Agenda - 10-03-2017 -11-a - Adult Care Home Community Advisory Committee - Appointments

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24 (2) Each committee shall quarterly visit the nursing home it serves. For each official quarterly visit, a majority of the committee members shall be present. In addition, each committee may visit the nursing home it serves whenever it deems it necessary to carry out its duties. In counties with four or more nursing homes, the subcommittee assigned to a home shall perform the duties of the committee under this subdivision, and a majority of the subcommittee members must be present for any visit. (3) Each member of a committee shall have the right between 10:00 A.M. and 8:00 P.M. to enter into the facility the committee serves in order to carry out the members' responsibilities. In a county where subcommittees have been established, this right of access shall be limited to homes served by those subcommittees to which the member has been appointed. (4) The committee or subcommittee may communicate through its chair with the Department or any other agency in relation to the interest of any patient. The identity of any complainant or resident involved in a complaint shall not be disclosed except as permitted under the Older Americans Act of 1965, as amended, 42 U.S.C. § 3001 et seq. (5) Each home shall cooperate with the committee as it carries out its duties. (6) Before entering into any nursing home, the committee, subcommittee, or member shall identify itself to the person present at the facility who is in charge of the facility at that time. (i) Any written communication made by a member of a nursing home advisory committee within the course and scope of the member's duties, as specified in G.S. 131E-128, shall be privileged to the extent provided in this subsection. All communication shall be considered the property of the Office of the State Long-Term Care Ombudsman and subject to the Office's disclosure policies. This privilege shall be a defense in a cause of action for libel if the member was acting in good faith and the statements or communications do not amount to intentional wrongdoing. To the extent that any nursing home advisory committee or any member thereof is covered by liability insurance, that committee or member shall be deemed to have waived the qualified immunity herein to the extent of indemnification by insurance." SECTION 1.(c) G.S. 143B-181.18 reads as rewritten: "§ 143B-181.18. Office of State Long-Term Care Ombudsman Program/State Ombudsman duties. The State Ombudsman shall perform the duties provided below: (1) Promote community involvement with long-term care providers and residents of long-term care facilities and serve as liaison between residents, residents' families, facility personnel, and facility administration. (2) Supervise the State Long-Term Care Ombudsman Program pursuant to rules adopted by the Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services pursuant to G.S. 143B-10. (3) Certify regional ombudsmen. Certification requirements shall include an internship, training in the aging process, complaint resolution, long-term care issues, mediation techniques, recruitment and training of volunteers, and relevant federal, State, and local laws,policies, and standards. (3a) Designate certified Regional Ombudsmen as representatives of the Office of the State Long-Term Care Ombudsman Office as well as refuse, suspend, or remove designation as a representative of the Office of the State Long-Term Care Ombudsman in accordance with the Office of the State Long-Term Care Ombudsman Program Policies and Procedures. Page 6 Session Law 2017-103 House Bill 248