Bill Text: NJ A4162 | 2020-2021 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Requires licensed providers of long-term skilled nursing care to establish permanent morgue for use in non-emergent periods and supplemental morgue space for use in public emergencies.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 4-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2020-05-28 - Introduced, Referred to Assembly Aging and Senior Services Committee [A4162 Detail]
Download: New_Jersey-2020-A4162-Introduced.html
Sponsored by:
Assemblywoman VALERIE VAINIERI HUTTLE
District 37 (Bergen)
Assemblywoman CAROL A. MURPHY
District 7 (Burlington)
Assemblyman NICHOLAS CHIARAVALLOTI
District 31 (Hudson)
SYNOPSIS
Requires licensed providers of long-term skilled nursing care to establish permanent morgue for use in non-emergent periods and supplemental morgue space for use in public emergencies.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
As introduced.
An Act concerning the establishment and use of permanent morgues and supplemental emergency morgue space by facilities and parts of facilities that are licensed to provide long-term skilled nursing care and supplementing Title 26 of the Revised Statutes
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. As used in this act:
"Cold storage" means storage in a permanent morgue or in an emergency morgue space.
"Commissioner" means the Commissioner of Health.
"Dead body" means the intact corporeal remains of an individual whose death has been declared pursuant to the "New Jersey Declaration of Death Act," P.L.1991, c.90 (C.26:6A-1 et seq.).
"Department" means the Department of Health.
"Deployed" means moved onto or otherwise made available for use on the premises of the nursing home.
"Emergency morgue space" means a mobile morgue space or other makeshift facility or area, or a combination thereof, which is separate and distinct from a nursing home's permanent morgue and is deployed and used for the safe and humane temporary storage of the dead bodies of nursing home patients or residents who die during a public emergency.
"Final disposition" means the burial, cremation, or other authorized means of disposal of a dead body.
"Long-term cold storage plan" or "plan" means the long-term plan for the temporary cold storage of dead bodies that is prepared and implemented by a nursing home pursuant to section 3 of this act.
"Mobile morgue space" means a refrigerated vehicle or other mobile cold storage unit, or a combination thereof, which satisfies the conditions of subsection a. of section 4 of this act, and which functions either as emergency morgue space or as a permanent morgue.
"Non-emergency mobile morgue space" means a mobile morgue space that functions as a permanent morgue, as provided by subsection c. of section 2 of this act, in accordance with a plan adopted pursuant to section 3 of this act.
"Non-emergent period" means any period of time during which a public emergency is not declared to exist in the nursing home's region of operations.
"Nursing home" means a stand-alone facility, or a distinct and separately licensed part of a facility, in which extended medical or skilled nursing treatment or care is provided, on a continuing basis, to two or more nonrelated individuals who are convalescing, who have an injury, a physical disability, or an acute or chronic illness, or who require assistance in bathing or dressing or some other type of supervision, and which is either licensed as a long-term care facility or licensed and authorized to provide skilled nursing care services pursuant to P.L.1971, c.136 (C.26:2H-1 et seq.). "Nursing home" includes the New Jersey Veterans' Memorial Home--Menlo Park, the New Jersey Veterans' Memorial Home--Paramus, and the New Jersey Veterans' Memorial Home--Vineland. "Nursing home" does not include a general, special, or psychiatric hospital; the New Jersey Fireman's House; any community-based residence; or any stand-alone facility or distinct part of a facility that is licensed as an assisted living residence, an assisted living program, a comprehensive personal care home, a residential health care facility, a dementia care home, an adult day care facility, an adult family care home, an alternate family care program, or a home health agency.
"Permanent morgue" means a secure, restricted, and refrigerated room or other area that satisfies the requirements of subsection a. of section 4 of this act and is used by a nursing home for the safe and humane temporary storage of the dead bodies of nursing home patients or residents who die during non-emergent periods. "Permanent morgue" includes non-emergency mobile morgue space, but does not include emergency morgue space.
"Public emergency" means an epidemic of disease or another public health emergency, a biological, chemical, nuclear, or toxic attack or event, or any other event, as defined by the rules or regulations adopted pursuant to section 8 of this act, which is occurring in the nursing home's region of operations and is officially recognized and declared as a public emergency in the region by the Governor of New Jersey or the President of the United States.
"Public morgue" means a county public morgue designated pursuant to section 1 of P.L.1971, c.200 (C.40A:9-51 et seq.).
2. a. A nursing home shall designate, establish, acquire, or contract with a third-party to provide a refrigerated vehicle, mobile cold storage unit, or other makeshift facility or area, or a combination thereof, for use by the nursing home as emergency morgue space in times of public emergency. Emergency morgue space shall:
(1) be deployed at the nursing home and placed into service within 72 hours after the declaration of any public emergency or, if a public emergency is ongoing on the effective date of this act, within 72 hours after this act's effective date;
(2) remain in service on the premises of the nursing home until the public emergency is declared to be over, except as otherwise provided by paragraph (1) of subsection a. of section 4 of this act; and
(3) be removed from service and, if mobile, moved off of the premises of the nursing home upon the conclusion of the public emergency and following the transfer of all dead bodies contained therein pursuant to section 5 of this act.
b. A nursing home shall ensure that emergency morgue space is deployed and placed into service during a public emergency, as provided by subsection a. of this section, regardless of whether the nursing home's long-term cold storage plan has been submitted, approved, or conditionally approved pursuant to section 3 of this act. Within 72 hours after a nursing home's initial plan is approved or conditionally approved pursuant to subsection d. of section 3 of this act, the nursing home shall reevaluate any previously deployed emergency morgue space and modify the space as necessary to ensure that it complies with the provisions of the approved or conditionally approved plan. Any contract executed with a third-party provider, pursuant to this subsection, shall be subject to modification or rescission by the nursing home, upon reasonable notice to the third-party provider in accordance with the terms of the contract, as may be necessary to ensure the nursing home's compliance with its approved or conditionally approved plan and the provisions of this subsection.
c. A nursing home may designate, establish, acquire, or contract with a third-party to provide a refrigerated vehicle or other mobile cold storage unit, or a combination thereof, to function as a permanent morgue for the purposes of paragraph (1) of subsection a. of section 3 of this act; however, any vehicle or mobile storage unit used for these purposes shall not be deemed to be emergency morgue space for the purposes of complying with subsection a. of this section and shall be supplemented by emergency morgue space during any public emergency, as provided by subsection a. of this section.
3. a. A nursing home shall develop a long-term plan to provide for the ongoing temporary on-site storage of the dead bodies of patients or residents who die at the nursing home during non-emergent periods and during times of public emergency, until such time as those bodies can be transferred to appropriate parties for the purposes of autopsy or final disposition as provided by section 5 of this act. A plan developed pursuant to this section shall, at a minimum:
(1) provide for the establishment of, or designate an existing area of the nursing home as, a permanent morgue. If the nursing home does not currently have a room or other area that can be designated and used as a permanent morgue, the plan shall describe how the nursing home will satisfy the requirements of this paragraph, whether through the construction of a new building, the construction of an addition to an existing building, the modification of an existing room or building, or the ongoing and uninterrupted use of a non-emergency mobile morgue space pursuant to subsection c. of section 2 of this act;
(2) describe, and identify the current location of, emergency morgue space that has been designated, established, acquired, or contracted for use during public emergencies pursuant to subsection a. of section 2 of this act; identify the third-party provider, if any, who will provide or who is currently providing the emergency morgue space; and describe the means, methods, and procedures that will be used by the nursing home and any contracted third-party provider to ensure that the emergency morgue space is deployed, remains in service, and is removed from service in accordance with the timeframes specified by subsection a. of section 2 of this act;
(3) identify the maximum number of dead bodies and the percentage of the nursing home's total patient or resident capacity that can be safely, humanely, and simultaneously stored within the confines of the nursing home's permanent morgue and within the confines of the nursing home's designated emergency morgue space, and describe the means, methods, and procedures that will be used by the nursing home to ensure that its emergency morgue space remains sufficient for the nursing home's needs, as provided by paragraph (2) of subsection b. of section 4 of this act; and
(4) identify the means, methods, and procedures that will be used by nursing home administrators and staff to ensure: (a) that dead bodies are handled, stored, and transferred in a safe, sanitary, respectful, and humane way, in accordance with all applicable laws and regulations; (b) that each dead body is properly identified at the time of placement into cold storage, throughout the duration of the time kept in cold storage, and at the time of the body's transport out of cold storage; and (c) that each dead body is kept in cold storage for as short a time as is necessary before being safely and humanely transferred to other appropriate parties for the purposes of autopsy or final disposition, as appropriate.
b. (1) A nursing home operating in the State on the effective date of this act shall prepare and submit the plan required by this section to the department, as soon as is practicable, but not more than 30 days, after the effective date of this act, regardless of whether emergency rules and regulations have been adopted pursuant to section 8 of this act.
(2) A nursing home commencing operations in the State after the effective date of this act shall prepare and submit the plan required by this section to the department as part of its application for licensure as a long-term care facility or as a skilled nursing care provider under P.L.1971, c.136 (C.26:2H-1 et seq.).
c. (1) A nursing home shall review the plan developed under this section and revise it, as appropriate: (a) immediately following the adoption of emergency rules and regulations pursuant to section 8 of this act if such rules and regulations were not in effect at the time of the initial submission pursuant to subsection b. of this section; and (b) on at least a biennial basis after the plan's initial approval or conditional approval pursuant to subsection d. of this section; and
(2) submit a revised plan to the department within 10 days after making any material change thereto.
d. The department shall review an initial or revised plan submitted pursuant to this section and shall approve or conditionally approve the plan either within 30 days after receipt thereof or, if the plan is submitted pursuant to paragraph (2) of subsection b. of this section, upon the department's issuance of a license to the applicant. The department shall approve the plan if it complies with the provisions of this act and the rules and regulations adopted pursuant thereto, to the extent that those rules and regulations have been adopted. If the department conditionally approves the plan, it shall state, in writing, the reasons for the conditional approval and the revisions that are to be made to the plan in order to ensure that it complies with the act and the rules and regulations adopted pursuant thereto. The nursing home shall adopt and implement the plan in accordance with any mandatory revisions that are identified by the department pursuant to this paragraph. If the department does not respond to the submission as provided by this subsection, the initial or revised plan shall be deemed to be approved on a non-conditional basis, and the nursing home shall proceed to implement the plan without change.
e. (1) A nursing home shall ensure that the permanent morgue required by paragraph (1) of subsection a. of this section is fully constructed or is otherwise made functional, and is placed into service in accordance with the plan adopted pursuant to this section, within one year after the plan is approved or conditionally approved pursuant to subsection d. of this section or within any extended period of time, as may be authorized pursuant to paragraph (2) of this subsection, which is deemed to be necessary to ensure the proper construction of the permanent morgue.
(2) If a nursing home determines, during planning, that it will not be able to construct its permanent morgue within the timeframe specified by paragraph (1) of this subsection, the nursing home shall include, as an addendum to the initial plan submitted pursuant to subsection b. of this section, a formal request seeking an extension of the timeframe provided for construction under this subsection and specifying the amount of extended time needed to complete construction. The department, in its response pursuant to subsection d. of this section, shall approve, approve with modifications, or reject the nursing home's request for an extension of time under this paragraph and specify the extended deadline, if any, by which the permanent morgue is to be placed into service. If the department does not respond to the nursing home's initial plan submission under this section, any request for an extension of time that was submitted as an addendum to the plan shall be deemed to be approved without modification, and the nursing home shall proceed to construct its permanent morgue in accordance with the extended timeframe specified in the addendum.
(3) A nursing home shall not be eligible for an extension of time under this subsection if it is planning to use a mobile morgue space as a permanent morgue, as provided by subsection c. of section 2 of this act.
4. a. Any area used as a permanent morgue and any vehicle, mobile cold storage unit, or other makeshift facility or area used as emergency morgue space for the purposes of this act shall:
(1) be located on, or immediately adjacent to, the premises of the nursing home at all times during use under this act, except that a mobile morgue space may be temporarily removed from the premises of the nursing home for the purposes of directly transporting a dead body for autopsy or final disposition;
(2) be closed-off and isolated from public view and removed, to the greatest extent practicable, from patient or resident living quarters and common areas;
(3) be fully refrigerated or contain refrigeration or freezer drawers or other cold storage areas where dead bodies will be stored;
(4) be of suitable construction, contain appropriate equipment, and be of sufficient size, as provided by subsection b. of this section, to ensure the lawful, safe, respectful, and humane handling and storage of the dead bodies of nursing home patients or residents;
(5) have lockable doors to ensure that access is limited to only those individuals who are directly involved in the transport of dead bodies to or from, or the sanitation of, the permanent morgue or emergency morgue space;
(6) be equipped with alarms to signal intrusion and unacceptable temperature variations;
(7) have surfaces and flooring constructed of nonporous materials that may be easily cleaned and disinfected; and
(8) be equipped with a working sink or other hand sanitizing station.
b. (1) A permanent morgue established and used pursuant to this act shall be capable of safely, humanely, and simultaneously storing the dead bodies of at least two of the nursing home's patients or residents.
(2) The size of any emergency morgue space used under this act shall be determined based on the individual needs of the nursing home, but shall be sufficient to ensure the safe and humane temporary storage of the dead bodies of patients or residents who die at the nursing home during times of public emergency. If, at any time during a public emergency, a nursing home's emergency morgue space becomes insufficient to safely and humanely store the dead bodies of patients or residents who have died during the public emergency, the nursing home shall make every reasonable effort to promptly expand its emergency morgue space as necessary to ensure that the provisions of this paragraph are satisfied.
c. Eating, drinking, smoking, and the application of cosmetics or contact lenses shall not be permitted in any permanent morgue or emergency morgue space.
d. Gloves, masks, medical coats or gowns, and other appropriate personal protective equipment (PPE) shall be worn by staff while handling dead bodies for the purposes of this act and shall be sufficient to protect against the transmission of disease and exposure to toxic substances, to the greatest extent practicable. Such protective clothing and accessories shall be disposed of in an appropriate receptacle or cleaned in accordance with the manufacturer's specified guidelines immediately after use.
e. A permanent morgue or emergency morgue space operating on the premises of a nursing home pursuant to this act shall not be used for any purpose other than the storage of the dead bodies of the nursing home's patients or residents. Such facility shall not be deemed to be a public morgue and shall not be required to accept or store the dead bodies of any persons who are not patients or residents of the nursing home.
5. a. A nursing home shall ensure that each dead body placed in cold storage pursuant to this act is transferred to another party for the purposes of autopsy or final disposition, as appropriate, in accordance with the following timeframes:
(1) during non-emergent periods, as soon as may be practicable, but not more than five days, after being placed into cold storage; or
(2) if a public emergency is ongoing or is declared while the body is in storage, as soon as may be practicable in the context of the public emergency.
b. The handling and transfer of dead bodies pursuant to this act shall be done safely, respectfully, humanely, and in accordance with all applicable laws and regulations.
c. In effectuating the transfer of a dead body to or from cold storage pursuant to this act, the nursing home shall ensure that the dead body:
(1) is placed in a secure, closed container or is otherwise isolated from public view; and
(2) is moved in and out of cold storage in a manner, and using equipment, that protects the health and wellbeing of the other patients or residents of the nursing home, and of nursing home staff, to the greatest extent practicable.
6. a. In addition to any other records required by law, a nursing home shall maintain complete and accurate records of its storage and transfer of dead bodies pursuant to this act. Such records shall be maintained for a period of five years.
b. The records maintained pursuant to this section shall include:
(1) a death certificate or other documentation showing the declared date and time of death and, to the extent known, the cause of death for each dead body placed in cold storage;
(2) documentation showing the date that each dead body was moved to cold storage and whether the body was held in the nursing home's permanent morgue or emergency morgue space;
(3) documentation showing the date and time that each dead body was transferred from cold storage to another party for the purposes of autopsy or final disposition and the reason the body was transferred;
(4) documentation identifying the persons or entities who provided transport services for the purposes of transferring each dead body out of the permanent morgue or temporary morgue space;
(5) copies of transit or other permits that were received or used by the nursing home in association with the transfer and final disposition of each dead body held in cold storage;
(6) a copy of any contract executed between the nursing home and a third-party provider of mobile morgue space pursuant to section 2 of this act; and
(7) any other records or documentation required by the commissioner.
7. a. The department shall be authorized to inspect, at any time and without prior notice, the permanent morgue or emergency morgue space that is used by a nursing home for the purposes of this act.
b. Any person who believes that a nursing home has engaged in actions or inactions that violate the provisions of this act or the provisions of a plan adopted pursuant thereto may submit a written complaint to the commissioner setting forth the factual basis for the belief. Upon receipt of such a complaint, the department shall investigate the merits of the claim and give the nursing home an opportunity to respond to the allegations.
c. If, following an inspection conducted under subsection a. of this section, or following an investigation conducted under subsection b. of this section, or for any other reason, the commissioner has reason to believe that a nursing home has inhumanely or unsafely handled or stored the dead bodies of its patients or residents or has otherwise violated any provisions of this act or the plan adopted pursuant thereto, the commissioner shall order the nursing home to cease and desist the unlawful practice and undertake corrective action, within a reasonable timeframe, as may be deemed by the commissioner to be necessary to ensure future compliance with this act or the nursing home's plan, as the case may be. If the nursing home denies that a violation exists or has occurred, it shall have the right to apply to the commissioner for a hearing, and any such hearing shall be held, and a decision rendered, within 48 hours after receipt of the request.
d. Any nursing home that fails to comply with an order of the commissioner, which is issued pursuant to subsection c. of this section, shall be liable to a civil penalty of not more than $1,000 for a first offense and not more than $5,000 for a second or subsequent offense. The penalties shall be sued for and collected in a summary proceeding in accordance with the "Penalty Enforcement Law of 1999," P.L.1999, c.274 (C.2A:58-10 et seq.).
e. In addition to the penalties provided by subsection d. of this section, if a nursing home fails to comply with a cease and desist order issued pursuant to subsection c. of this section, the commissioner may institute a civil action in a court of competent jurisdiction to obtain injunctive relief, in accordance with the applicable Rules of Court.
8. Within 30 days after the enactment of this act, and notwithstanding the provisions of the "Administrative Procedure Act," P.L.1968, c.410 (C.52:14B-1 et seq.) to the contrary, the Commissioner of Health shall, immediately upon filing proper notice with the Office of Administrative Law, adopt rules and regulations as may be necessary to implement the provisions of this act. The rules and regulations adopted pursuant this section shall remain in effect for a period of not more than one year after the date of filing and, thereafter, shall be adopted, amended, or readopted by the commissioner in accordance with the requirements of the "Administrative Procedure Act," P.L.1968, c.410 (C.52:14B-1 et seq.).
9. This act shall take effect immediately.
STATEMENT
This bill would require each nursing home in the State, in compliance with a long-term plan adopted pursuant to the bill's provisions, to: 1) designate or establish a permanent morgue for the storage of the dead bodies of patients or residents who die during non-emergent times; and 2) designate, establish, acquire, or contract with a third-party to provide a refrigerated vehicle, mobile cold storage unit, or other makeshift facility or area, or a combination thereof, for use by the nursing home as supplemental emergency morgue space in times of public emergency.
The bill would require emergency morgue space to be deployed on the premises of the nursing home and placed into service within 72 hours after the declaration of any public emergency or, if a public emergency is ongoing on the effective date of this bill, within 72 hours after this bill's effective date. The emergency morgue space is to remain in service on the premises of the nursing home until the public emergency is declared to be over, unless the space is mobile and is temporarily moved off-site for the purposes of directly transporting dead bodies for autopsy or final disposition. Emergency morgue space is to be deployed, in accordance with these requirements, regardless of whether the nursing home has adopted a long-term plan for the temporary on-site storage of dead bodies, as provided by the bill; however, any emergency morgue space deployed before a plan is adopted will need to be reevaluated by the nursing home at the time of the plan's approval or conditional approval and modified as necessary to comply with the provisions of the approved or conditionally approved plan.
The long-term cold storage plan developed by a nursing home under the bill is to be used to guide the nursing home's ongoing temporary storage of dead bodies during non-emergent periods and times of public emergency. The long-term plan is to:
1) provide for the establishment of, or designate an existing area of the nursing home as, a permanent morgue. If the nursing home does not currently have a room or other area that can be designated and used as a permanent morgue, the plan is to describe how the nursing home will satisfy the bill's requirements, whether through the construction of a new building, the construction of an addition to an existing building, the modification of an existing room or building, or the ongoing and uninterrupted use of a refrigerated vehicle or other mobile cold storage unit as authorized by the bill; and
2) describe, and identify the current location of, any emergency morgue space that has been designated, established, acquired, or contracted for use during public emergencies pursuant to the bill's provisions; identify the third-party provider, if any, who will provide or who is currently providing the emergency morgue space; and describe the means, methods, and procedures that will be used by the nursing home and any contracted third-party provider to ensure that the supplemental emergency morgue space is deployed, remains in service, and is removed from service in accordance with the timeframes specified by the bill.
A permanent morgue established under the bill is to be capable of safely, humanely, and simultaneously storing the dead bodies of at least two of the nursing home's patients or residents. The size of any emergency morgue space is to be determined based on the individual needs of the nursing home, but is to be sufficient to ensure the safe and humane temporary storage of the dead bodies of patients or residents who die at the nursing home during times of public emergency. If, at any time during a public emergency, a nursing home's emergency morgue space becomes insufficient to safely and humanely store the dead bodies of patients or residents who have died during the public emergency, the nursing home will be required to make every reasonable effort to promptly expand its emergency morgue space as necessary to ensure that its emergency morgue capacity is sufficient for its needs.
The nursing home's long-term cold storage plan is to identify the maximum number of dead bodies and the percentage of the nursing home's total patient or resident capacity that can be safely, humanely, and simultaneously stored within the confines of the nursing home's permanent morgue and within the confines of the nursing home's emergency morgue space, and is to further describe the means, methods, and procedures that will be used by the nursing home to ensure that its emergency morgue space remains sufficient for its needs.
The long-term plan would additionally be required to identify the means, methods, and procedures that will be used by nursing home administrators and staff to ensure: 1) that dead bodies are handled, stored, and transferred in a safe, sanitary, respectful, and humane way, in accordance with all applicable laws and regulations; 2) that each dead body is properly identified at the time of placement into cold storage, throughout the duration of the time kept in cold storage, and at the time of the body's transport out of cold storage; and 3) that each dead body is kept in cold storage for as short a time as is necessary before being safely and humanely transferred to other parties for the purposes of autopsy or final disposition.
A permanent morgue or emergency morgue space operating on the grounds of a nursing home may not be used for any purpose other than the storage of the dead bodies of the nursing home's patients or residents. The facility will not be deemed to be a public morgue, and will not be required to accept the dead bodies of any persons who are not patients or residents of the nursing home.
The bill would require the Commissioner of Health to adopt rules and regulations, on an emergency basis, to implement the bill's provisions. The rules and regulations are to be adopted within 30 days after the bill's enactment, notwithstanding the provisions of the "Administrative Procedure Act," P.L.1968, c.410 (C.52:14B-1 et seq.) to the contrary.
A nursing home operating in the State on the effective date of this bill will be required to prepare and submit its long-term plan to the department, as soon as is practicable, but not more than 30 days, after the bill's effective date, regardless of whether emergency rules and regulations have been adopted pursuant to the bill's provisions. A nursing home commencing operations in the State after the bill's effective date will be required to prepare and submit its long-term plan to the department as part of its application for licensure as a long-term care facility or skilled nursing care provider. The plan is to be revised and reapproved following the commissioner's adoption of emergency rules and regulations, if those rules and regulations were not adopted at the time of the plan's initial submission, and also on at least a biennial basis after the plan is initially approved or conditionally approved. Any revised plan is to be submitted to the department within 10 days after material changes are made thereto.
The department will be required to review an initial or revised plan submitted pursuant to the bill and approve or conditionally approve the plan either within 30 days after receipt thereof or, if the plan is submitted as part of an application for licensure, upon the department's issuance of a license to the applicant. If the plan is conditionally approved, the nursing home will be required to adopt and implement the plan in accordance with any mandatory revisions identified by the department. If the department does not respond to the submission, the plan will be deemed approved on a non-conditional basis, and the nursing home may proceed to implement the plan without change.
A nursing home will be required to ensure that its permanent morgue is fully constructed or otherwise made functional, and is placed into service in accordance with the nursing home's plan, within one year after the plan is approved or conditionally approved or within any extended period of time, as authorized by the commissioner, which may be necessary to ensure proper construction of the permanent morgue. Any request for an extension of the 180-day statutorily mandated timeframe is to be submitted by the nursing home as an addendum to its initial plan; however, a nursing home will not be eligible for an extension of time if it is planning to use a mobile morgue space as a permanent morgue.
Any area used as a permanent morgue and any vehicle, cold storage unit, or other makeshift area used as emergency morgue space under the bill is to: 1) be located on, or immediately adjacent to, the premises of the nursing home at all times during use, except that a mobile morgue space may be temporarily moved off-site when transporting dead bodies for autopsy or final disposition; 2) be closed-off and isolated from public view and removed, to the greatest extent practicable, from patient or resident living quarters and common areas; 3) be fully refrigerated or contain refrigeration or freezer drawers or other cold storage areas where dead bodies will be stored; 4) be of suitable construction, contain appropriate equipment, and be of sufficient size, as provided by the bill, to ensure the lawful, safe, respectful, and humane handling and storage of dead bodies; 5) have lockable doors; 6) be equipped with alarms to signal intrusion and unacceptable temperature variations; 7) have surfaces and flooring constructed of nonporous materials; and 8) be equipped with a working sink or other hand sanitizing station.
The bill would prohibit eating, drinking, smoking, and the application of cosmetics or contact lenses in any permanent morgue or emergency morgue space, and it would require personal protective equipment (PPE) to be worn by staff while handling dead bodies for the bill's purposes.
The bill would require a nursing home to ensure that each dead body is transferred to another party for the purposes of autopsy or final disposition, during non-emergent periods, as soon as possible, but not more than five days, after the body is placed into cold storage or, if a public emergency is ongoing or is declared while the body is in storage, as soon as may be practicable in the context of the public emergency. When moving a dead body into or out of cold storage, the nursing home is to ensure that the dead body: 1) is placed in a secure, closed container or is otherwise isolated from public view; and 2) is moved in a manner, and using equipment, that protects the health and wellbeing of the other patients or residents of the nursing home, and of nursing home staff, to the greatest extent practicable.
The bill also requires a nursing home to maintain certain records in association with is storage and transfer of dead bodies under the bill, and it authorizes the commissioner to: 1) inspect permanent morgues and emergency morgue spaces; 2) investigate complaints about the maltreatment or inappropriate storage of dead bodies by nursing homes; 3) order nursing homes to cease and desist unlawful activities and undertake corrective actions; and 4) seek injunctive relief and recover civil monetary penalties in association with any violation of the commissioner's orders. Any nursing home that fails to comply with an order of the commissioner will be liable to a civil penalty of not more than $1,000 for a first offense and not more than $5,000 for a second or subsequent offense, to be collected in a summary proceeding.
