SENATE, No. 399

SECTION 1. Section 71 of Chapter 111 of the General Laws is hereby amended by inserting, at the end, the following paragraph:-

            The licensee of a convalescent or nursing home may designate certain rooms in the facility as infectious disease isolation rooms.  Such designation may be made from time-to-time by a written notice to the Department.  No architectural or other requirements may be imposed upon a convalescent or nursing home that designates one or more infectious disease isolation rooms.  If the licensee has no other available infectious disease isolation rooms, the licensee may relocate any person residing in a designated infectious disease isolation room to another accommodation in the same certified facility if the licensee seeks to admit another person to the infectious disease isolation room because such other person requires isolation from other residents of the facility.  Such relocation may be made by the licensee immediately upon written certification of a physician or registered nurse that such other person requires isolation from other residents of the facility.  Any such relocation will not be a transfer of the relocated resident for any purposes, and the relocated resident will have no appeal from such relocation.  The licensee must notify any person admitted to a designated infectious disease isolation room that they are being admitted to an infectious disease isolation room, and that they may be relocated to another accommodation in the facility should the licensee seek to admit another person to the infectious disease isolation room who requires isolation from other residents of the facility.

SECTION 2.   This Act shall take effect upon passage