(a) Except as provided in subdivision (b), if a resident is notified in writing of a facility-initiated transfer or discharge from a long-term health care facility, the facility shall also send a copy of the notice to the local long-term care ombudsman at the same time notice is provided to the resident or the resident’s representative.
(b) If a resident is subject to a facility-initiated transfer to a general acute care hospital on an emergency basis, the facility shall provide a copy of the notice to the ombudsman as soon as practicable.
(c) The copy of the notice shall be sent by fax machine or email, as may be directed by the local long-term care ombudsman, unless the facility does not have fax or email capability, in which case the copy of the notice shall be sent by first-class mail, postage prepaid. A facility’s failure to timely send a copy of the notice shall constitute a class B violation, as defined in subdivision (e) of Section 1424.
(d) For the purposes of this section, a “facility-initiated transfer or discharge” is a transfer or discharge that is initiated by the facility and not by the resident, whether or not the resident agrees to the facility’s decision.
(Added by Stats. 2017, Ch. 274, Sec. 1. (AB 940) Effective January 1, 2018.)