The Governor approved this Statement of Scope on October 12, 2015.
Statement of Scope
DEPARTMENT
OF HEALTH SERVICES
Relating to
:
|
Home health agencies
|
Type of Statement of Scope:
Original
1. Finding/nature of emergency (Emergency Rule only):
Not A
pplicable.
2
.
Detailed description of the objective of the
proposed
rule
:
The objective of the proposed
rulemaking
is to
conform ch.
DHS 133
with
s.
50.49 (1) (b)
, Stats., as amended by
2011 Wisconsin Act 161
which, in pertinent part, defines home health services as those services provided under the care of a physician, physician assistant, or advanced practice nurse prescriber
and
to correct or remove outdated rule provisions and cross-
references.
3
.
Description of the existing policies relevant to the rule, new policies proposed to be included in the rule, and an analysis of policy alternatives
:
Section
50.49
(1)
(b)
,
Stats., as
amended by
2011 Wisconsin Act 161
,
in pertinent part,
defines
home health services to include services that are provided to an individual who is under the care of a
physician,
physician assistant
, or advanced practice nurse prescriber
.
Chapter
DHS 133
currently only recognizes
home
health
care services as those provided under the care of a
physician
or
advanced
practice
nurse prescriber.
The department
proposes to conform the rule to
reflect that
home health services, as
now
defined under s.
50.49 (1) (b)
,
Stats.,
may also be provided under the care of
a
physician assistant
.
The
existing rule
provide
s
that persons performing unspecified therapy services be qualified by training or licensure.
The department
intends to clarify that persons providing “other therapies” include art
or
music therap
y.
The existing rule
also
requires that an abstract of the patient’s record accompany the patient when the patient is transferred to another health facility.
T
he department intends to clarify that
an abstract of a patient’s record is the same as
a
summar
y of a patient’s record
.
The existing rule only specifies the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention as an authority for reference in the development of an agency’s infection control and prevention program.
The department proposes to clarify that agencies may use other
nationally recognized subject authorities,
in addit
ion to the Centers for Disease C
ontrol and Prevention
,
to
assist in the development of their infection control and prevention program.
3b. Analysis of policy alternatives
There is no reasonable alternative to the proposed rulemaking.
4
.
Detailed explanation of statutory authority for the rule
(including
the
statutory citation and language):
The department may develop, establish and enforce standards for the care, treatment, health, safety, welfare and comfort of patients by home health agencies and for the maintenance and operation of home health agencies which, in the light of advancing knowledge, will promote safe and adequate care and treatment of such patients by home health agencies.
Section
227.11 (2) (a)
,
Stats.,
reads:
Rule-making authority is expressly conferred on an agency as follows:
(a)
Each agency may promulgate rules interpreting the provisions of any statute enforced or administered by the agency, if the agency considers it necessary to effectuate the purpose of the statute, but a rule is not valid if the rule exceeds the bounds of correct interpretation. All of the following apply to the promulgation of a rule interpreting the provisions of a statute enforced or administered by an agency:
1.
A statutory or nonstatutory provision containing a statement or declaration of legislative intent, purpose, findings, or policy does not confer rule-making authority on the agency or augment the agency's rule-making authority beyond the rule-making authority that is explicitly conferred on the agency by the legislature.
2.
A statutory provision describing the agency's general powers or duties does not confer rule-making authority on the agency or augment the agency's rule-making authority beyond the rule-making authority that is explicitly conferred on the agency by the legislature.
3.
A statutory provision containing a specific standard, requirement, or threshold does not confer on the agency the authority to promulgate, enforce, or administer a rule that contains a standard, requirement, or threshold that is more restrictive than the standard, requirement, or threshold contained in the statutory provision.
5
.
Estimate of amount of time that state employees will spend developing the rule and of other resources necessary to develop the rule
:
The department will spend approximately 200 staff hours for rulemaking.
6
.
List with description of all entities that
may
be affected by the proposed rule
:
The entities that may be affected by the proposed rule are home health agencies,
the Wisconsin
Association for Home
Health
Care, Inc.,
physician assistants
, and home health agency
patient
s
.
7
.
Summary and preliminary comparison with any existing or proposed federal regulation that is intended to address the activities to be regulated by the proposed rule
:
Federal regulations under
42 CFR 484.18
,
in pertinent part, require that medical care in home health agencies be supervised by a physician
. Both physician assistants and advanced nurse prescribers must act under the supervision or in collaboration with the physician. The regulations also
otherwise
establish
the conditions for participation
in the
Medical Assistance program.
The
department’s proposal is
to
revise
ch.
DHS 133
to reflect
the recent change in the definition of
h
ome health services
under s.
50.49 (1) (b)
, Stats.,
which now include services p
rovided under the care of a physician assistant
, in addition to those provided under the care of a physician or advanced nurse prescriber.
8
. Anticipated economic impact of implementing the rule:
The proposed
rule is anticipated to have
little to no economic impact
if promulgated
.
Contact Person:
Rosie Greer
608-266-1279
