) Skilled nursing facilities that do not submit required performance data by the department’s specified data submission deadlines pursuant to subdivision (i) are ineligible to receive supplemental payments.
(3) Notwithstanding paragraph (1), if a facility appeals the performance measure of compliance with the nursing hours or direct care service hours per patient per day requirements, pursuant to Section 1276.5 or 1276.65, as applicable, of the Health and Safety Code, to the State Department of Public Health, and it is unresolved by the department’s published due date, the department shall not use that performance measure when determining the facility’s supplemental payment.
(4) Notwithstanding paragraph (1), if the department is unable to pay the supplemental payments by April 30, 2014, then on May 1, 2014, the department shall use the funds available in the Skilled Nursing Facility Quality and Accountability Special Fund as a result of savings identified in subdivisions (k) and (l), less the administrative costs required to implement subparagraphs (A) and (B) of paragraph (3) of subdivision (b), in addition to any Medicaid funds that are available as of December 31, 2013, to increase provider rates retroactively to August 1, 2013.
(o) The department shall seek necessary approvals from the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services to implement this section. The department shall implement this section only in a manner that is consistent with federal Medicaid law and regulations, and only to the extent that approval is obtained from the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services and federal financial participation is available and not otherwise jeopardized.
(p) In implementing this section, the department and the State Department of Public Health may contract as necessary, with California’s Medicare Quality Improvement Organization, or other entities deemed qualified by the department or the State Department of Public Health, not associated with a skilled nursing facility, to assist with development, collection, analysis, and reporting of the performance data pursuant to subdivision (i), and with demonstrated expertise in long-term care quality, data collection or analysis, and accountability performance measurement models pursuant to subdivision (i). This subdivision establishes an accelerated process for issuing any contract pursuant to this section. Any contract entered into pursuant to this subdivision is exempt from the requirements of the Public Contract Code.
(q) Notwithstanding Chapter 3.5 (commencing with Section 11340) of Part 1 of Division 3 of Title 2 of the Government Code, the following apply:
(1) The director shall implement this section, in whole or in part, by means of provider bulletins, or other similar instructions without taking regulatory action.
(2) The State Public Health Officer may implement this section by means of all-facility letters, or other similar instructions without taking regulatory action.
(r) Notwithstanding paragraph (1) of subdivision (n), if a final judicial determination is made by any state or federal court that is not appealed, in any action by any party, or a final determination is made by the administrator of the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, that any payments pursuant to subdivisions (a) and (n), are invalid, unlawful, or contrary to federal law or regulations, or of state law, these subdivisions shall become inoperative, and for the 2011–12 rate year, the rate increase provided under subparagraph (A) of paragraph (4) of subdivision (c) of Section 14126.033 shall be reduced by the amounts described in subdivision (j). For the 2013–14 and 2014–15 rate years, any rate increase shall be reduced by the amounts described in subdivisions (j) to (l), inclusive.
(s) Notwithstanding any other provision of this section, but only to the extent the department determines federal financial participation is available and not otherwise jeopardized, for performance periods in the 2017–18 and 2018–19 fiscal years, a skilled nursing facility shall remain eligible to participate in the supplemental payment program pursuant to this section if the facility meets the applicable nursing hours per patient per day requirements pursuant to Section 1276.5 of the Health and Safety Code.
(t) Notwithstanding any provision of this section, but only to the extent the department determines federal financial participation is available and not otherwise jeopardized, compliance with subdivision (c) of Section 1276.65 of the Health and Safety Code, as amended by Chapter 52 of the Statutes of 2017, shall not be used to determine facility qualification for the supplemental payments provided for in this section until the performance period beginning in the 2019–20 fiscal year. This limitation shall also apply to the issuance of citations pursuant to subdivisions (c) and (d) of Section 1424 of the Health and Safety Code based upon the failure to comply with subdivision (c) of Section 1276.65 of the Health and Safety Code as amended by Chapter 52 of the Statutes of 2017. Until the performance period beginning in the 2019–20 fiscal year, the department shall apply Section 1276.5 of the Health and Safety Code for purposes of administering the supplemental payments pursuant to this section. For performance periods beginning in the 2019–20 fiscal year and each fiscal year thereafter, a skilled nursing facility that is granted a waiver pursuant to subdivision (l) of Section 1276.65 of the Health and Safety Code shall remain eligible to participate in the supplemental payment program pursuant to this section so long as the facility meets the applicable nursing hours per patient per day requirement pursuant to Section 1276.5 of the Health and Safety Code that would have applied in the absence of Chapter 52 of the Statutes of 2017 for the duration of the time for which the waiver is granted.
(u) (1) Effective January 1, 2023, the department shall cease to make supplemental payments pursuant to subdivision (n). The department shall be authorized to conduct all necessary closeout activities after this date and to continue implementing this section for supplemental payments applicable to any rate period before January 1, 2023.
(2) The department shall convene a stakeholder process by September 1, 2021, to develop a successor supplemental payment or similar quality-based payment methodology to replace the supplemental payments described in subdivision (n) starting in calendar year 2023.
(v) Any outstanding amount of the quality assurance fee, as calculated pursuant to Section 1324.21 of the Health and Safety Code, or interest assessed pursuant to subdivision (e) of Section 1324.22 of the Health and Safety Code, or penalties assessed pursuant to paragraph (1) of subdivision (h) of Section 1324.22 of the Health and Safety Code for a facility may be deducted by the department from any Medi-Cal payments to the facility, including, but not limited to, supplemental payments pursuant to subdivision (n), until the outstanding amount is paid in full.
(Amended by Stats. 2020, Ch. 13, Sec. 10. (AB 81) Effective June 29, 2020. Conditionally inoperative as provided in subd. (a) of Section 14126.035. Inoperative December 31, 2022, pursuant to Section 14126.036. Repealed as of January 1, 2024, pursuant to Section 14126.036.)