2020 -- H 8106

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     STATE OF RHODE ISLAND

IN GENERAL ASSEMBLY

JANUARY SESSION, A.D. 2020

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H O U S E   R E S O L U T I O N

CREATING A SPECIAL LEGISLATIVE COMMISSION TO STUDY AND PROVIDE

RECOMMENDATIONS ON THE STATUS AND REQUIREMENTS FOR RHODE ISLAND'S

NURSING HOMES

     Introduced By: Representatives Shekarchi, Casimiro, Ackerman, Serpa, and Craven

     Date Introduced: July 16, 2020

     Referred To: House read and passed

     WHEREAS, In 2019, Rhode Island, with a growing population of seniors, was ranked

third in the nation in people over the age of 85; and

     WHEREAS, Currently, Rhode Island has 81 nursing homes that are facing multiple

challenges including intensified staffing concerns, the heart-breaking loss of more than 8 percent

of the state's 7,500 nursing home residents due to COVID-19 related illness, access to personal

protective equipment, and budget issues due to Medicaid reimbursement reductions; and

     WHEREAS, The lives, care, and treatment of nursing home residents, who are some of

our state's most vulnerable citizens, is of utmost concern to all Rhode Islanders; now, therefore be

it

     RESOLVED, That a special legislative commission be and the same is hereby created

consisting of fifteen (15) members: three (3) of whom shall be members of the Rhode Island

House of Representatives, not more than two (2) from the same political party, to be appointed by

the Speaker of the House; one of whom shall be the President of the Rhode Island Health Care

Association (RIHCA), or designee; one of whom shall be the SEIU State Council Director (RI),

or designee; one of whom shall be the Director of the Rhode Island Executive Office of Health

and Human Services (RIEOHHS), or designee; one of whom shall be the Director of the Rhode

Island Department of Health (RIDOH), or designee; one of whom shall be the Director of the

Rhode Island Department of Labor and Training (RIDLT), or designee; one of whom shall be the

Executive Director for the Rhode Island Partnership for Home Care, or designee; one of whom

shall be the President of the Hospital Association of Rhode Island, or designee; one of whom

shall be the President of Lifespan, or designee; one of whom shall be a member of the public, to

be appointed by the Speaker of the House; one of whom shall be an administrator of a not-for-

profit Rhode Island nursing home, to be appointed by the Speaker of the House; one of whom

shall be an administrator of a for-profit Rhode Island nursing home, to be appointed by the

Speaker of the House; and one of whom shall be a registered nurse, licensed and employed in a

Rhode Island nursing home, to be appointed by the Speaker of the House.

     In lieu of any appointment of a member of the legislature to a permanent advisory

commission, a legislative study commission, or any commission created by a General Assembly

resolution, the appointing authority may appoint a member of the general public to serve in lieu

of a legislator, provided that the majority leader or the minority leader of the political party which

is entitled to the appointment consents to the member of the general public.

     The purpose of said commission shall be to make a comprehensive study and provide

recommendations regarding the status and requirements for Rhode Island nursing homes to

include, but not be limited to:

     1. Methods and means for providing paramount quality of care;

     2. Reimbursement methodology;

     3. Staffing levels;

     4. Workforce development and, specifically, employee recruitment and retention efforts

and results;

     5. Patient acuity levels for different types of care given; and

     6. Financial condition of Rhode Island nursing homes.

     Forthwith upon passage of this resolution, the members of the commission shall meet at

the call of the Speaker of the House and organize and shall select a chairperson from among the

legislators.

     Vacancies in said commission shall be filled in like manner as the original appointment.

     The membership of said commission shall receive no compensation for their services.

     All departments and agencies of the state, shall furnish such advice and information,

documentary and otherwise, to said commission and its agents as is deemed necessary or

desirable by the commission to facilitate the purposes of this resolution.

     The Speaker of the House is hereby authorized and directed to provide suitable quarters

for said commission; and be it further

     RESOLVED, That the commission shall report its findings and recommendations to the

House of Representatives no later than April 15, 2021, and said commission shall expire on July

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15, 2021.

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EXPLANATION

BY THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL

OF

H O U S E   R E S O L U T I O N

CREATING A SPECIAL LEGISLATIVE COMMISSION TO STUDY AND PROVIDE

RECOMMENDATIONS ON THE STATUS AND REQUIREMENTS FOR RHODE ISLAND'S

NURSING HOMES

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     This resolution would create a fifteen (15) member special legislative study commission

whose purpose it would be to make a comprehensive study and provide recommendations on the

status and requirements for Rhode Island's nursing homes, and who would report back to the

House of Representatives no later than April 15, 2021, and whose life would expire on July 15,

2021.

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