Current through Register Vol. 50, No. 9, September 20, 2024
A. No
hospice provider shall be licensed to operate unless the FNR Program has
granted an approval for the issuance of a hospice provider license. Once the
FNR Program approval is granted, a hospice provider is eligible to be licensed
by the department, subject to meeting all of the requirements for
licensure.
B. The service area for
proposed or existing hospice providers is within a 50 mile radius of the
proposed geographic location where the provider is or will be
licensed.
C. Determination of
Need/Approval
1. The department will review
the application to determine if there is a need for an additional hospice
provider within a 50 mile radius of the proposed geographic location for which
the application is submitted.
2.
The department shall grant FNR approval only if the FNR application, the data
contained in the application and other evidence effectively establishes the
probability of serious, adverse consequences to the recipients' ability to
access hospice care if the provider is not allowed to be licensed.
3. In reviewing the application, the
department may consider, but is not limited to, evidence showing:
a. the number of other hospice providers
within a 50 mile radius of the proposed geographic location servicing the same
population; and
b. allegations
involving issues of access to hospice care and services.
4. The burden is on the applicant to provide
data and evidence to effectively establish the probability of serious, adverse
consequences to recipients' ability to access hospice care if the provider is
not allowed to be licensed. The department shall not grant any FNR approvals if
the application fails to provide such data and evidence.
D. Applications for approvals of licensed
providers submitted under these provisions are bound to the description in the
application with regard to the type of services proposed as well as to the site
and location as defined in the application. FNR approval of licensed providers
shall expire if these aspects of the application are altered or
changed.
E. FNR approvals for
licensed providers are non-transferrable and are limited to the location and
the name of the original licensee.
1. A
hospice provider undergoing a change of location within a 50 mile radius of the
licensed geographic location shall submit a written attestation of the change
of location and the department shall re-issue the FNR approval with the name
and new location. A hospice provider undergoing a change of location outside of
the 50 mile radius of the licensed geographic location shall submit a new FNR
application and fee and undergo the FNR approval process.
2. A hospice provider undergoing a change of
ownership shall submit a new FNR application to the department's FNR Program.
FNR approval for the new owner shall be granted upon submission of the new
application and proof of the change of ownership, which must show the seller's
or transferor's intent to relinquish the FNR approval.
3. FNR approval of a licensed provider shall
automatically expire if the hospice agency is moved or transferred to another
party, entity or location without an application being made to, and approval
from, the FNR Program.
F.
The following time frames shall apply for complying with the requirements for
obtaining approval of architectural plans and/or licensure.
1. Outpatient hospice agencies shall be
licensed within six months from the date of the FNR approval.
2. Inpatient hospice facilities which are to
be licensed in existing buildings shall have final architectural plans approved
no later than six months from the date of the FNR approval. Such facilities
shall be licensed within one year from the date of the FNR approval.
3. Inpatient hospice facilities which are to
be licensed in newly constructed buildings shall have final architectural plans
approved no later than six months from the date of the FNR approval. Such units
shall be licensed within 24 months from the date of the FNR approval.
4. A one-time 90-day extension may be
granted, at the discretion of the department, when delays are caused by
circumstances beyond the control of the applicant.
5. Failure to meet any of the timeframes in
this Section could result in an automatic expiration of the FNR approval of the
hospice agency or facility.
AUTHORITY NOTE:
Promulgated in accordance with
R.S.
40:2116.
