The following information was obtained from the August 6 issue of the Texas Register:
Public Notices and Hearings
The Board of Nursing offered the Guidelines for Physical and Psychological Evaluations, which inform licensees, applicants, petitioners, and the public about the boards requirements and procedures regarding physical and psychological evaluations under the Nursing Practice Act. An excerpt:
Authority to Require and Request Evaluations The Board is authorized under the Occupations Code §301.4521 to require an individual to submit to an evaluation if the Board has probable cause to believe that the individual is unable to practice nursing safely because of a physical or mental impairment or due to chemical dependency or the abuse of drugs or alcohol. In this context, “probable cause” means that the Board has a reasonable, objective basis to believe that an individual is unable to safely or effectively practice nursing due to a psychological or medical condition or impairment. Further, an “objective basis” is one that is not merely speculative on the Board’s part, but derives from direct observation, credible third party report, or other reliable evidence. The overall purpose of a required evaluation is to determine if an individual is able to safely and effectively perform his or her essential job functions, given the individual’s suspected condition or impairment. The Board may initiate action against an individual’s nursing license if the individual refuses to submit to a required evaluation under §301.4521.
See the Texas Register for more information.
HHSC will hold a public hearing to receive public comments on proposed Medicaid payment rates for the Truman W. Smith Children’s Care Center on August 20, 2010, at 9 a.m., and proposed interim per diem Medicaid reimbursement rates for small and large state-operated ICF/MR at 10 a.m. The hearings will take place on in the Lone Star Conference Room of the Health and Human Services Commission, Braker Center, Building H, located at 11209 Metric Boulevard, Austin, Texas. See the Texas Register for more information.
HHSC submitted Transmittal Number 09-032, Amendment Number 879, to the Texas State Plan for Medical Assistance, under Title XIX of the Social Security Act, which would add language to the State Plan to allow a court-ordered guardianship/fiduciary fee deduction from an institutionalized individual’s total income when calculating the cost of institutionalized care. HHSC intends to submit to CMS an amendment to HCS waiver, which would transfer the case management function from HCS providers to the state’s mental retardation authorities who will provide service coordination to individuals who receive HCS services under the State’s Targeted Case Management Strategy.
See the Texas Register for more information about both notices.
Adopted Rules
HHSC adopted an amended Title 1, Part 15, Subchapter J, Division 4, §355.8052, which, among other things, requires HHSC to update the payment division standard dollar amounts and diagnosis related group factors with more recent cost data and to proportionately reduce the PDSDAs within available funds. See the Texas Register for more information.
HHSC adopted amendments to §18.41, concerning licensure of persons with criminal backgrounds, and §18.53, concerning formal hearings, in Chapter 18, Nursing Facility Administrators, which allows DADS to take certain actions if a nursing facility administrator has been convicted of an offense listed in THSC §250.006, concerning convictions barring employment, and to allow DADS to impose an administrative penalty without holding a hearing if a person alleged to have committed a violation fails to respond timely to notice of a hearing on the occurrence of the violation. See the Texas Register for more information.
HHSC adopted amendments to §93.1, concerning purpose; §93.2, concerning definitions; §93.3, concerning employment and registry information; §93.4, concerning investigations; §93.5, concerning notice to employee of reportable conduct; §93.6, concerning informal review; §93.7, concerning notice of opportunity for formal hearing; §93.8, concerning entering information in the EMR; and §93.9, concerning removing information from the EMR, in Chapter 93, Employee Misconduct Registry.
Among other things, the changes reflect the transfer of responsibility for investigating abuse, neglect, and exploitation in ICFs/MR licensed under Texas Health and Safety Code Chapter 252, from DADS to the Department of Family and Protective Services.
See the Texas Register for more information.
