26:2H-152 Standards for dementia care homes.

21. The commissioner shall establish standards to ensure that each dementia care home is constructed and operated in such a manner as will protect the health, safety, and welfare of its residents and at the same time preserve and promote a homelike atmosphere appropriate to these facilities, including, but not limited to, standards to provide for the following:

a. Safety from fire;

b. Safety from structural, mechanical, plumbing, and electrical deficiencies;

c. Adequate light and ventilation;

d. Physical security;

e. Protection from harassment, fraud, and eviction without due cause;

f. Clean and reasonably comfortable surroundings;

g. Adequate personal and financial services rendered in the facility;

h. Disclosure of owner identification information;

i. Maintenance of orderly and sufficient financial and occupancy records;

j. Referral of residents, by the operator, to social service and health care providers for needed services;

k. Assurance that no constitutional, civil, or legal right will be denied solely by reason of residence in a dementia care home;

l. Reasonable access for employees of public and private agencies, and reasonable access for other citizens upon receiving the consent of the resident to be visited by them;

m. Opportunity for each resident to live with as much independence, autonomy, and interaction with the surrounding community as the resident is capable of doing; and

n. Assurance that the needs of residents of a dementia care home will be met, which shall include, at a minimum, the following:

(1) staffing levels, which shall ensure that the ratio of direct care staff to residents in the facility is equal to or higher than that which existed on the date of enactment of P.L.2015, c.125 (C.55:13B-5.1 et al.);

(2) staff qualifications and training;

(3) special dietary needs of residents;

(4) special supervision requirements relating to the individual needs of residents;

(5) building safety requirements appropriate to the needs of residents, including the requirement to maintain the operation 24 hours a day, seven days a week, of window, door, and any other locks or security system designed to prevent the elopement of a resident;

(6) special health monitoring of residents by qualified, licensed health care professionals, including a requirement that a medical assessment by a physician be performed on a resident with special needs as described in this subsection, as determined necessary by the commissioner, prior to admission and on a quarterly basis thereafter, to ensure that the facility is appropriate to the needs of the resident; and

(7) criteria for discharging residents which shall be set forth in the admission agreement, which shall be provided to the resident or the resident's representative prior to or upon admission. The commissioner may revoke the license of any provider who violates the criteria for discharging residents.

L.2015, c.125, s.21.