Rhode Island § 40-18-3 - Long-Term Home Health Care — Alternative to Placement in Skilled Nursing or Intermediate Care Facility

§ 40-18-3. Patient assessment and provision of services.

(a) The services defined and delineated in § 40-18-2 shall be provided only to those hospitalized patients who are medically eligible for placement in a skilled nursing facility and/or intermediate-care facility. Provision of long-term home healthcare services paid for by government funds shall be based upon, but not limited to, a comprehensive assessment that shall include, but not be limited to, an evaluation of the medical, social, and environmental needs of each applicant for the services or program. This assessment shall also serve as the basis for the development and provision of an appropriate plan of care for the applicant. In cases in which the applicant is a patient in a hospital, the assessment shall be completed by persons designated by the director, including, but not limited to, the applicant’s physician, the discharge coordinator of the hospital, and a representative of the department of human services.

(b) Continued provision of long-term home healthcare services paid for by government funds shall be based upon a comprehensive assessment of the medical, social, and environmental needs of the recipient of the services. The assessment shall be performed at least every one hundred eighty (180) days by the department of human services.