497 Nursing Home Patient Safety Trust Fund surcharge for fiscal year 2011-2012 as provided for under the Medical Care Availability and Reduction of Error (MCARE) Act?

Nursing Home Patient Safety Trust Fund Surcharge for Fiscal Year 2011-2012 as Provided for under the Medical Care Availability and Reduction of Error (MCARE) Act

[42 Pa.B. 1473]
[Saturday, March 17, 2012]

 Sections 401—411 of the Medical Care Availability and Reduction of Error (MCARE) Act (MCARE Act) (40 P. S. §§ 1303.401—1303.411) requires nursing homes to electronically report health care-associated infection (HAI) data to the Department of Health (Department) and the Patient Safety Authority (Authority). Mandatory reporting of nursing home HAIs was implemented in June 2009.

 Section 409 of the MCARE Act (40 P. S. § 1303.409) states that every fiscal year, beginning July 1, 2008, each nursing home shall pay the Department a surcharge on its licensing fee to provide sufficient revenues for the Authority to perform its responsibilities related to this Act. The base amount of 1 million for Fiscal Year (FY) 2008-2009 has the potential to be increased no more than the Consumer Price Index in each succeeding fiscal year.

 The FY 2010-2011 surcharge was $800,000. The Authority has recommended that the FY 2011-2012 surcharge assessment again total $800,000.

 To assess the surcharge in an equitable manner, the number of licensed nursing home beds as of February 10, 2012, was totaled and that amount was divided into $800,000. The total number of licensed beds is 87,499. This equates to a surcharge of $9.14 per bed.

 To obtain a copy of the assessment for all facilities, send an e-mail to [e-mail], and request the 2011-2012 MCARE surcharge assessment list for Nursing Care Facilities.

 Each facility will receive notification from the Department setting forth the amount due, date due and the name and address to which the payment should be sent. Payment will be due within 60 days. The MCARE Act authorizes the Department to assess an administrative penalty of $1,000 per day on facilities who fail to pay the surcharge by the due date.

 If a nursing care facility has questions concerning this notice, a representative from that facility should contact Susan Williamson, Director, Division of Nursing Care Facilities, Room 526, Health and Welfare Building, 825 Forster Street, Harrisburg, PA 17120, [phone].

 Persons with a disability who require an alternative format of this document (for example, large print, audiotape or Braille) should contact Susan Williamson at the address or telephone number listed previously, or for speech and/or hearing impaired persons V/TT [phone] or the Pennsylvania AT&T Relay Service at [phone].

ELI N. AVILA, MD, JD, MPH, FCLM, 
Secretary

[Pa.B. Doc. No. 12-497. Filed for public inspection March 16, 2012, 9:00 a.m.]