§ 2825-I — Healthcare safety net transformation program

§ 2825-i. Healthcare safety net transformation program. 1. (a) A\nstatewide healthcare safety net transformation program shall be\nestablished within the department for the purpose of supporting the\ntransformation of safety net hospitals to improve access, equity,\nquality, and outcomes while increasing the financial sustainability of\nsafety net hospitals. Such program may provide or utilize new or\nexisting capital funding, or operating subsidies, or both. Any\napplication for this program must be jointly submitted by a safety net\nhospital and at least one partner organization.\n (b) All applications shall demonstrate how the requested funding and\nregulatory flexibilities are necessary to achieve the program goals of\nimproving the safety net hospital's financial outlook and improving\nhealth outcomes for the communities it serves. The commissioner shall\ndevelop an application for this program that includes but is not limited\nto the following information:\n (i) key organizational information, including the organizational\nstructure of the safety net hospital and partner organization (including\nany parent or subsidiary, and the interrelationship between all such\norganizations) and the name, business address, and biography of each\ndirector and officer of the safety net hospital, the partner, and other\norganizations within either the safety net hospital's or the partner's\norganizational structure;\n (ii) the type of collaborative model proposed, including but not\nlimited to a merger, acquisition, management services contract, or\nclinical integration;\n (iii) a detailed description of the proposed transformation plan that\nincludes, at a minimum, a five-year strategic and operational plan\noutlining the roles and responsibilities of the safety net hospital and\npartner organization;\n (iv) a timeline of key metrics and goals;\n (v) any regulatory flexibilities required to implement such plan,\nincluding the justification for why such flexibilities are necessary for\nthe transformation plan to achieve an improved financial outlook for the\nsafety net hospital and improved health outcomes for the communities it\nserves;\n (vi) the amount of funding requested for the first five years and\nprojected needs thereafter, including the rationale for why such funding\nis necessary for the transformation plan to achieve an improved\nfinancial outlook for the safety net hospital and improved health\noutcomes for the communities it serves; and\n (vii) detailed plans for any operational surplus after reaching\nfinancial sustainability.\n 2. The commissioner shall enter an agreement with the president of the\ndormitory authority of the state of New York pursuant to section sixteen\nhundred eighty-r of the public authorities law, as required, which shall\napply to this agreement, subject to the approval of the director of the\ndivision of the budget, for the purposes of the distribution and\nadministration of available funds pursuant to such agreement and made\navailable pursuant to this section and subject to appropriation. Such\nfunds may be awarded and distributed by the department to safety net\nhospitals, or a partner organization, in the form of grants. To qualify\nas a safety net hospital for purposes of this section, a hospital shall:\n (a) be either a public hospital, a rural emergency hospital, critical\naccess hospital or sole community hospital;\n (b) have at least thirty percent of its inpatient discharges made up\nof medical assistance program eligible individuals, uninsured\nindividuals or medical assistance program dually eligible individuals\nand at least thirty-five percent of its outpatient visits made up of\nmedical assistance program eligible individuals, uninsured individuals\nor medical assistance program dually-eligible individuals;\n (c) serve at least thirty percent of the residents of a county or a\nmulti-county area who are medical assistance program eligible\nindividuals, uninsured individuals or medical assistance program\ndually-eligible individuals; or\n (d) in the discretion of the commissioner, serve a significant\npopulation of medical assistance program eligible individuals, uninsured\nindividuals or medical assistance program dually-eligible individuals.\n 3. Partner organizations may include, but are not limited to, health\nsystems, hospitals, health plans, residential health care facilities,\nphysician groups, community-based organization, or other healthcare\nentities who can serve as partners in the transformation of the safety\nnet hospital.\n 4. Notwithstanding section one hundred sixty-three of the state\nfinance law, sections one hundred forty-two and one hundred forty-three\nof the economic development law or any inconsistent provisions of law to\nthe contrary, awards may be provided without a competitive bid or\nrequest for proposal process to safety net hospitals or partner\norganizations for purposes of increasing access, equity, quality,\noutcomes, and long-term financial sustainability of such safety net\nhospitals.\n 5. Notwithstanding any provision of law to the contrary, the\ncommissioner may waive regulatory requirements to allow applicants to\nmore effectively or efficiently implement projects awarded through the\nhealthcare safety net transformation program, provided, however, that\nregulations pertaining to minimum standards for hospitals for patient\nsafety, patient autonomy, patient privacy, patient rights, quality of\ncare, safe staffing, adverse event reporting, due process, scope of\npractice, professional licensure, environmental protections, infection\ncontrol, provider reimbursement methodologies, character and competence,\nor occupational standards and employee rights shall not be waived, nor\nshall any regulations be waived if such waiver would risk patient\nsafety. Such waiver shall not exceed the life of the project or such\nshorter time periods as the commissioner may determine. Any regulatory\nrelief granted pursuant to this subdivision shall be specifically\ndescribed and requested within each project application and be reviewed\nby the commissioner.\n 6. Continued support under the program shall be contingent upon the\nimplementation of the approved plan and key milestones.\n 7. The release of any funding will be contingent upon compliance with\nthe transformation plan and a determination that acceptable progress has\nbeen made with such plan. If key milestones and goals are not met,\nadditional financial resources may be withheld and redirected, upon the\nrecommendation of the commissioner and approval by the director of\nbudget.\n 8. The commissioner shall provide a report on an annual basis to the\nspeaker of the assembly, the temporary president of the senate, the\nchair of the assembly ways and means committee, the chair of the senate\nfinance committee, and the director of the division of budget, on any\ntransformation plan approved under this section, including information\non partnership agreements, and any amendments thereto. The report shall\nalso include for each award, the name of the hospital and partner, the\ncorporate structure of any partner organization, a description of the\nproject and its purpose, the amount of the award and the disbursement\ndate, the regulations waived for each project and the justification for\nsuch waiver, and the status of achievement of performance metrics and\nmilestones. Such report shall be provided until such time as the\ndepartment determines that the projects that receive funding pursuant to\nthis section are substantially complete.\n