S 1223: Expands the scope of the temporary operator program permitting the commissioner of health to appoint an operator if a facility experiences serious financial instability or conditions that seriously endanger the life, health or safety of residents or patients.

  
  STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 1223 2025-2026 Regular Sessions  IN SENATE January 8, 2025 ___________ Introduced by Sen. RIVERA -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Health AN ACT to amend the public health law, in relation to expanding the scope of the temporary operator program The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. Subdivision 1 of section 2806-a of the public health law, 2 as added by section 50 of part E of chapter 56 of the laws of 2013, 3 paragraph (g) as added by section 7 of part K of chapter 57 of the laws 4 of 2015, is amended to read as follows: 5 1. For the purposes of this section: 6 (a) "adult care facility" shall mean an adult home or enriched housing 7 program licensed pursuant to article seven of the social services law or 8 an assisted living residence licensed pursuant to article forty-six-B of 9 this chapter; 10 (b) "established operator" shall mean the operator of [an adult care] 11 a facility[, a general hospital or a diagnostic and treatment center 12 that has been established and issued an operating certificate as such 13 pursuant to this article]; 14 (c) "facility" shall mean (i) a [general] hospital [or a diagnostic 15 and treatment center that has been issued an operating certificate as 16 such pursuant to this article]; or (ii) an adult care facility; 17 (d) "temporary operator" shall mean any person or entity that: 18 (i) agrees to operate a facility on a temporary basis in the best 19 interests of its residents or patients and the community served by the 20 facility; and 21 (ii) has demonstrated that [he or she has] they have the character, 22 competence and financial ability to operate the facility in compliance 23 with applicable standards; 24 (e) "serious financial instability" shall include but not be limited 25 to defaulting or violating key covenants of loans, or missed mortgage EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [ ] is old law to be omitted. LBD03486-01-5 
 S. 1223 2 1 payments, or general untimely payment of obligations, including but not 2 limited to employee benefit fund, payroll tax, and insurance premium 3 obligations, or failure to maintain required debt service coverage 4 ratios or, as applicable, factors that have triggered a written event of 5 default notice to the department by the dormitory authority of the state 6 of New York; and 7 (f) "extraordinary financial assistance" shall mean state funds 8 provided to a facility upon such facility's request for the purpose of 9 assisting the facility to address serious financial instability. Such 10 funds may be derived from existing programs within the department, 11 special appropriations, or other funds. 12 (g) "improper delegation of management authority by the governing 13 authority or operator" of a [general hospital] facility shall include, 14 but not be limited to, the delegation to an entity that has not been 15 established as an operator of the [general hospital] facility of (i) 16 authority to hire or fire the administrator or other key management 17 employees; (ii) maintenance and control of the books and records; (iii) 18 authority over the disposition of assets and the incurring of liabil- 19 ities on behalf of the facility; and (iv) the adoption and enforcement 20 of policies regarding the operation of the facility. The criteria set 21 forth in this paragraph shall not be the sole determining factors, but 22 indicators to be considered with such other factors that may be perti- 23 nent in particular instances. Professional expertise shall be exercised 24 in the utilization of the criteria. All of the listed indicia need not 25 be present in a given instance for there to be an improper delegation of 26 authority. 27 § 2. This act shall take effect immediately; provided the amendments 28 to section 2806-a of the public health law made by section one of this 29 act shall not affect the repeal of such section and shall be deemed 30 repealed therewith.