Colorado § 25.5-6-307 - Services for the elderly, blind, and disabled.

§ 25.5-6-307. Services for the elderly, blind, and disabled.

(1) Subject to the provisions of this part 3, home- and community-based services for the elderly, blind, and disabled include only the following services:

(a) Adult day care;

(b) Alternative care services;

(c) (Deleted by amendment, L. 2023.)

(d) Home modification services;

(e) (Deleted by amendment, L. 2023.)

(f) Nonmedical transportation services;

(g) (Deleted by amendment, L. 2023.)

(h) Respite care services;

(i) Repealed.

(j) (Deleted by amendment, L. 2023.)

(k) (Deleted by amendment, L. 2023.)

(2) All providers of home- and community-based services for the elderly, blind, and disabled may be separately certified to provide other services, if otherwise qualified.

(3) A case management agency may be certified to provide the services described in subsection (1) of this section, if otherwise qualified as a provider under the state medical assistance program.

(4) (a) The case management agency, in coordination with the eligible person, the person's family or guardian, and the person's physician, shall include in each case plan a process by which the eligible person may receive necessary care, which may include respite care, if the eligible person's family or service provider is unavailable due to an emergency situation or to unforeseen circumstances. The eligible person and the person's family or guardian shall be duly informed by the case management agency of these alternative care provisions at the time the case plan is initiated.

(b) The requirements of this subsection (4) shall not apply if the eligible person is residing in an alternative care facility.

(5) (a) No later than January 2024, the state department shall submit a report to the senate health and human services committee, the house of representatives public and behavioral health and human services committee, and the house of representatives health and insurance committee, or any successor committees, as part of its "State Measurement for Accountable, Responsive, and Transparent (SMART) Government Act" presentation required by section 2-7-203. At a minimum, the report must identify:

(I) A reimbursement system with a goal to incentivize and increase transportation provider participation;

(II) How the state department will ensure compliance with applicable federal laws and waiver requirements;

(III) A system of common reporting to ensure a member does not exceed the medicaid benefit in a multi-provider scenario; and

(IV) Best practices based on what other states have done to allow transportation network companies to provide nonmedical transportation services for individuals receiving services, including but not limited to, reimbursement rates; driver compensation; and integration with programs that provide nonmedical transportation services.

(b) In developing the report, the state department shall engage in a stakeholder process that includes individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities and their families, individuals with disabilities, and transportation network companies. The report may be developed in conjunction with the reporting requirement in sections 25.5-6-409 (6), 25.5-6-606 (9), 25.5-6-704 (8), and 25.5-6-1303 (9).

(c) (I) Upon completion of the report described in subsection (5)(a) of this section, the state department shall analyze and review each operational transportation network company, as defined in section 40-10.1-602 (3). The state department shall verify each transportation network company's viability to ensure the health, safety, welfare, cost effectiveness, and capability in expanding nonmedical transportation services for individuals receiving services pursuant to this section and comply with all rules promulgated pursuant to subsection (5)(e)(I) of this section.

(II) No later than July 1, 2024, the state department shall authorize verified transportation network companies to provide nonmedical transportation services if the state department finds the transportation network company viable under federal requirements and within budgetary constraints.

(III) For the purposes of this subsection (5)(c), "verify" means a transportation network company meets all requirements resulting from the report described in subsection (5)(a) of this section.

(d) The state department may seek any necessary federal authorization for the implementation of this subsection (5).

(e) (I) The state department shall promulgate any necessary rules to ensure transportation network companies comply with federal and state oversight requirements and shall include all relevant stakeholders, including medicaid members, transportation network companies, current providers and drivers for nonmedical transportation services, and other parties interested in developing the requirements.

(II) Pursuant to section 40-10.1-105 (1)(l), transportation network companies are not subject to regulation by the public utilities commission when providing nonmedical transportation services pursuant to this section and are instead subject to rules promulgated by the state department pursuant to this subsection (5)(e).

(f) This subsection (5) does not apply to a provider authorized to provide transportation services pursuant to part 8 of article 1 of title 25.5 prior to August 10, 2022.

Source: L. 2006: Entire article added with relocations, p. 1940, § 7, effective July 1. L. 2014: IP(1) amended and (1)(k) added, (HB 14-1357), ch. 254, p. 1015, § 4, effective March 1, 2015. L. 2018: (1)(i) repealed, (HB 18-1326), ch. 183, p. 1240, § 3, effective July 1. L. 2022: (5) added, (HB 22-1114), ch. 396, p. 2815, § 2, effective August 10. L. 2023: (1) amended, (SB 23-289), ch. 270, p. 1607, § 4, effective July 1, 2025. L. 2024: (5)(a)(III) and (5)(e)(I) amended, (SB 24-176), ch. 152, p. 666, § 80, effective August 7.

Editor's note: This section is similar to former § 26-4-607 as it existed prior to 2006.

Cross references: For the legislative declaration in HB 22-1114, see section 1 of chapter 396, Session Laws of Colorado 2022.