The bill seeks to improve the quality of care in nursing homes by revising existing statutes concerning consumer satisfaction surveys and the management of nursing home facilities. It mandates the Agency for Health Care Administration to create user-friendly consumer satisfaction surveys to be administered annually to a random selection of residents and their families, while prohibiting nursing home employees and volunteers from influencing survey responses. The agency is also required to publish aggregated survey data online for consumer comparison and to include these results in the Nursing Home Guide. Additionally, nursing homes must conduct biennial patient safety culture surveys and submit the findings to the agency.

Further provisions in the bill establish qualifications for medical directors of nursing homes, impose administrative fines for non-compliance with financial reporting, and exempt state-operated nursing homes from certain reporting requirements. The bill allows facilities to contest fines by proving their inappropriateness and ensures that a facility cannot be fined multiple times for the same violation. It also revises the methodology for calculating Quality Incentive Program payments to incorporate consumer satisfaction survey results and mandates a comprehensive study of nursing home quality incentive programs in other states, with a report due by December 1, 2025. The act is scheduled to take effect on July 1, 2025.

Statutes affected:
S 170 Filed: 400.141, 400.191, 408.061, 409.908
S 170 c1: 400.141, 400.191, 408.08, 409.908
S 170 c2: 400.141, 400.191, 408.08, 409.908