1997 WISCONSIN ACT 114
An Act to repeal 46.56 (14) (a) 2., 46.974, 49.45 (41) (a) 2., 50.096 (title), 69.05 (6) and 115.28 (16); to renumber 50.095; to renumber and amend 50.096 (1), 50.096 (2) and 50.096 (3); to consolidate, renumber and amend 46.56 (14) (a) (intro.) and 1. and 49.45 (41) (a) (intro.) and 1.; to amend 46.56 (14) (c) (intro.), 48.46 (1), 48.981 (3) (c) 4., 49.45 (41) (b), 50.03 (2m) (a), 50.03 (4) (e), 50.035 (6), 50.04 (2v), 50.04 (3) (d), 50.09 (4), 50.095 (title), 50.14 (3), 69.18 (1) (e) 1. (intro.), 146.82 (1), 251.04 (8), 251.06 (1) (a) 1., 255.04 (3) (intro.) and 806.07 (1) (intro.); and to create 46.275 (5) (b) 7., 46.277 (5) (f), 48.46 (3), 146.82 (2) (a) 18., 251.06 (1) (a) 3. and 806.07 (3) of the statutes; relating to: mental health crisis intervention services; requirements for a Level I local health officer; coordination by a local board of health of activities of a sanitarian; fetal death reports; access by a coroner, deputy coroner, medical examiner or medical examiner's assistant to patient health care records; confidentiality restrictions on cancer reports; service contracts under community integration programs; eliminating outdated requirements for bed assessments for nursing homes and intermediate care facilities for the mentally retarded; designation by a nursing home of a person to accept service of notice or mail; required information for licenses for nursing homes and community-based residential facilities; eliminating a date for posting notice about the long-term care ombudsman program; eliminating dates for determinations that nursing homes are institutions for mental diseases; resident rights and responsibilities for residents of nursing homes and community-based residential facilities; eliminating dates for requesting and providing information about nursing homes; evaluations of integrated services projects; eliminating a requirement for a plan and report on school-community alcohol and drug abuse prevention and other services; eliminating a requirement that a person investigating a report of suspected or threatened emotional abuse of a child determine that the person responsible for the emotional damage is neglecting, refusing or unable for reasons other than poverty to remedy the harm; and prohibiting an adoptive parent from moving for relief from an order granting adoption or petitioning for a rehearing of such an order (suggested as remedial legislation by the department of health and family services).
The people of the state of Wisconsin, represented in senate and assembly, do enact as follows:
Law revision committee prefatory note: This bill is a remedial legislation proposal, requested by the department of health and family services and introduced by the law revision committee under s. 13.83 (1) (c) 4., stats. After careful consideration of the various provisions of the bill, the law revision committee has determined that this bill makes minor substantive changes in the statutes, and that these changes are desirable as a matter of public policy.
114,1
Section
1
. 46.275 (5) (b) 7. of the statutes is created to read:
46.275 (5) (b) 7. Provide services in any community-based residential facility unless the county or department uses as a service contract the approved model contract developed under s. 46.27 (2) (j) or a contract that includes all of the provisions of the approved model contract.
114,2
Section 2
. 46.277 (5) (f) of the statutes is created to read:
46.277 (5) (f) No county or private nonprofit agency may use funds received under this subsection to provide services in any community-based residential facility unless the county or agency uses as a service contract the approved model contract developed under s. 46.27 (2) (j) or a contract that includes all of the provisions of the approved model contract.
Note: The amendments in Sections 1 and 2 require the use of the approved model contract under s. 46.27 (2) (j), or a similar contract, when providing services in any community-based residential facility (CBRF) under the community integration program (CIP) I-A or I-B. According to the Department of Health and Family Services (DHFS), the use of this model contract is currently required for persons receiving services in a CBRF under the community options program (COP). Because funds from both COP and CIP I-A and I-B may be used to fund care in a particular CBRF, it would eliminate confusion to have only one contract format in use for providers to review and sign.
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Section 3
. 46.56 (14) (a) (intro.) and 1. of the statutes, as affected by 1997 Wisconsin Act 3, are consolidated, renumbered 46.56 (14) (a) and amended to read:
46.56 (14) (a) In order to support the development of a comprehensive system of coordinated care for children with severe disabilities and their families, the department shall establish a statewide advisory committee with representatives of county departments, the department of public instruction, educational agencies, professionals experienced in the provision of services to children with severe disabilities, families with children with severe disabilities, advocates for such families and their children, the subunit of the department of workforce development that administers vocational rehabilitation, the technical college system, health care providers, courts assigned to exercise jurisdiction under chs. 48 and 938, child welfare officials, and other appropriate persons as selected by the department. The department may use an existing committee for this purpose if it has representatives from the listed groups and is willing to perform the required functions. This committee shall do all of the following: Monitor monitor the development of programs throughout the state and support communication and mutual assistance among operating programs as well as those that are being developed.
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Section 4
. 46.56 (14) (a) 2. of the statutes is repealed.
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Section 5
. 46.56 (14) (c) (intro.) of the statutes is amended to read:
46.56 (14) (c) (intro.) The department shall evaluate the programs funded under this section. The report of this evaluation shall be submitted to the chief clerk of each house of the legislature for distribution to the appropriate standing committees on children, in the manner provided in s. 13.172 (3), and shall be broadly disseminated to county departments and school districts. The evaluation shall be completed by January 1, 1992 and all All organizations participating in the program shall cooperate with the evaluation. The evaluation shall include information about all of the following:
Note: The amendments in Sections 3 to 6 [Enrolling Note: Section 6 was deleted by assembly amendment 1.] eliminate outdated provisions regarding specific evaluation due dates of programs for children with severe emotional disturbances and also eliminate outdated provisions regarding dissemination of these evaluations. Further, these amendments modify the matching fund requirement for these projects from 20% of the requested funding to 20% of the proposed total program budget. According to the DHFS, this change to the matching funds requirement would codify current practice.
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Section 7
. 46.974 of the statutes, as affected by 1997 Wisconsin Act 27, is repealed.
Note: This provision deletes a requirement that the DHFS prepare, in cooperation with the department of public instruction, a joint alcohol and drug abuse prevention plan. According to the DHFS, the elimination of this requirement will allow the State Council on Alcohol and Other Drug Abuse to determine how interdepartmental collaboration and reporting will occur.
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Section 8
. 48.46 (1) of the statutes is amended to read:
48.46 (1) Except as provided in sub. subs. (2) and (3), the parent, guardian or legal custodian of the child or the child whose status is adjudicated by the court may at any time within one year after the entering of the court's order petition the court for a rehearing on the ground that new evidence has been discovered affecting the advisability of the court's original adjudication. Upon a showing that such evidence does exist, the court shall order a new hearing.
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Section 9
. 48.46 (3) of the statutes is created to read:
48.46 (3) An adoptive parent who has been granted adoption of a child under s. 48.91 (3) may not petition the court for a rehearing under sub. (1) or move the court under s. 806.07 for relief from the order granting adoption. A petition for termination of parental rights under s. 48.42 and an appeal to the court of appeals shall be the exclusive remedies for an adoptive parent who wishes to end his or her parental relationship with his or her adopted child.
Note: The amendments in Sections 8 and 9 prohibit an adoptive parent from ending his or her parental relationship with his or her adopted child through a motion under s. 806.07 (1), stats., for relief from the order granting adoption or through a petition for a rehearing of such an order. Instead, an adoptive parent who wishes to end his or her parental relationship with his or her adopted child would be required to file a petition for termination of parental rights under s. 48.42, stats., or to appeal the order granting adoption.
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Section 10
. 48.981 (3) (c) 4. of the statutes, as affected by 1997 Wisconsin Act 27, is amended to read:
48.981 (3) (c) 4. The county department or, in a county having a population of 500,000 or more, the department or a licensed child welfare agency under contract with the department shall determine, within 60 days after receipt of a report, whether abuse or neglect has occurred or is likely to occur. The determination shall be based on a preponderance of the evidence produced by the investigation. A determination that abuse or neglect has occurred may not be based solely on the fact that the child's parent, guardian or legal custodian in good faith selects and relies on prayer or other religious means for treatment of disease or for remedial care of the child. In making a determination that emotional damage has occurred, the county department or, in a county having a population of 500,000 or more, the department or a licensed child welfare agency under contract with the department shall give due regard to the culture of the subjects and shall establish that the person alleged to be responsible for the emotional damage is neglecting, refusing or unable for reasons other than poverty to remedy the harm. This subdivision does not prohibit a court from ordering medical services for the child if the child's health requires it.
Note: The amendment in Section 10 deletes obsolete language in the statute regarding determinations of child abuse or neglect which requires the agency making the determination, in cases of emotional damage, to establish that the person alleged to be responsible for the emotional damage is neglecting, refusing or unable for reasons other than poverty to remedy the harm. The requirement that a parent, guardian, legal custodian or other person exercising permanent or temporary control over the child must have caused the emotional damage was repealed in the 1993-94 legislative session. Also, the requirement that the parent, guardian or legal custodian must have neglected, refused or been unable for reasons other than poverty to obtain the necessary treatment or to take steps to ameliorate the symptoms was incorporated into the definition of “abuse" in the 1995-96 legislative session.
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Section 11
. 49.45 (41) (a) (intro.) and 1. of the statutes are consolidated, renumbered 49.45 (41) (a) and amended to read:
49.45 (41) (a) In this subsection: “Mental, “mental health crisis intervention services" means services that are provided by a mental health crisis intervention program operated by, or under contract with, a county or municipality, if the county or municipality is certified as a medical assistance provider.
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Section 12
. 49.45 (41) (a) 2. of the statutes is repealed.
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Section 13
. 49.45 (41) (b) of the statutes is amended to read:
49.45 (41) (b) If a county or municipality elects to become certified as a provider of mental health crisis intervention services, the county or municipality may provide mental health crisis intervention services under this subsection in the county or municipality to medical assistance recipients through the medical assistance program. A county or municipality that elects to provide the services shall pay the amount of the allowable charges for the services under the medical assistance program that is not provided by the federal government. The department shall reimburse the county or municipality under this subsection only for the amount of the allowable charges for those services under the medical assistance program that is provided by the federal government.
Note: The amendments in Sections 11 to 13 remove references to municipalities in the statutes relating to mental health crisis intervention services. According to the DHFS, these amendments are necessary because under s. 51.42 counties, not municipalities, are responsible for mental health crisis intervention services, and new DHFS standards identify counties, or agencies contracting with counties, as the appropriate entities for certification to provide these services.
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Section 14
. 50.03 (2m) (a) of the statutes is amended to read:
50.03 (2m) (a) Each licensee or applicant for license shall file with the department the name and address of a person authorized to accept service of any notices or other papers which the department may send by registered or certified mail, with a return receipt requested. The person authorized by a nursing home under this paragraph shall be located at the nursing home.
Note: The amendment in Section 14 provides that a licensee or applicant for license which is a nursing home must file with the DHFS the name and address of a person who is located at the nursing home and is authorized to accept service of any notices or other papers which DHFS may send by registered or certified mail, with a return receipt requested. According to the DHFS, this change is needed because notices may currently be sent to nursing home corporate offices, which may be distant from the nursing homes being inspected and does not facilitate the smooth and efficient transfer of information between the nursing home and the DHFS.
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Section 15
. 50.03 (4) (e) of the statutes, as affected by 1997 Wisconsin Act 27, is amended to read:
50.03 (4) (e) Each license shall be issued only for the premises and persons named in the application and is not transferable or assignable. The license shall be posted in a place readily visible to residents and visitors, such as the lobby or reception area of the facility. Any license granted shall state the maximum bed capacity allowed number of the facility's beds that are licensed by the department, the person to whom the license is granted, the date of issuance, the maximum level of care for which the facility is licensed as a condition of its licensure and such additional information and special conditions as the department may prescribe.
Note: The amendment in Section 15 provides that a license for a nursing home shall state the number of beds approved by the DHFS, rather than the maximum bed capacity allowed. According to the DHFS, the term “maximum bed capacity" in the current statute refers to the maximum number of beds that a nursing home could physically accommodate. Since the DHFS regulates the number and distribution of nursing home beds, the representation and reporting of the actual number of beds operated by a nursing home on the nursing home's license would more accurately reflect reality.
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Section 16
. 50.035 (6) of the statutes is amended to read:
50.035 (6) Posting of notice required. Beginning on January 1, 1992, the The licensee of a community-based residential facility, or his or her designee, shall post in a conspicuous location in the community-based residential facility a notice, provided by the board on aging and long-term care, of the name, address and telephone number of the long-term care ombudsman program under s. 16.009 (2) (b).
Note: The amendment in Section 16 deletes an outdated reference to the date that a posting requirement for CBRF licenses went into effect.
114,17
Section 17
. 50.04 (2v) of the statutes is amended to read:
50.04 (2v) Posting of notice required. Beginning on January 1, 1992, a A nursing home shall post in a conspicuous location in the nursing home a notice, provided by the board on aging and long-term care, of the name, address and telephone number of the long-term care ombudsman program under s. 16.009 (2) (b).
Note: The amendment in Section 17 deletes an outdated reference to the date that a posting requirement for nursing home ombudsman program information went into effect.
114,18
Section 18
. 50.04 (3) (d) of the statutes is amended to read:
50.04 (3) (d) Survey of institutions for mental diseases. Before July 1, 1988 During inspections conducted under par. (a), the department shall conduct a survey to determine whether any nursing home that is licensed under this section is an institution for mental diseases, as defined under 42 CFR 435.1009. On or after July 1, 1988, the department shall make these determinations during inspections conducted under par. (a).
Note: The amendment in Section 18 deletes an outdated reference to a date by which the DHFS had to conduct a survey to determine whether any licensed nursing home was an institution for mental disease.
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Section 19
. 50.09 (4) of the statutes is amended to read:
50.09 (4) Each facility shall make available a copy of the rights and responsibilities established under this section and the facility's rules to each resident and to each resident's guardian legal representative, if any, at or prior to the time of admission to the facility, to each person who is a resident of the facility on December 12, 1975 and to each member of the facility's staff. The rights, responsibilities and rules shall be posted in a prominent place in each facility. Each facility shall prepare a written plan and provide appropriate staff training to implement each resident's rights established under this section.
Note: The amendments in Section 19 change a reference to a nursing home resident's guardian to a nursing home resident's legal representative. According to the DHFS, the broader term “legal representative" is more appropriate here because it encompasses other substitute decision makers who may exist for nursing home residents, such as those acting under a health care power of attorney. In addition, an outdated reference to a date that the requirement that a copy of certain information be given to the resident and his or her guardian went into effect is deleted.
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Section 20
. 50.095 (title) of the statutes is amended to read:
50.095 (title) Resident's right to know; nursing home reports.
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Section 21
. 50.095 of the statutes is renumbered 50.095 (1).
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Section 22
. 50.096 (title) of the statutes is repealed.
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Section 23
. 50.096 (1) of the statutes is renumbered 50.095 (2) and amended to read:
50.095 (2) Beginning in 1988, the
The department may request from a nursing home information necessary for preparation of a report under sub. (2) (3), and the nursing home, if so requested, shall provide the information.
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Section 24
. 50.096 (2) of the statutes is renumbered 50.095 (3), and 50.095 (3) (intro.), as renumbered, is amended to read:
50.095 (3) (intro.) By July 1, 1988, and annually thereafter, the The department shall provide each nursing home with a report that includes the following information for the nursing home:
