Assembly Bill No. 402–Assemblymen Sherer, Knecht, Brown, Collins, Conklin, Geddes, Hettrick, Koivisto and Marvel

 

CHAPTER..........

 

AN ACT relating to health care; requiring a person to obtain the approval of the State Health Officer before operating a new medical helicopter under certain circumstances; revising the requirements concerning the approval by the Director of the Department of Human Resources of certain construction projects on behalf of a health facility; and providing other matters properly relating thereto.

 

THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEVADA, REPRESENTED IN

SENATE AND ASSEMBLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

 

    Section 1. Chapter 439A of NRS is hereby amended by

adding thereto a new section to read as follows:

    1.  No person may operate or undertake any proposed

expenditure for the operation of a new medical helicopter that will

provide medical helicopter services in an area located within 150

miles from the base of an existing medical helicopter without first

applying for and obtaining the written approval of the State

Health Officer or the designee of the State Health Officer.

    2.  Except as otherwise provided in subsection 3, the State

Health Officer or the designee of the State Health Officer may

approve an application submitted pursuant to subsection 1 only if

the applicant demonstrates that:

    (a) Based on the needs of the specific population to be served

by the new medical helicopter and on the projected number of

persons who have or will have a need for the proposed service, the

population to be served has a need for the new medical helicopter;

    (b) The existing medical helicopter services in the area to be

served by the new medical helicopter cannot or will not meet the

projected needs of the population to be served by the new medical

helicopter;

    (c) The applicant has the financial stability to provide medical

helicopter services to the population to be served by the new

medical helicopter for a significant period of time;

    (d) The new medical helicopter will result in a significant

savings in costs for users of and payors for medical helicopter

services;

    (e) The new medical helicopter will not have an adverse effect

on the quality of care provided to users of medical helicopter

services and will not have an unnecessarily negative effect on the

cost of medical helicopter services for users of or payors for such

services; and

    (f) The approval of the application will not adversely affect an

existing provider of medical helicopter services.

    3.  The State Health Officer or the designee of the State

Health Officer shall not approve an application submitted

pursuant to subsection 1 if:

    (a) The applicant fails to provide sufficient, relevant,

demonstrative evidence for the approval of the application; or

    (b) The evidence opposing the application outweighs the

evidence supporting the application.

    4.  In determining whether to approve an application

submitted pursuant to subsection 1, the State Health Officer or the

designee of the State Health Officer shall:

    (a) Contact existing providers of medical helicopter services,

ensure that existing providers of medical helicopter services have

an opportunity to participate in any public hearing concerning the

application, and seek the input of existing providers of medical

helicopter services concerning the application; and

    (b) Consider:

        (1) The level of medical care to be provided by the applicant

to the population to be served by the new medical helicopter;

        (2) The impact of the new medical helicopter on the rates,

quality of service and safety of existing providers of medical

helicopter services and on the level of medical care provided by

such providers;

        (3) The effect of the new medical helicopter on the cost of

health care services; and

        (4) Any other information the State Health Officer or the

designee of the State Health Officer deems relevant.

    5.  An applicant whose application is rejected pursuant to this

section may appeal the decision of the State Health Officer or the

designee of the State Health Officer to the State Board of Health.

The decision of the State Board of Health is a final decision for

the purposes of judicial review.

    6.  As used in this section, “medical helicopter” means a

helicopter especially designed, constructed, modified or equipped

to be used for the transportation of injured or sick persons. The

term does not include any commercial helicopter carrying

passengers on regularly scheduled flights.

    Sec. 2.  NRS 439A.100 is hereby amended to read as follows:

    439A.100  1.  Except as otherwise provided in this section, in

a county whose population is less than 100,000, no person may

undertake any proposed expenditure for new construction by or on

behalf of a health facility in excess of the greater of $2,000,000 or

such an amount as the Department may specify by regulation, which

under generally accepted accounting principles consistently applied

is a capital expenditure, without first applying for and obtaining the

written approval of the Director. The Health Division of the

Department of Human Resources shall not issue a new license or

alter an existing license for such a project unless the Director has

issued such an approval.

    2.  The provisions of subsection 1 do not apply to:

    (a) Any capital expenditure for:

        (1) The acquisition of land;

        (2) The construction of a facility for parking;

        (3) The maintenance of a health facility;

        (4) The renovation of a health facility to comply with

standards for safety, licensure, certification or accreditation;

        (5) The installation of a system to conserve energy;

        (6) The installation of a system for data processing or

communication; or

        (7) Any other project which, in the opinion of the Director,

does not relate directly to the provision of any health service; or

    (b) Any project for the development of a health facility that has

received legislative approval and authorization.

    (c) A project for the construction of a hospital in an

unincorporated town if:

        (1) The population of the unincorporated town is more than

24,000;

        (2) No other hospital exists in the town;

        (3) No other hospital has been approved for construction or

qualified for an exemption from approval for construction in the

town pursuant to this section; and

        (4) The unincorporated town is at least a 45-minute drive

from the nearest center for the treatment of trauma that is licensed

by the Health Division of the Department.

Upon determining that a project satisfies the requirements for an

exemption pursuant to this subsection, the Director shall issue a

certificate which states that the project is exempt from the

requirements of this section.

    3.  In reviewing an application for approval, the Director shall:

    (a) Comparatively assess applications for similar projects

affecting the same geographic area; and

    (b) Base his decision on criteria established by the Director by

regulation. The criteria must include:

        (1) The need for and the appropriateness of the project in the

area to be served;

        (2) The financial feasibility of the project;

        (3) The effect of the project on the cost of health care; and

        (4) The extent to which the project is consistent with the

purposes set forth in NRS 439A.020 and the priorities set forth in

NRS 439A.081.

    4.  The Department may by regulation require additional

approval for a proposed change to a project which has previously

been approved if the proposal would result in a change in the

location of the project or a substantial increase in the cost of the

project.

    5.  The decision of the Director is a final decision for the

purposes of judicial review.

    6.  As used in this section, “hospital” has the meaning

ascribed to it in NRS 449.012.

    Sec. 3.  The Director of the Department of Human Resources

shall issue a certificate of exemption for any project for which an

application for approval has been filed pursuant to NRS 439A.100

that is pending on July 1, 2003, if the application is exempt from the

requirement of approval pursuant to the amendatory provisions of

section 2 of this act.

    Sec. 4.  The provisions of section 1 of this act apply

retroactively to each medical helicopter that did not provide medical

helicopter services on or before December 31, 2002.

    Sec. 5.  1.  This section and sections 1 and 4 of this act

become effective upon passage and approval.

    2.  Sections 2 and 3 of this act become effective on July 1,

2003.

 

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