* § 2803-z. Transfer, discharge and voluntary discharge requirements
for residential health care facilities. 1. (a) No residential health
care facility shall transfer or discharge a resident unless such
transfer or discharge is necessary for the resident's health, safety, or
welfare, such transfer or discharge is necessary to preserve the health,
safety, or welfare of other residents, the facility discontinues
operation or the resident has failed to pay or make arrangements for
payment for a stay at the facility, unless stated otherwise by this
section.

(b) Prior to a facility initiating a transfer or discharge of a
resident, the facility shall use its best efforts, including compliance
with applicable federal and state regulations, to secure appropriate
placement or a residential arrangement for the resident, other than
temporary housing assistance. For purposes of this section, "temporary
housing assistance" shall include but not be limited to a family
shelter, a shelter for adults, a hotel, an emergency apartment, a
domestic violence shelter, or a safe house for refugees. No residential
health care facility shall initiate a transfer or discharge of a
resident to the home of another individual without the written consent
of the resident and the other individual and the other individual has
received and acknowledged the comprehensive discharge plan to address
the resident's needs.

(c) At least thirty days prior to a facility-initiated transfer or
discharge, the residential health care facility shall provide written
notification of the transfer or discharge to the resident, the
resident's lawful representative, if any, a family member of the
resident, if known, and the long-term care ombudsman under section two
hundred eighteen of the elder law. The notification shall be in a
language and manner that is understandable to the resident and shall
state the basis for the transfer or discharge, which shall be recorded
in the resident's clinical record.

(d) A resident may be transferred or discharged if the facility is
unable to meet the needs of the resident. In that case, the resident's
clinical record shall document (i) the specific need or needs that
cannot be met, (ii) the facility's attempts to meet the resident's
needs, and (iii) the services available at the receiving facility.

(e) When a resident is being transferred or discharged because the
resident cannot be cared for safely, or is a danger to others, prior
notice may be provided less than thirty days prior to the transfer or
discharge but shall be provided as soon as practicable prior to transfer
or discharge. The facility shall document in the resident's clinical
record the risks to the resident or others if the resident were to
remain in the facility.

(f) A residential health care facility may transfer or discharge a
resident because the resident does not need residential health care
facility services.

2. Where the resident's transfer or discharge is initiated by the
resident and the clinical record notes that a family member or
designated representative has requested notification, and such
notification is otherwise lawful, the residential health care facility
shall notify the family member or designated representative of the
resident's voluntary transfer or discharge as soon as practicable after
the resident initiates the voluntary transfer or discharge process and
in no event more than forty-eight hours thereafter. The notice shall not
be provided if the resident specifically requests that the family member
or designated representative not be notified.

3. A residential health care facility shall not compel or attempt to
compel an individual to voluntarily transfer or discharge from the
facility. In the event a resident seeks a voluntary transfer or
discharge, the facility shall document, as part of the resident's
medical records, the reason the resident is seeking a transfer or
discharge. If the resident declines to provide a reason, the facility
shall document that in the resident's medical record.

4. Nothing in this section shall diminish a resident's rights to
independent personal decisions and knowledge of available choices, nor
shall it diminish the facility's responsibility to encourage and assist
in the fullest possible exercise of those rights under section two
thousand eight hundred three-c of this article, or other applicable law.

* NB There are 2 § 2803-z's