Current Status Introducing Body:Senate Bill Number:877 Primary Sponsor:McGill Committee Number:13 Type of Legislation:GB Subject:Home therapy agency Residing Body:Senate Computer Document Number:877 Introduced Date:Apr 10, 1991 Last History Body:Senate Last History Date:Apr 10, 1991 Last History Type:Introduced, read first time, referred to Committee Scope of Legislation:Statewide All Sponsors:McGill Type of Legislation:General Bill
Bill Body Date Action Description CMN
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877 Senate Apr 10, 1991 Introduced, read first time, 13
referred to Committee
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TO AMEND CHAPTER 69 OF TITLE 44 OF THE CODE OF LAWS OF SOUTH CAROLINA, 1976, RELATING TO THE LICENSURE OF HOME HEALTH AGENCIES, SO AS TO DEFINE A HOME THERAPY AGENCY AND PROVIDE FOR LICENSING SUCH AGENCIES, AND TO AMEND SECTION 40-33-30 SO AS TO ALLOW REGISTERED NURSES TO PROVIDE HOME THERAPY SERVICES.
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of South Carolina:
SECTION 1. Section 44-69-10 of the 1976 Code is amended to read:
"Section 44-69-10. This chapter may be cited as the `Licensure of Home Health and Home Therapy Agencies Act'."
SECTION 2. Section 44-69-20 of the 1976 Code is amended to read:
"Section 44-69-20. As used in this chapter:
(1) `Board' shall mean the South Carolina Board of Health and Environmental Control.
(2) `Branch office' shall mean a location or site from which a home health agency provides services within a portion of the total geographic area served by the parent agency. The branch office is part of the home health agency and is located sufficiently close to share administration, supervision, and services in a manner that renders it unnecessary for the branch independently to meet the conditions of participation as a home health agency.
(3) `Department' shall mean South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control.
(4) `Home health agency' shall mean public, nonprofit, or proprietary organization, whether owned or operated by one or more persons or legal entities, which furnishes or offers to furnish home health services.
(5) `Home health services' shall mean those items and services furnished to an individual by a home health agency, or by others under arrangement with the home health agency, on a visiting basis, and except for subsection `e' below, in a place of temporary or permanent residence used as the individual's home as follows:
(a) Part-time part-time or intermittent skilled nursing care as ordered by a physician and provided by or under the supervision of a registered nurse and at least one other service listed below;
(b) Physical physical, occupational, or speech therapy;
(c) Medical medical social services, home health aide services, and other therapeutic services;
(d) Medical medical supplies and the use of medical appliances;
(e) Any any of the foregoing items and services which are provided on an outpatient basis under arrangements made by the home health agency with a hospital, nursing care facility, or rehabilitation center and the furnishing of which involves the use of equipment of such a nature that the items and services cannot be readily made available to the individual in his home, or which are furnished at such facility while the patient is there to receive such items or service, but not including transportation of the individual in connection with any such items or services.
(6) `License' shall mean a license issued by the Department department.
(7) `Licensee' shall mean the individual, corporation, or public entity with whom rests the ultimate responsibility for maintaining approved standards for the home health or home therapy agency.
(8) `Parent Home Health Agency' shall mean the agency that develops and maintains administrative controls of subunits or branch offices.
(9) `Physician' shall mean an individual currently licensed to practice medicine, surgery, or osteopathy in this State.
(10)`Registered Nurse' shall mean an individual who is currently licensed as such in this State.
(11)`Subunit' shall mean a semiautonomous organization, which serves patients in a geographic area different from that of the parent agency. The subunit by virtue of the distance between it and the parent agency is judged incapable of sharing administration, supervision, and services on a daily basis with the parent agency and must, therefore, independently meet the conditions of participation for home health agencies.
(12)`Home Therapy Agency' shall mean any person, partnership, association, corporation, or other organization, whether public or private, proprietary or non-profit, which furnishes or offers to furnish home therapy services as defined under Section 44-69-20(13). Such agencies shall not include home health agencies licensed pursuant to this chapter or hospices licensed pursuant to Chapter 71 of Title 44.
(13)`Home Therapy Services' shall mean the providing or coordinating of acute, restorative, rehabilitative, maintenance, preventive, or health promotion services through:
(a) preparation by a licensed pharmacist of intravenous therapies, therapeutic drugs, and nutritional products;
(b) administration of said intravenous therapies, therapeutic drugs, and nutritional products as ordered by a licensed physician; and
(c) performance of specialized skilled nursing services ancillary or necessary to the administration of intravenous therapies, therapeutic drugs, and nutritional products in the home as ordered by a licensed physician."
SECTION 3. Section 44-69-30 of the 1976 Code is amended to read:
"Section 44-69-30. No person, private or public organization, political subdivision, or other governmental agency shall establish, conduct, or maintain a home health or home therapy agency or represent itself as providing home health or home therapy services without first obtaining a license from the Department of Health and Environmental Control. This license is effective for a twelve-month period following the date of issue. A license issued under this chapter is not assignable or transferable and is subject to suspension or revocation at any time for failure to comply with this act. Subunits of parent home health agencies must be separately licensed. The annual license fee per county issued under this section may not exceed the sum of five hundred dollars."
SECTION 4. Section 44-69-60 of the 1976 Code is amended to read:
"Section 44-69-60. The Department department shall promulgate regulations which define standards for the care, treatment, health, safety, welfare, and comfort of patients served by home health or home therapy agencies and for the maintenance and operation of home health or home therapy agencies which will promote safe and adequate care and treatment of the patients. These regulations shall include, but not be limited to, provisions for the geographical area to be served, giving consideration to underserved areas, provisions requiring the agency to have policies established by a professional group, including at least one physician and one registered nurse; provisions governing the services the agency provides; provisions for the supervision of services by a physician or registered nurse as appropriate and maintenance of clinical records on all patients, including a plan of treatment prescribed by a physician. The Department is authorized to issue, deny, suspend or revoke licenses in accordance with regulations promulgated pursuant to this section. Such regulations shall also include hearing procedures related to denial, suspension, or revocation of licenses.
Regulations for home health or home therapy agencies shall include, but not be limited to, provisions for the geographical area to be served, giving consideration to underserved areas, provisions requiring the agency to have policies established by a professional group, including at least one physician and one registered nurse; provisions governing the services the agency provides; provisions for the supervision of services by a physician or registered nurse as appropriate and maintenance of clinical records on all patients, including a plan of treatment prescribed by a physician. The department is authorized to issue, deny, suspend, or revoke licenses in accordance with regulations promulgated pursuant to this section. Such regulations shall also include hearing procedures related to denial, suspension, or revocation of licenses."
SECTION 5. Section 44-69-70 of the 1976 Code is amended to read:
"Section 44-69-70. Each home health or home therapy agency for which a license has been issued shall be inspected by an authorized representative of the department at least once a year. Such inspections shall be for the purpose of ensuring that the provisions of this chapter are being followed. The department is directed to ensure by inspection that the licensee is providing quality care to its patients in accordance with the orders of the patient's physician."
SECTION 6. Section 44-69-80 of the 1976 Code is amended to read:
"Section 44-69-80. Home health and home therapy agencies shall not discriminate based on age, sex, race, color, or source of payment in the recruitment, location of patient, acceptance or provision of goods and services to patients or potential patients, provided that payment offered is not less than the cost of providing services."
SECTION 7. Section 44-69-90 of the 1976 Code is amended to read:
"Section 44-69-90. Home health and home therapy agencies shall not participate in, or offer, or imply an offer to participate in the practice known generally as rebate, kickbacks, or fee-splitting arrangements."
SECTION 8. Section 40-33-30 of the 1976 Code is amended to read:
"Section 40-33-30. The South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control may establish policies whereby duly registered nurses may provide such health care, under the direction of a physician licensed to practice medicine in South Carolina and under the guidance of a registered pharmacist, as the dispensing of drugs for the treatment of tuberculosis and venereal disease, maternal and infant care, crippled children, family planning, immunization, home therapy services as defined by Section 44-69-20(13), and any other public health program now existing, or approved by the South Carolina Medical Association. The original diagnosis and treatment as prescribed by the physician shall be maintained on the individual patient's records.
Such policies as defined by the South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control shall be subordinate to any professional licensing statutes relating to the practice of medicine, pharmacy, and nursing under Title 40."
SECTION 9. This act takes effect upon approval by the Governor.