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General Assembly Raised Bill No. 5313
February Session, 2022
LCO No. 2111
Referred to Committee on AGING
Introduced by:
(AGE)
AN ACT CONCERNING TEMPORARY PRICE CONTROLS ON
SERVICES PROVIDED BY TEMPORARY NURSING SERVICES
AGENCIES.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General
Assembly convened:
Section 1. (NEW) (Effective from passage) (a) As used in this section, (1) 1
''nursing facility" has the same meaning as "nursing home" or "nursing 2
home facility" as provided in section 19a-490 of the general statutes, and 3
(2) ''nursing pool agency'' means any person, firm, corporation, 4
partnership or association engaged for hire in the business of providing 5
or procuring temporary employment in nursing facilities for nursing 6
personnel including, but not limited to, nurses, nursing assistants, 7
nurse's aides and orderlies. ''Nursing pool agency'' does not include an 8
individual who engages only in providing his or her own services on a 9
temporary basis to health care facilities, including nursing facilities, or 10
nursing services provided to such facilities during strikes or other labor 11
actions. 12
(b) On or before August 31, 2022, the Commissioner of Public Health 13
shall establish a registration system for nursing pool agencies. The 14 Raised Bill No. 5313
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commissioner shall include in such system a registration fee not to 15
exceed seven hundred fifty dollars. 16
(c) On and after September 15, 2022, a nursing pool agency shall not 17
offer services in the state unless it is registered with the Commissioner 18
of Public Health. A nursing pool agency with multiple locations in the 19
state shall register each office operating in such locations with the 20
commissioner. 21
(d) The commissioner shall establish minimum standards for the 22
registration and operation of a nursing pool agency, including 23
qualifications of nursing personnel provided by such agency. 24
Sec. 2. (NEW) (Effective from passage) (a) The Commissioner of Social 25
Services, in consultation with the Commissioner of Public Health, shall 26
establish maximum rates a nursing pool agency may charge a nursing 27
facility by type of nursing personnel provided by such agency. For the 28
period beginning September 15, 2022, and ending on June 30, 2023, rates 29
per hour shall not exceed thirty dollars for a registered nursing assistant, 30
forty-five dollars for a licensed practical nurse and sixty dollars for a 31
registered nurse. The commissioner may set higher rates for certain 32
fixed-term employees who work exclusively at a nursing facility under 33
a contract with such facility for a period of not less than ninety days. 34
(b) The Commissioner of Social Services shall adopt regulations in 35
accordance with chapter 54 of the general statutes to set maximum rates 36
for nursing pool agency services for the period beginning July 1, 2023. 37
The commissioner may establish rates by geographic region. The rates 38
shall include an allowance for wages, payroll taxes, workers' 39
compensation insurance, training and fringe benefits, which shall be 40
based upon, and shall not exceed, median wages, payroll taxes and 41
fringe benefits paid to permanent staff nursing personnel of the same 42
type at nursing facilities in the same geographic region. The rates shall 43
also include an allowance for reasonable administrative expenses and a 44
reasonable profit factor for a nursing pool agency, as determined by the 45
commissioner, but in no event shall the administrative expenses or 46 Raised Bill No. 5313
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profit factor exceed fifteen per cent. 47
(c) Beginning July 1, 2023, nursing pool agencies shall submit to the 48
commissioner annual cost reports, which may be subject to audit, that 49
include data on wages paid and benefits provided to nursing personnel. 50
On and after July 1, 2024, the commissioner shall consider such reports 51
and annual cost reports, provided by nursing facilities to the 52
commissioner pursuant to section 17b-340 of the general statutes, when 53
adjusting maximum rates nursing pool agencies may charge such 54
facilities for nursing personnel. 55
This act shall take effect as follows and shall amend the following
sections:
Section 1 from passage New section
Sec. 2 from passage New section
Statement of Purpose:
To require that temporary nursing services agencies register with the
Department of Public Health and that the Department of Social Services
set maximum rates for such services provided to nursing homes.
[Proposed deletions are enclosed in brackets. Proposed additions are indicated by underline, except
that when the entire text of a bill or resolution or a section of a bill or resolution is new, it is not
underlined.]