SENATE BILL No. 621

 

 

June 21, 2005, Introduced by Senators BIRKHOLZ, CROPSEY, GILBERT, PATTERSON, STAMAS, TOY and ALLEN and referred to the Committee on Senior Citizens and Veterans Affairs.

 

 

 

 

 

     A bill to amend 1978 PA 368, entitled

 

"Public health code,"

 

by amending section 20173 (MCL 333.20173), as added by 2002 PA 303.

 

THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF MICHIGAN ENACT:

 

     Sec. 20173. (1) Except as otherwise provided in subsection

 

(2), a health facility or agency that is a nursing home, county

 

medical care facility, or home for the aged shall not employ,

 

independently contract with, or grant clinical privileges to an

 

individual who  regularly provides direct services to patients or

 

residents in the health facility or agency after the effective date

 

of the amendatory act that added this section if the individual has

 

been convicted of  satisfies 1 or more of the following:

 


     (a)  A  Has been convicted of a felony or an attempt or

 

conspiracy to commit a felony within the 15 years immediately

 

preceding the date of application for employment or clinical

 

privileges or the date of the execution of the independent

 

contract.

 

     (b)  A  Has been convicted of a misdemeanor involving abuse,

 

neglect, assault, battery,  or  criminal sexual conduct,  or

 

involving  fraud, or theft  against a vulnerable adult as that term

 

is defined in section 145m of the Michigan penal code, 1931 PA 328,

 

MCL 750.145m,  or a state or federal crime that is substantially

 

similar to a misdemeanor described in this subdivision, within the

 

10 years immediately preceding the date of application for

 

employment or clinical privileges or the date of the execution of

 

the independent contract.

 

     (c) Is the subject of an order or disposition under any of the

 

following:

 

     (i) Section 464a of the mental health code, 1974 PA 258, MCL

 

330.1464a.

 

     (ii) Section 5107 of the estates and protected individuals

 

code, 1998 PA 386, MCL 700.5107.

 

     (iii) Sections 2950 and 2950a of the revised judicature act of

 

1961, 1961 PA 236, MCL 600.2950 and 600.2950a.

 

     (iv) Section 16b of chapter IX of the code of criminal

 

procedure, 1927 PA 175, MCL 769.16b.

 

     (d) Has been found not guilty but mentally ill of any crime

 

and has offered a plea of not guilty of, or been acquitted of, any

 

crime by reason of insanity.

 


     (e) Has been subject to an order of involuntary commitment in

 

an inpatient or outpatient setting due to mental illness.

 

     (f) Has a diagnosed mental illness at the time the application

 

is made regardless of whether he or she is receiving treatment for

 

that illness.

 

     (g) Is under a court order of legal incapacity in this state

 

or elsewhere.

 

     (2) Except as otherwise provided in this subsection and

 

subsection (5), a health facility or agency that is a nursing home,

 

county medical care facility, or home for the aged shall not

 

employ, independently contract with, or grant privileges to an

 

individual  who regularly provides direct services to patients or

 

residents in the health facility or agency after the effective date

 

of the amendatory act that added this section  until the health

 

facility or agency complies with subsection (4) or (5), or both.

 

This subsection and subsection (1) do not apply to an individual

 

who is employed by, under independent contract to, or granted

 

clinical privileges in a health facility or agency before the

 

effective date of the amendatory act that added this section.

 

     (3) An individual who applies for employment either as an

 

employee or as an independent contractor or for clinical privileges

 

with a health facility or agency that is a nursing home, county

 

medical care facility, or home for the aged and has received a good

 

faith offer of employment, an independent contract, or clinical

 

privileges from the health facility or agency shall give written

 

consent at the time of application for the department of state

 

police to conduct  a  annual criminal history  check  checks under

 


subsection (4) or (5), or both, along with identification

 

acceptable to the department of state police. If the department of

 

state police has conducted a criminal history check on the

 

applicant within the  24  12 months immediately preceding the date

 

of application and the applicant provides written consent for the

 

release of information for the purposes of this section, the health

 

facility or agency may use a copy of the results of that criminal

 

history check instead of obtaining written consent and requesting a

 

new criminal history check under this subsection, and under

 

subsections (4) and (5), or both. If the applicant is using a prior

 

criminal history check as described in this subsection, the health

 

facility or agency shall accept the copy of the results of the

 

criminal history check only from the health facility or agency or

 

adult foster care facility that previously employed or granted

 

clinical privileges to the applicant or from the firm or agency

 

that independently contracts with the applicant.

 

     (4) Upon receipt of the written consent and identification

 

required under subsection (3), if an applicant has resided in this

 

state for 3 or more years preceding the good faith offer of

 

employment, an independent contract, or clinical privileges, a

 

health facility or agency that is a nursing home, county medical

 

care facility, or home for the aged that has made a good faith

 

offer of employment or an independent contract or clinical

 

privileges to the applicant shall make  a  an annual request to the

 

department of state police to conduct a criminal history check on

 

the applicant. The request shall be made in a manner prescribed by

 

the department of state police. The health facility or agency shall

 


make the written consent and identification available to the

 

department of state police. If there is a charge for conducting the

 

criminal history check, the health facility or agency requesting

 

the criminal history check shall pay the cost of the charge. The

 

health facility or agency shall not seek reimbursement for the

 

charge from the individual who is the subject of the criminal

 

history check. The department of state police shall conduct a

 

criminal history check on the applicant named in the request. The

 

department of state police shall provide the health facility or

 

agency with a written report of the criminal history check

 

conducted under this subsection. The report shall contain any

 

criminal history record information on the applicant maintained by

 

the department of state police. As a condition of employment, an

 

applicant shall sign a written statement that he or she has been a

 

resident of this state for 3 or more years preceding the good faith

 

offer of employment, independent contract, or clinical privileges.

 

     (5) Upon receipt of the written consent and identification

 

required under subsection (3), if an applicant has resided in this

 

state for less than 3 years preceding the good faith offer of

 

employment, an independent contract, or clinical privileges, a

 

health facility or agency that is a nursing home, county medical

 

care facility, or home for the aged that has made a good faith

 

offer described in this subsection to the applicant shall comply

 

with subsection (4) and shall make a request to the department of

 

state police to forward the applicant's fingerprints to the federal

 

bureau of investigation. The department of state police shall

 

request the federal bureau of investigation to make a determination

 


of the existence of any national criminal history pertaining to the

 

applicant. An applicant described in this subsection shall provide

 

the department of state police with 2 sets of fingerprints. The

 

department of state police shall complete the criminal history

 

check under subsection (4) and, except as otherwise provided in

 

this subsection, provide the results of its determination under

 

subsection (4) to the health facility or agency and the results of

 

the federal bureau of investigation determination to the department

 

of consumer and industry services within 30 days after the request

 

is made. If the requesting health facility or agency is not a state

 

department or agency and if a crime is disclosed on the federal

 

bureau of investigation determination, the department shall notify

 

the health facility or agency in writing of the type of crime

 

disclosed on the federal bureau of investigation determination

 

without disclosing the details of the crime. Any charges for

 

fingerprinting or a federal bureau of investigation determination

 

under this subsection shall be paid in the manner required under

 

subsection (4).

 

     (6) If a health facility or agency that is a nursing home,

 

county medical care facility, or home for the aged determines it

 

necessary to employ or grant clinical privileges to an applicant

 

before receiving the results of the applicant's criminal history

 

check under subsection (4) or (5), or both, the health facility or

 

agency may conditionally employ or grant conditional clinical

 

privileges to the individual if all of the following apply:

 

     (a) The health facility or agency requests the criminal

 

history check under subsection (4) or (5), or both, upon

 


conditionally employing or conditionally granting clinical

 

privileges to the individual.

 

     (b) The individual signs a statement in writing that indicates

 

all of the following:

 

     (i) That he or she has not been convicted of 1 or more of the

 

crimes that are described in subsection (1)(a) and (b) within the

 

applicable time period prescribed by subsection (1)(a) and (b).

 

     (ii) That he or she has not been the subject of an order or

 

disposition described in subsection (1)(c).

 

     (iii) That he or she does not fall within any of the categories

 

described under subsection (1)(d), (e), (f), or (g).

 

     (iv)  (ii)  The individual agrees that, if the information in

 

the criminal history check conducted under subsection (4) or (5),

 

or both, does not confirm the individual's  statement under

 

subparagraph (i)  statements under subparagraphs (i), (ii), and (iii),

 

his or her employment or clinical privileges will be terminated by

 

the health facility or agency as required under subsection (1)

 

unless and until the individual can prove that the information is

 

incorrect. The health facility or agency shall provide a copy of

 

the results of the criminal history check conducted under

 

subsection (4) or (5), or both, to the applicant upon request.

 

     (v)  (iii)  That he or she understands the conditions described

 

in subparagraphs (i),  and  (ii), (iii), and (iv) that result in the

 

termination of his or her employment or clinical privileges and

 

that those conditions are good cause for termination.

 

     (7) On  the effective date of the amendatory act that added

 

this section  May 10, 2002, the department shall develop and

 


distribute a model form for the statement required under subsection

 

(6)(b). The department shall make the model form available to

 

health facilities or agencies subject to this section upon request

 

at no charge.

 

     (8) If an individual is employed as a conditional employee or

 

is granted conditional clinical privileges under subsection (6),

 

and the report described in subsection (4) or (5), or both, does

 

not confirm the individual's  statement under subsection (6)(b)(i)  

 

statements under subsection (6)(b)(i), (ii), and (iii), the health

 

facility or agency shall terminate the individual's employment or

 

clinical privileges as required by subsection (1).

 

     (9) An individual who knowingly provides false information

 

regarding criminal convictions on a statement described in

 

subsection (6)(b)(i) is guilty of a misdemeanor punishable by

 

imprisonment for not more than 90 days or a fine of not more than

 

$500.00, or both.

 

     (10) A health facility or agency that is a nursing home,

 

county medical care facility, or home for the aged shall use

 

criminal history record information obtained under subsection (4),

 

(5), or (6) only for the purpose of evaluating an applicant's

 

qualifications for employment, an independent contract, or clinical

 

privileges in the position for which he or she has applied and for

 

the purposes of subsections (6) and (8). A health facility or

 

agency or an employee of the health facility or agency shall not

 

disclose criminal history record information obtained under

 

subsection (4) or (5) to a person who is not directly involved in

 

evaluating the applicant's qualifications for employment, an

 


independent contract, or clinical privileges. Upon written request

 

from another health facility or agency or adult foster care

 

facility that is considering employing, independently contracting

 

with, or granting clinical privileges to an individual, a health

 

facility or agency that has obtained criminal history record

 

information under this section on that individual shall share the

 

information with the requesting health facility or agency or adult

 

foster care facility. Except for a knowing or intentional release

 

of false information, a health facility or agency has no liability

 

in connection with a criminal background check conducted under this

 

section or the release of criminal history record information under

 

this subsection.

 

     (11) As a condition of continued employment, each employee,

 

independent contractor, or individual granted clinical privileges

 

shall agree in writing to  report  do each of the following:

 

     (a) Report to the health facility or agency immediately upon

 

being arrested for or convicted of 1 or more of the criminal

 

offenses listed in subsection (1)(a) and (b) or upon becoming the

 

subject of an order or disposition listed in subsection (1)(c),

 

(d), and (e).

 

     (b) Consent to the performance of an annual criminal history

 

check as provided under subsection (4).

 

     (12) In addition to sanctions set forth in section 20165, a

 

licensee, owner, administrator, or operator of a nursing home,

 

county medical care facility, or home for the aged who fails to

 

conduct the criminal history checks as required under this section

 

is guilty of a felony punishable by imprisonment for not more than

 


4 years or a fine of not more than $50,000.00, or both.

 

     (13)  (12)  As used in this section:

 

     (a) "Adult foster care facility" means an adult foster care

 

facility licensed under the adult foster care facility licensing

 

act, 1979 PA 218, MCL 400.701 to 400.737.

 

     (b) "Independent contract" means a contract entered into by a

 

health facility or agency with an individual who provides the

 

contracted services independently or a contract entered into by a

 

health facility or agency with an organization or agency that

 

employs or contracts with an individual after complying with the

 

requirements of this section to provide the contracted services to

 

the health facility or agency on behalf of the organization or

 

agency.