Connecticut SB 193: AN ACT ESTABLISHING LICENSURE FOR LONG-TERM ACUTE CARE HOSPITALS.

Bill Text

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General Assembly Substitute Bill No. 193
February Session, 2026

AN ACT ESTABLISHING LICENSURE FOR LONG-TERM ACUTE
CARE HOSPITALS.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General
Assembly convened:

Section 1. Section 19a-490 of the general statutes is repealed and the 1
following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective October 1, 2026): 2
As used in this chapter, unless the context otherwise requires: 3
(a) "Institution" means a hospital, short-term hospital special hospice, 4
hospice inpatient facility, residential care home, nursing home facility, 5
home health care agency, home health aide agency, behavioral health 6
facility, assisted living services agency, substance abuse treatment 7
facility, outpatient surgical facility, outpatient clinic, clinical laboratory, 8
blood collection facility, source plasma donation center, birth center, 9
long-term acute care hospital, an infirmary operated by an educational 10
institution for the care of students enrolled in, and faculty and 11
employees of, such institution; a facility engaged in providing services 12
for the prevention, diagnosis, treatment or care of human health 13
conditions, including facilities operated and maintained by any state 14
agency; and a residential facility for persons with intellectual disability 15
licensed pursuant to section 17a-227 and certified to participate in the 16
Title XIX Medicaid program as an intermediate care facility for 17
individuals with intellectual disability. "Institution" does not include 18

Substitute Bill No. 193

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any facility for the care and treatment of persons with mental illness or 19
substance use disorder operated or maintained by any state agency, 20
except Whiting Forensic Hospital and the hospital and psychiatric 21
residential treatment facility units of the Albert J. Solnit Children's 22
Center; 23
(b) "Hospital" means an establishment for the lodging, care and 24
treatment of persons suffering from disease or other abnormal physical 25
or mental conditions and includes inpatient psychiatric services in 26
general hospitals; 27
(c) "Residential care home" or "rest home" means a community 28
residence that furnishes, in single or multiple facilities, food and shelter 29
to two or more persons unrelated to the proprietor and, in addition, 30
provides services that meet a need beyond the basic provisions of food, 31
shelter and laundry and may qualify as a setting that allows residents to 32
receive home and community-based services funded by state and 33
federal programs; 34
(d) "Home health care agency" means a public or private 35
organization, or a subdivision thereof, engaged in providing 36
professional nursing services and the following services, available 37
twenty-four hours per day, in the patient's home or a substantially 38
equivalent environment: Home health aide services as defined in this 39
section, physical therapy, speech therapy, occupational therapy or 40
medical social services. The agency shall provide professional nursing 41
services and at least one additional service directly and all others 42
directly or through contract. An agency shall be available to enroll new 43
patients seven days a week, twenty-four hours per day; 44
(e) "Home health aide agency" means a public or private 45
organization, except a home health care agency, which provides in the 46
patient's home or a substantially equivalent environment supportive 47
services which may include, but are not limited to, assistance with 48
personal hygiene, dressing, feeding and incidental household tasks 49
essential to achieving adequate household and family management. 50

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Such supportive services shall be provided under the supervision of a 51
registered nurse and, if such nurse determines appropriate, shall be 52
provided by a social worker, physical therapist, speech therapist or 53
occupational therapist. Such supervision may be provided directly or 54
through contract; 55
(f) "Home health aide services" as defined in this section shall not 56
include services provided to assist individuals with activities of daily 57
living when such individuals have a disease or condition that is chronic 58
and stable as determined by a physician licensed in the state; 59
(g) "Behavioral health facility" means any facility that provides 60
mental health services to persons eighteen years of age or older or 61
substance use disorder services to persons of any age in an outpatient 62
treatment or residential setting to ameliorate mental, emotional, 63
behavioral or substance use disorder issues; 64
(h) "Clinical laboratory" means any facility or other area used for 65
microbiological, serological, chemical, hematological, 66
immunohematological, biophysical, cytological, pathological or other 67
examinations of human body fluids, secretions, excretions or excised or 68
exfoliated tissues for the purpose of providing information for the (1) 69
diagn