Current through Register No. 40, October 3, 2024
(a) The
department shall impose administrative remedies for violations of RSA 151, He-P
810, or other applicable licensing rules, including:
(1) Requiring a licensee to submit a POC in
accordance with (c) below;
(2)
Imposing a directed POC upon a licensee in accordance with (d) below;
(3) Imposing conditions upon a
license;
(4) Imposing fines upon an
unlicensed individual, applicant, or licensee in accordance with (f) below;
or
(5) Monitoring of a
licensee.
(b) When
administrative remedies are imposed, the department shall provide written
notice, as applicable, which:
(1) Identifies
each area in which the licensee is not in compliance with RSA 151 or a
provision of these rules;
(2)
Identifies the specific remedy(s) that has been imposed; and
(3) Provides the following information:
a. The right to a hearing in accordance with
RSA 541-A and He-C 200 prior to the imposition of a fine; and
b. The automatic reduction of a fine by 25%
if the fine is paid within 10 days of the date on the written notice from the
department and the area of noncompliance has been corrected, or a POC has been
accepted and approved by the department.
(c) A POC shall be developed and complied
with in the following manner:
(1) Upon
receipt of a statement of findings or a notice to correct, the licensee shall
submit its POC for each item, written in the appropriate place on the statement
or notice and containing:
a. How the licensee
intends to correct each area of noncompliance;
b. What measures will be put in place, or
what system changes will be made to ensure that the noncompliance does not
recur; and
c. The date by which
each area of noncompliance shall be corrected;
(2) The licensee shall submit a written POC
to the department within 21 days of the date on the letter that transmitted the
statement of findings or notice to correct unless the licensee requests, either
verbally or in writing, and the department agrees, to extend that deadline,
based on the following criteria:
a. The
licensee demonstrates that he or she has made a good faith effort to develop
and submit the POC within the 21-calendar day period but has been unable to do
so; and
b. The department
determines that the health, safety, or well-being of a client will not be
jeopardized as a result of granting the extension;
(3) The department shall review and accept
each POC that:
a. Achieves compliance with
RSA 151 and He-P 810;
b. Addresses
all areas of noncompliance as cited in the statement of findings or notice to
correct;
c. Prevents a new
violation of RSA 151 or He-P 810 as a result of the implementation of the POC;
and
d. Specifies the date upon
which the areas of noncompliance will be corrected;
(4) If the POC is acceptable, the department
shall issue a license certificate or provide written notification of acceptance
of the POC, whichever is applicable;
(5) If the POC is not acceptable:
a. The department shall notify the licensee
in writing of the reason for rejecting the POC;
b. The licensee shall develop and submit a
revised POC within 14 days of the date of the written notification from the
department that states the original POC was rejected unless, within the 14 day
period, the licensee requests an extension, via telephone or in writing, and
the department grants the extension, based on the following criteria:
1. The licensee demonstrates that he or she
has made a good faith effort to develop and submit the POC within the 14 day
period but has been unable to do so; and
2. The department determines that the health,
safety, or well being of a client will not be jeopardized as a result of
granting the extension;
c. The revised POC shall comply with (c) (1)
above and be reviewed in accordance with (c) (3) above; and
d. If the revised POC is not acceptable to
the department, or is not submitted within 14 days of the date of the written
notification from the department that states the original POC was rejected, or
as extended under (5) b. above, the licensee shall be subject to a directed POC
in accordance with (d) below and a fine in accordance with (f) (11)
below;
(6) The
department shall verify the implementation of any POC that has been submitted
and accepted by:
a. Reviewing materials
submitted by the licensee;
b.
Conducting a follow-up inspection; or
c. Reviewing compliance during the next
annual inspection;
(7)
Verification of the implementation of any POC shall only occur after the date
of completion specified by the licensee in the plan; and
(8) If the POC or revised POC has not been
implemented by the completion date at the time of the next inspection, the
licensee shall be:
a. Notified by the
department in accordance with
He-P
810.12(b) ; and
b. Issued a directed POC in accordance with
(d) below and shall be subject to a fine, as appropriate, in accordance with
(f) (12) below.
(d) The department shall develop and impose a
directed POC that specifies corrective actions for the applicant or licensee to
implement when:
(1) As a result of an
inspection or investigation, areas of noncompliance were identified that
require immediate corrective action to protect the health and safety of the
clients and personnel;
(2) A
revised POC is not submitted within 14 days of the written notification from
the department or such other date as applicable if an extension was granted by
the department; or
(3) A revised
POC submitted by the licensee or administrator has not been accepted.
(e) If, at the time of the next
inspection, the directed POC referenced in (d) above has not been implemented
by the completion date stated in the directed POC, the department shall, as
appropriate:
(1) Impose a fine;
(2) Deny an application for a renewal of a
license in accordance with
He-P
810.13; or
(3) Revoke the license in accordance with
He-P
810.13.
(f) The department shall impose fines as
follows:
(1) For failure to cease providing
unlicensed services after being notified by the department of the need for a
license, in violation of
RSA
151:2, the fine for an applicant or
unlicensed provider shall be $2000.00;
(2) For failure to cease operations after a
denial of a license or after receipt of an order to cease and desist operations
immediately, in violation of
RSA
151:2 and
RSA
541-A:30, the fine for the applicant,
unlicensed provider, or licensee shall be $2000.00;
(3) For advertising services or otherwise
representing themselves as having a license to provide services that the
licensee is not licensed to provide, in violation of
RSA
151:2, III, the fine for an applicant,
licensee, or unlicensed provider shall be $500.00;
(4) For failure to transfer a client whose
needs change such that the needs exceed the services or programs authorized by
the license, in violation of
RSA
151:5-a and
He-P
810.14(k) , the fine for a licensee
shall be $500.00;
(5) For
acceptance or admission of a client whose needs exceed the services or programs
authorized by the licensee's licensing classification, in violation of
RSA
151:5-a and
He-P
810.14(j) , the fine for a licensee
shall be $1000.00;
(6) For failure
to comply with the directives of a warning issued by the department, in
violation of RSA
151:7-a and
He-P
810.11(j) , the fine for an
unlicensed provider or licensee shall be $500.00;
(7) For submitting a renewal application for
a license less than 120 days prior to the expiration date, in violation of
He-P
810.06(b) , the fine for the licensee
shall be $100.00;
(8) For failure
to notify the department prior to a change of ownership, in violation of
He-P
810.08(a) (1) , the fine for a
licensee shall be $500.00;
(9) For
failure to notify the department prior to a change in the physical location, in
violation of He-P 810.08(a) (2)
, the fine for a licensee shall be
$500.00;
(10) For failure to allow
access by the department to a birthing center's programs, services or records,
in violation of He-P 810.14(n)
, the fine for an applicant, unlicensed
provider, or licensee shall be $2000.00;
(11) For failure to submit a POC or a revised
POC, within 21 or 14 days, respectively, of the date on the letter that
transmits the statement of findings or notice to correct, in violation of
He-P
810.12(c) (2) or
He-P
810.12(c) (5) b., the fine for a
licensee shall be $100.00;
(12) For
failure to implement any POC that has been accepted or issued by the
department, in violation of
He-P
810.12(c) (8) , the fine for a
licensee shall be $1000.00;
(13)
For failure to establish, implement, or comply with licensee policies, as
required by He-P 810.14(b)
and He-P
810.14(h) (2) , the fine for a
licensee shall be $500.00;
(14) For
failure to provide medical services required by the license and specified by
He-P
810.15(d) , the fine for a licensee
shall be $500.00;
(15) For
exceeding the licensed capacity of the birthing center, in violation of
He-P
810.14(l) , the fine for a licensee
shall be $500.00 per day, multiplied by the number of unauthorized clients
present;
(16) For furnishing or
making false or misleading statements or reports to the department, or for
falsification of information contained on an application or of any records
required to be maintained for licensing, in violation of
He-P
810.14(e) , the fine for an applicant
or licensee shall be $500.00 per offense;
(17) For failure to meet the needs of the
client, in violation of
He-P
810.14(h) (3) , the fine for a
licensee shall be $500.00;
(18) For
employing an administrator or other personnel who do not meet the
qualifications for the position, in violation of
He-P
810.15(a) and He -P 810.18(d),
respectively, or under circumstances where the department has not granted a
waiver in accordance with
He-P
810.10, the fine for a licensee shall be
$500.00;
(19) For failure to submit
architectural plans or drawings, when applicable, prior to undertaking
construction or renovation of the licensed facility, in violation of
He-P
810.07(a) , the fine for a licensed
facility shall be $500.00;
(20)
When an inspection determines that a violation of RSA 151 or He-P 810 has the
potential to jeopardize the health, safety, or well-being of a client, in
addition to any other enforcement actions taken by the department, the fines
assessed shall be as follows:
a. If the same
area of noncompliance is cited within 2 years of the original area of
noncompliance the fine for a licensee shall be $1000.00; and
b. If the same area of noncompliance is cited
for a third time within 2 years of being fined in a. above, the fine for a
licensee shall be $2000.00 per area of noncompliance;
(21) Each day that the individual or licensee
continues to be in violation of the provisions of RSA 151 or He-P 810 shall
constitute a separate violation and shall be fined in accordance with
He-P
810.12; and
(22) If the applicant or licensee is making
good faith efforts to comply with (4), (6) and (15) above, the department shall
not issue a daily fine.
(g) Payment of any imposed fine to the
department shall meet the following requirements:
(1) Payment shall be made in the form of
check or money order made payable to the "Treasurer, State of New Hampshire" or
cash in the exact amount due; and
(2) Cash, money order, or certified check
shall be required when an applicant or licensee has issued payment to the
department by check, and such check was returned for insufficient
funds.