Part Definitions

  1. Law
  2. Tennessee Code
  3. Health, Safety and Environmental Protection
  4. Health Facilities and Resources
  5. Tennessee Health Services and Planning Act of 2002
  6. Part Definitions

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As used in this part, unless the context otherwise requires:

  1. “Agency” and “health services and development agency” mean the agency created by this part to administer the certificate of need program and related activities;
  2. “Certificate of need” means a permit granted by the health services and development agency to any person for the establishment or modification of a health care institution, facility, or covered health service, at a designated location;
  3. “Conflict of interest” means any matter before the agency in which the member or employee of the agency has a direct or indirect interest that is in conflict or gives the appearance of conflict with the discharge of the member's or employee's duties;
    1. “Direct interest” means a pecuniary interest in the persons involved in a matter before the agency. This interest applies to the agency member or employee, the agency member's or employee's relatives or an individual with whom or business in which the member or employee has a pecuniary interest. For the purposes of this part, a relative is a spouse, parent, child, stepparent, stepchild, grandparent, grandchild, brother, sister, half-brother, half-sister, aunt, uncle, niece, or nephew by blood, marriage or adoption; and
    2. “Indirect interest” means a personal interest in the persons involved in a matter before the agency that is in conflict or gives the appearance of conflict with the discharge of the agency member's or employee's duties;
  4. “Department” means the department of health;
  5. “Ex parte communications” means communications in violation of § 4-5-304 or § 68-11-1607(d);
  6. “Facility” means any real property or equipment owned, leased, or used by a health care institution for any purpose, other than as an investment;
    1. “Health care institution” means any agency, institution, facility, or place, whether publicly or privately owned or operated, that provides health services and that is one (1) of the following: nursing home; recuperation center; hospital; ambulatory surgical treatment center; mental health hospital; intellectual disability institutional habilitation facility; home care organization or any category of service provided by a home care organization for which authorization is required under part 2 of this chapter; outpatient diagnostic center; rehabilitation facility; residential hospice; or nonresidential substitution-based treatment center for opiate addiction;
    2. “Health care institution” does not include:
      1. Ground ambulances;
      2. Homes for the aged;
      3. Any premises occupied exclusively as the professional practice office of a physician licensed pursuant to title 63, chapter 6, part 2 and title 63, chapter 9, or dentist licensed by the state and controlled by such physician or dentist;
      4. Administrative office buildings of public agencies related to health care institutions;
      5. Christian Science sanatoriums operated, or listed and certified, by the First Church of Christ Scientist, Boston, Massachusetts; or
      6. A mental health residential treatment facility;
  8. “Health service” means clinically related services such as diagnostic, treatment or rehabilitative services, and includes those services specified as requiring a certificate of need under § 68-11-1607;
  9. “Home care organization” means any entity licensed as such by the department that is staffed and organized to provide “home health services,” or “hospice services” as defined by § 68-11-201, to patients in either their regular or temporary place of residence;
  10. “Letter of intent” means the form prescribed by the agency that shall require a brief project description, location, estimated project cost, owner of the project and description of services to be performed;
  11. “Licensed beds” means the number of beds licensed by the agency having licensing jurisdiction over the facility;
  12. “Nonresidential substitution-based treatment center for opiate addiction” includes, but is not limited to, stand-alone clinics offering methadone, products containing buprenorphine such as Subutex and Suboxone, or products containing any other formulation designed to treat opiate addiction by preventing symptoms of withdrawal;
  13. “Patient” means and includes, but is not limited to, any person who has an acute or chronic physical or mental illness or injury; who is convalescent, infirm, or has an intellectual or physical disability; or who is in need of obstetrical, surgical, medical, nursing, psychiatric or supervisory care;
  14. “Pediatric patient” means a patient who is fourteen (14) years of age or younger;
  15. “Person” means any individual, trust or estate, firm, partnership, association, stockholder, joint venture, corporation or other form of business organization, the state of Tennessee and its political subdivisions or parts of political subdivisions, and any combination of persons specified in this subdivision (15), public or private; “person” does not include the United States or any agency or instrumentality of the United States, except in the case of voluntary submission to the regulations established by this part;
  16. “Planning division” and “state health planning division” mean the state health planning division of the department of finance and administration, which is created by this part to develop the state health plan and to conduct other related studies;
  17. “Rehabilitation facility” means an inpatient or residential facility that is operated for the primary purpose of assisting in the rehabilitation of physically disabled persons through an integrated program of medical and other services that is provided under professional supervision;
  18. “Review cycle” means the timeframe set for the review and initial decision on applications for certificate of need applications that have been deemed complete. The first day of the month is the first day of the review cycle; and
  19. “State health plan” means the plan that is developed by the state health planning division pursuant to this part. The plan shall include clear statements of goals, objectives, criteria and standards to guide the development of health care programs administered or funded by the state of Tennessee through its departments, agencies or programs, and considered as guidance by the agency when issuing certificates of need.


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