HB 4085

AN ACT

AMending section 36-446.14, Arizona Revised Statutes; relating to assisted living facilities.

(TEXT OF BILL BEGINS ON NEXT PAGE)

Be it enacted by the Legislature of the State of Arizona:

Section 1. Section 36-446.14, Arizona Revised Statutes, is amended to read:

START_STATUTE36-446.14. Referral agencies; assisted living facilities and assisted living homes; disclosure; acknowledgement; fee; notice; requirements; civil penalty; definitions

A. A referral agency shall disclose, in the form prescribed by subsection D of this section, to any prospective resident or representative of a prospective resident at the time or before any referral is made for care at an assisted living facility or assisted living home all of the following:

1. The existence of any current business relationship or any common ownership or control and any other financial, business, management or familial relationship that exists between the referral agency and the assisted living facility or assisted living home.

2. That the assisted living facility or assisted living home pays a fee to the referral agency in connection with the referral.

3. The amount of the fee, if determined, or a good faith estimate of the fee, if not determined, that the assisted living facility or assisted living home will pay to the referral agency.� The referral agency may describe the fee as a dollar amount or as a percentage of the prospective resident's first month's rent and care charges at the assisted living facility or assisted living home.� The fee paid by the assisted living facility or assisted living home to a referral agency may not exceed fifty percent of the prospective resident's first month's rent.� For a resident who stays for less than thirty days at an assisted living facility or assisted living home, the fee paid to a referral agency may not exceed twenty-five percent of the first month's rent.

B. After the first instance of the referral agency providing the disclosure required by subsection A of this section, the referral agency shall request from the prospective resident or representative of a prospective resident an acknowledgement of receiving the disclosure in the same manner and form in which the disclosure was delivered.

C. The prospective resident may terminate all services of the referral agency for the prospective resident at any time, including the use of the prospective resident's personal information, by providing a written or electronic termination notice to the referral agency.� If the prospective resident delivers a termination notice, the referral agency is not entitled to any fee for the resident's move-in after the date of the termination notice unless either of the following applies:

1. The assisted living facility or assisted living home chosen by the resident within twelve months after the date of termination was specifically identified and referred to the resident after evaluating the prospective resident's profile and requests before the resident delivered the notice of termination.

2. The referral agency provides documentation to the assisted living facility or assisted living home that the resident communicated with the referral agency for referral services before the resident's admission to the assisted living facility or assisted living home.

D. The referral agency's written, electronic or oral disclosure shall be in the following format and, if written, shall be in fourteen-point font type:

Arizona law requires that we provide you with the following disclosure notice.

We are in the business of referring residents to assisted living facilities and assisted living homes. We will be paid by the assisted living facility or assisted living home if you move into one of the referred assisted living facilities or assisted living homes.� The fee we receive from the assisted living facility or assisted living home into which you move typically ranges from (____) to (____) percent of your first month's rent and care charges or from ($____) to ($____).� We (do/do not) have a current business relationship (but/and) we (do/do not) have a common ownership or control in, or any other financial, business, management or familial relationship with, (any) (one or more) of the assisted living homes and assisted living facilities to which we are referring you.

By providing us with a written or electronic notice, you have the right to terminate our services to you at any time, including our use of your personal information. If you terminate our services, we will not be entitled to any fee for any move-in you make after the date of the termination notice unless either:

1. The assisted living facility or assisted living home you choose within the next twelve months is one that we specifically identify and refer to you after we evaluate your profile and requests but before we receive your notice of termination.

2. You communicate with us before you move into the assisted living facility or assisted living home.

E. Within fourteen days after a resident is admitted to an assisted living facility or assisted living home, the assisted living facility or assisted living home shall notify the referral agency of the resident's admission if the assisted living facility or assisted living home is contracted with the referral agency. Not later than fourteen days after receiving notice of the resident's admission, the referral agency shall provide the assisted living facility or assisted living home with a written or electronic copy or recording of the disclosure made to the resident and the resident's acknowledgement of receiving the disclosure as prescribed in subsections B and D of this section, along with the date and time of the disclosure to the resident. The assisted living facility or assisted living home shall maintain a copy of the disclosure for as long as the resident is at the assisted living facility or assisted living home.� The referral agency shall maintain a copy of the disclosure and acknowledgement for one year.� The assisted living facility or assisted living home shall not pay any referral fee associated with a resident until the assisted living facility or assisted living home receives the written or electronic copy or recording of the disclosure made to the resident and the resident's acknowledgement of receiving the disclosure provided and maintained in the same manner and form.

F. A referral agency that violates this section is subject to a civil penalty of up to $1,000 for each violation. The attorney general or a county attorney may institute a proceeding in superior court to recover the civil penalty under this subsection and to restrain and enjoin a violation of this section. Any civil penalty recovered pursuant to this subsection shall be deposited in the general fund of the jurisdiction that prosecuted the violation.

G. For the purposes of this section:

1. "Electronically" includes an audio recording that conforms with the Arizona rules of evidence, that is maintained by the referral agency and that is transmitted to the assisted living facility or assisted living home and the resident or the resident's representative in a format that can be downloaded.

2. "Referral agency":

(a) Means a person or entity that provides referrals for a fee that is collected from either the resident or the assisted living facility or assisted living home.

(b) Does not include either:

(i) An assisted living facility or assisted living home, or its employees.

(ii) A resident, a resident's family member or a patron of an assisted living facility or assisted living home who refers a prospective resident to an assisted living facility or assisted living home and receives a discount or other remuneration from the assisted living facility or assisted living home. END_STATUTE