2019 Arizona Revised Statutes
Title 36 - Public Health and Safety
§ 36-2999.52 Nursing facility quality assessments; calculation; limitation; exceptions

36-2999.52. Nursing facility quality assessments; calculation; limitation; exceptions

(Rpld. 10/1/23)

A. Beginning October 1, 2012, the administration shall charge a quality assessment on health care items and services provided by nursing facilities in order to obtain federal financial participation in the services provided pursuant to this chapter. The administration shall use these monies for supplemental payments to nursing facilities for covered medicaid expenditures, not to exceed the medicare upper payment limit program requirements.

B. Each nursing facility shall pay the assessment prescribed pursuant to this section to the department of revenue for deposit on a quarterly basis in the nursing facility assessment fund established by section 36-2999.53.

C. Unless otherwise required by law, title 42, chapter 5, article 1 governs the administration of the assessment prescribed pursuant to this section except that:

1. A separate license is not required for the assessment.

2. If a nursing facility does not have a transaction privilege tax license, it shall obtain one pursuant to section 42-5005.

3. Each facility shall report and pay the assessment on forms prescribed by the department of revenue.

4. A separate bond is not required of employees of the department of revenue who administer the assessment.

5. The assessment may be included without segregation in any notice and lien filed for unpaid transaction privilege taxes.

D. The administration shall calculate the quality assessment on the net patient service revenue of all nursing facilities that are subject to the quality assessment. The quality assessment may not exceed three and one-half per cent of net patient service revenue and shall be calculated and paid on a per resident day basis exclusive of medicare resident days. Except as prescribed in this section, the per resident day assessment is the same amount for each affected facility.

E. Pursuant to 42 Code of Federal Regulations section 433.68(e)(1) and (2), the administration shall request a waiver of the broad-based and uniform provider assessment requirements of federal law to exclude certain nursing facilities from the quality assessment and to permit certain high volume medicaid nursing facilities or facilities with a high number of total annual patient days to pay the quality assessment at a lesser amount per nonmedicare resident day.

F. Subject to federal approval pursuant to 42 Code of Federal Regulations section 433.68(e)(2), the following nursing facility providers are exempt from the quality assessment:

1. Continuing care retirement communities.

2. Nursing facilities with fifty-eight or fewer beds.

G. The administration shall lower the quality assessment for either certain high volume medicaid nursing facilities or certain facilities with high patient volumes to meet the redistributive test of 42 Code of Federal Regulations section 433.68(e)(2).