NRS439.847. Participation in surveillance system by medical facilities and facilities for skilled nursing; access, analysis and reporting of information submitted to surveillance system by Division; regulations.

      1.  Each medical facility and facility for skilled nursing which provided medical services and care to an average of 25 or more patients during each business day in the immediately preceding calendar year shall, within 120 days after becoming eligible, participate in the secure, Internet-based surveillance system established by the Division of Healthcare Quality Promotion of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention of the United States Department of Health and Human Services that integrates patient and health care personnel safety surveillance systems. As part of that participation, the medical facility or facility for skilled nursing shall provide, at a minimum, the information required by the Division pursuant to this subsection. The Division shall by regulation prescribe the information which must be provided by a medical facility or facility for skilled nursing, including, without limitation, information relating to infections and procedures.

      2.  Each medical facility or facility for skilled nursing which provided medical services and care to an average of less than 25 patients during each business day in the immediately preceding calendar year may participate in the secure, Internet-based surveillance system established by the Division of Healthcare Quality Promotion of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention of the United States Department of Health and Human Services that integrates patient and health care personnel safety surveillance systems.

      3.  A medical facility or facility for skilled nursing that participates in the secure, Internet-based surveillance system established by the Division of Healthcare Quality Promotion shall:

      (a) Authorize the Division to access all information submitted to the system by:

             (1) A medical facility, on or after October 15, 2010; and

             (2) A facility for skilled nursing, on or after January 1, 2012; and

      (b) Provide consent for the Division to prepare and post reports pursuant to paragraph (b) of subsection 4, including without limitation, permission to identify the medical facility or facility for skilled nursing that is the subject of each report:

             (1) For a medical facility, on or after October 15, 2010; and

             (2) For a facility for skilled nursing, on or after January 1, 2012.

      4.  The Division:

      (a) Shall analyze the information submitted to the system by medical facilities and facilities for skilled nursing pursuant to this section and recommend regulations and legislation relating to the reporting required pursuant to NRS 439.800 to 439.890, inclusive.

      (b) Shall annually prepare a report of the information submitted to the system by each medical facility and each facility for skilled nursing pursuant to this section and provide the reports for inclusion on the Internet website maintained pursuant to NRS 439A.270. The information must be reported in a manner that allows a person to compare the information for the medical facilities and for the facilities for skilled nursing and expressed as a total number and a rate of occurrence.

      (c) Shall enter into an agreement with the Division of Healthcare Quality Promotion to carry out the provisions of this section.

      5.  As used in this section, “facility for skilled nursing” has the meaning ascribed to it in NRS 449.0039.

      (Added to NRS by 2009, 3068; A 2011, 837, 1801, 2125)