ASSEMBLY, No. 204
STATE OF NEW JERSEY
Introduced Pending Technical Review by Legislative Counsel
PRE-FILED FOR INTRODUCTION IN THE 1996 SESSION
By Assemblywoman WEINBERG and Assemblyman GREEN
An Act providing for the licensure of medical temporary employment agencies and supplementing Title 26 of the Revised Statutes.
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. As used in this act:
"Agency" means a medical temporary employment agency.
"Commissioner" means the Commissioner of Health.
"Health care facility" means a health care facility as defined in section 2 of P.L.1971, c.136 (C.26:2H-2).
"Health care service" means a preventive, diagnostic or therapeutic health service provided in the recipient's residence, or to a patient in a health care facility under a contractual agreement between the facility and a medical temporary employment agency, including, but not limited to, nursing, nutritional and personal care services and physical, speech, occupational, respiratory, intravenous and related therapies.
"Medical temporary employment agency" means a person, business or nonprofit entity who arranges or provides one or more health care services, or who is engaged in the business of procuring or offering to procure employment for persons to provide one or more health care services, where a fee is exacted, charged or received directly or indirectly for procuring or offering to procure that employment.
2. a. A person shall not either directly or indirectly open, conduct or maintain, or perform any of the functions of, an agency without first obtaining a license issued by the commissioner pursuant to this act; however, a person operating an agency on the date of enactment of this act shall have one year from the date of enactment of this act to obtain a license.
b. A license issued pursuant to this act shall be valid for a period of two years unless revoked by the commissioner.
c. In the event of the loss, defacement or destruction of a license issued pursuant to this act, the licensee shall notify the commissioner in writing no later than 10 days after the licensee becomes aware of that event.
3. The provisions of this act shall not apply to:
a. A physician, dentist, registered nurse, physical therapist, occupational therapist, speech therapist, social worker or other health care professional as determined by the commissioner who provides health care services as an independent practitioner;
b. A person who provides health care services exclusively under a program which is operated or regulated by State government and which includes required minimum standards for the provision of health care services under the program; and
c. A home health care agency licensed pursuant to P.L.1971, c.136 (C.26:2H-1 et seq.).
4. a. An application for licensure pursuant to this act shall be made in writing to the commissioner according to rules and regulations established by the commissioner, and shall, at a minimum, state the full name and business address of the applicant.
The applicant shall notify the commissioner in writing of any changes in the information contained in the application for licensure, or of any additional information that is relevant to the application, no later than 10 business days after the change becomes effective or the additional information becomes available to the applicant, as the case may be.
b. The commissioner may charge a nonrefundable fee to be submitted by each applicant for a license, or a renewal thereof, in an amount to be determined by the commissioner, but not to exceed $1,000; except that the commissioner may increase the amount of this fee on an annual basis as he deems necessary to meet the costs of carrying out the provisions of this act.
c. An applicant for licensure shall file with the commissioner a statement as to whether the applicant has been convicted of a crime, and shall furnish such additional information about the applicant and other persons associated with the medical temporary employment agency for the operation of which the applicant is seeking a license, as may be required by the commissioner.
5. a. The commissioner may refuse to issue, suspend or revoke a license to operate an agency based upon a finding that the applicant or license, as the case may be, has:
(1) obtained a license through fraud, deception or misrepresentation;
(2) engaged in repeated acts of negligence, malpractice or incompetence;
(3) exhibited professional or occupational misconduct;
(4) been convicted of a crime which, in the determination of the commissioner, reflects adversely on the person's ability to operate an agency;
(5) had his authority to directly or indirectly open, conduct or maintain or perform any of the functions of an agency revoked or suspended by another state or other entity;
(6) directed an employee of that agency to perform duties for which that employee is not qualified under this or another act; or
(7) failed to comply with, or violated, the provisions of this act or any rules or regulations adopted pursuant thereto.
b. The commissioner shall not refuse to issue, suspend or revoke a license except upon reasonable notice to, and opportunity to be heard by, the applicant or licensee, as the case may be.
6. a. An agency, no later than the 90th day after the end of its fiscal year and annually thereafter, shall file a report with the commissioner which includes the following information:
(1) The name and address of the operator of the agency;
(2) If the agency is a partnership, the name and address of each partner; and
(3) If the agency is a corporation, the name and address of each officer and the principal shareholder or controlling person of the corporation. In addition, the agency shall furnish to the commissioner such other reports or information as the commissioner may require from time to time in order to effectuate the purposes of this act.
b. The commissioner may, by regulation, establish requirements for a uniform system of reports by, and audits of, agencies with respect to the quality of the health care services which they provide.
c. The commissioner shall at least annually, and without provision of advance notice, inspect the premises, operation and services of an agency to determine its compliance with the provisions of this act and the rules and regulations adopted pursuant thereto.
7. a. A person who violates a provision of this act or any rule or regulation adopted pursuant thereto, as determined by the commissioner, is liable to a civil penalty for each offense in an amount to be determined by the commissioner, to be collected and enforced by summary proceedings pursuant to "the penalty enforcement law," N.J.S.2A:58-1 et seq. If the violation is of a continuing nature, each day during which it continues shall constitute a separate offense.
b. The operator of an agency who arranges for an employee of that agency to perform duties for which that employee is not qualified under this or another act is liable to a civil penalty for each offense in an amount to be determined by the commissioner, to be collected and enforced by summary proceedings pursuant to "the penalty enforcement law," N.J.S.2A:58-1 et seq.
8. A health care facility which utilizes the services of an employee of an agency which is not licensed pursuant to this act, or the services of an employee of an agency who does not meet such requirements for licensure or certification as are provided by law, to perform the duties assigned to that person by the health care facility, is liable to a civil penalty for each offense in an amount to be determined by the commissioner, to be collected and enforced by summary proceedings pursuant to "the penalty enforcement law," N.J.S.2A:58-1 et seq.
9. The commissioner shall provide for an appropriate and timely right of appeal for a person who is determined by the commissioner to have violated a provision of this act or any rule or regulation adopted pursuant thereto.
10. The powers, functions and duties exercised by the Division of Consumer Affairs in the Department of Law and Public Safety with respect to medical temporary employment agencies, pursuant to P.L.1989, c.331 (C.34:8-43 et seq.) and P.L.1960, c.39 (C.56:8-1 et seq.), notwithstanding the provisions of those acts to the contrary, are transferred to and vested in the Department of Health.
11. The commissioner, pursuant to the "Administrative Procedure Act," P.L.1968, c.410 (C.52:14B-1 et seq.), shall adopt rules and regulations to effectuate the purposes of this act.
12. This act shall take effect on the 120th day after enactment.
STATEMENT
This bill provides for the mandatory licensure of medical temporary employment services agencies by the Department of Health.
Currently, these temporary help service or private employment agencies are licensed by the Division of Consumer Affairs in the Department of Law and Public Safety, and are only regulated with respect to their business practices, but not quality of care standards. These 200 or so agencies have been able to operate without adequate monitoring by the State to ensure the qualifications of their personnel.
This bill addresses a major deficiency in the regulatory authority of the Department of Health with respect to medical temporary employment agencies and is a significant step towards ensuring the delivery of high quality care by the employees of these agencies.
The bill takes effect on the 120th day after its enactment.
Transfers licensure of medical temporary employment agencies from Division of Consumer Affairs to DOH.