On February 7, 2024, New York Governor Hochul signed a new bill into law that adopts a series of amendments to a prior law that established a four-year demonstration project to reduce the use of temporary staffing agencies in nursing facilities and a joint labor-management nursing home staffing workgroup to review and assess the impact of such demonstration project.
By way of background, in 2021 New York enacted a law requiring nursing facilities to spend at least 70% of revenue on resident-facing care and 40% on direct care staff. In order to meet these requirements, many facilities have had to rely on temporary staffing agencies to obtain nurses and aides during the current staffing shortage. This demonstration project has been enacted to incentivize a reduction in the use of such temporary staff by allowing for some reductions in penalties assessed against nursing facilities related to excess revenues and the failure to meet minimum spending requirements on resident care and staffing. The reductions are conditioned on facilities meeting certain metrics related to reduced temporary staffing agency usage.
These new Chapter Amendments signed into law make the following significant changes, among others:
(a) The changes include a repeal of the nursing home staffing workgroup created by the original law to review and assess the impact of the demonstration project; and
(b) Any qualifying nursing facility must submit documentation to DOH that it meets the requirements under the demonstration project, and such documentation must include a verification from a CPA that the nursing facility is eligible for a penalty reduction (based on federal Payroll Based Journal data and other supporting documentation).
Attached to this Briefing are the pages from the new law detailing the technical/specific language changes that have now been adopted.
These changes in the law take effect on the same date as the original law (December 22, 2023).
Our firm has extensive experience counseling health care providers on statutory and regulatory requirements, as well as preparing and implementing applicable policies. If you have any questions related to this Legal Briefing, please contact any member of our firm at 585-730- 4773.
This Legal Briefing is intended for general informational and educational purposes only and should not be considered legal advice or counsel. The substance of this Legal Briefing is not intended to cover all legal issues or developments regarding the matter. Please consult with an attorney to ascertain how these new developments may relate to you or your business. © 2024 Law Offices of Pullano & Farrow PLLC