The HCIDAC was formed in response to the adoption of HB500, known as the Alabama Health Planning Facilitation Act (the “Act”) which was introduced by Rep. April Weaver. (http://alisondb.legislature.state.al.us/ALISON/SearchableInstruments/2015RS/PrintFiles/HB500-enr.pdf). The Act is designed to address the collection of additional health care information necessary for informed statewide health planning and to give the Statewide Health Planning and Development Agency (“SHPDA”) authority to require the reporting of certain information to SHPDA by health care facilities. HCIDAC is charged with advising and participating in the writing of rules necessary to implement the Act and reviewing reports prior to dissemination by SHPDA. Under the Act, HCIDAC membership is appointed by various provider groups and by the current chairs of the Statewide Health Coordinating Council and the CON Review Board.
HCIDAC is focused on remedying past reporting issues, including the timeliness of reporting and the accuracy of the data available to SHPDA, so that informed health care planning decisions can be made based upon current and accurate information. An important goal of HCIDAC is to streamline the reporting process through an “easy-to-use” electronic reporting mechanism. In its first few meetings, HCIDAC has indicated that it desires to eliminate the collection of unnecessary information and make sure any information required in connection with the State Health Plan is collected. HCIDAC members have also indicated that facility charity care and demographic information should be collected and reported on a uniform basis with clearly defined terms and methodologies.
HCIDAC is also charged with developing penalties for non-compliance with the reporting requirements. Section 8 of the Act states:
“SHPDA shall impose an administrative penalty against a covered health care reporter that failed to comply with this act in an amount not to exceed five thousand dollars ($5,000) if the covered health care reporter is a rural health care provider or ten thousand dollars ($10,000) for all covered health care reporters and the covered health care reporter may not participate in the CON review process either as an applicant for a CON or in opposition to a CON application until the covered health care provider is in compliance with this act…”
Because facilities will no longer be able to participate in the CON process unless they are current in their mandatory data reporting, SHPDA is much more likely to have complete and timely data to use in its health planning decisions.
Wayne Pate, a long-time member of the Statewide Health Coordinating Council and well known retired Birmingham business executive, has been elected as HCIDAC chairman. Chairman Pate has appointed three subcommittees to develop two types of mandatory reports each. The three sub-committees are as follows:
(1) Hospitals and Hospice - (Doug Beverly will chair this group.)
(2) Nursing Homes, Assisted Living and Mental Health - (Barbara Estep will chair this group.)
(3) Ambulatory Surgery Centers and Home Health Care - (Dr. Michael Gosney will chair this group.)
Each subcommittee will meet in accordance with the Alabama Open Meetings Act and will publish notice of its meetings two weeks in advance through the SHPDA staff. It is anticipated that different types of facilities will have different reporting requirements.
The Act requires that regulations must be adopted within one year after the effective date of the Act, within which time SHPDA, following advice and guidance from HCIDAC, must adopt rules pursuant to the Act. In order for the CONRB to have adequate time to take up the proposal as a potential new regulation, HCIDAC’s proposal must be submitted to SHPDA no later than February of 2016.
Without a doubt, the new mandatory data requirements will streamline the CON process in Alabama and allow for more uniform comparisons of facility performance and actual need. Facilities will also benefit by having the ability to report their data electronically and in a manner which makes sense for their particular type of service.
Colin Luke is a partner in the health law practice at Waller.