BILL NUMBER: S3361
SPONSOR: RIVERA
 
TITLE OF BILL:
An act to amend the social services law, in relation to medical evalu-
ations for assisted living eligibility
 
PURPOSE:
To allow assisted living program (ALP) medical evaluations to be signed
by a physician, physician assistant, or nurse practitioner.
 
SUMMARY OF SPECIFIC PROVISIONS:
Section 1 amends subdivision 2 of section 461-1 of the Social Services
Law, as it relates to assisted living programs, to allow medical evalu-
ations, used to assess whether the program can appropriately care for an
individual, to be signed by either a physician, physician assistant or a
nurse practitioner within thirty days prior to the date of admission.
Section 2 sets forth the effective date.
 
JUSTIFICATION:
Currently, medical evaluations used to determine if an individual's
health and safety needs can be met in an adult care facility including
assisted living residences, adult homes, and enriched housing programs
can be signed by either a physician, a physician assistant, or a nurse
practitioner, except for the Medicaid-funded assisted living program
(ALP).
The ALP serves individuals who are medically eligible for nursing home
care in a less intensive setting. Services include room and board,
personal care, supervision, housekeeping, nursing, physical therapy,
occupational therapy, speech therapy, and adult day health care, among
others. Before an operator admits an individual to an ALP, they need to
assess that the program can properly meet the needs of the resident,
which is done through a medical evaluation. While not a requirement in
other types of adult care facilities serving seniors with similar needs
and characteristics, the Department of Health (DOH) continues to mandate
a physician's signature in order for the ALP medical evaluation form to
be considered "complete."
Adult care facilities, including those participating in the ALP, do not
employ physicians, so it can be very difficult to find doctors to
complete and sign these forms in a timely manner, especially given the
existing healthcare workforce shortage. This burdensome requirement
effectively delays services for low-income, vulnerable seniors who need
ALP services, and increases costs for providers.
Expanding the types of healthcare professionals who can sign these eval-
uations is a commonsense measure that would go a long way in facilitat-
ing and expediting access to care and in lowering costs for New York
State seniors and the facilities that serve them.
 
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
2024: S9598/A10244 Paulin
 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
None.
 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
Effective immediately.

Statutes affected:
S3361: 461-l social services law, 461-l(2) social services law