HB 2195: nursing facilities; records; surveys; timelines - Arizona

Senate Engrossed Version (04/13/2026) → Chaptered Version · 3 edits

MINOR

The bill was formally enacted into law after being approved by the Governor on June 4, 2026, and filed with the Secretary of State on June 5, 2026. The primary change is the conversion of the document from a proposed Senate version to an official Chaptered Version, which signifies it has become part of the Arizona Revised Statutes. No substantive policy, funding, or eligibility changes were made to the text of the bill itself during this final step.

TIMELINE

Added official approval and filing dates (June 4, 2026 and June 5, 2026) to mark the bill's transition into law.

TECHNICAL

Changed the document title from 'HB 2195' to 'Chapter 85' to reflect its new status as enacted legislation.

Removed draft headers and formatting markers indicating the bill was in a proposed Senate version.

House Engrossed Version (02/25/2026) → Senate Engrossed Version (04/13/2026) · 4 edits · Apr 13, 2026

MODERATE

The bill was amended to add a new section (36-447.04) regarding off-site preliminary reviews for complaints and to update the timeline and conditions for issuing deficiency statements and initiating investigations in section 36-447.03. These changes aim to streamline the complaint process by allowing reviews without an on-site visit when compliance is evident and to clarify the time limits for investigating incidents based on when complaints are submitted versus when they occurred.

Scope change

The bill's scope was expanded to include procedures for off-site preliminary reviews of complaints and self-reports, potentially reducing the need for physical inspections in certain cases.

REQUIREMENT

Added a new provision allowing the department to conduct off-site preliminary reviews of complaints or self-reports to determine if an on-site inspection is necessary.

Added a requirement that nursing care institutions must comply with deficiency statements and submit correction plans immediately, regardless of when the statement is officially issued.

TIMELINE

Added a specific effective date of July 1, 2027, for the requirement to issue deficiency statements within ten business days.

ENFORCEMENT

Revised the rules for initiating complaint investigations to clarify that investigations can occur for incidents older than twelve months if they involve abuse allegations, while maintaining a twelve-month limit for other violations based on the date the complaint was submitted.

Introduced Version → House Engrossed Version (02/25/2026) · 4 edits · Apr 13, 2026

MODERATE

The bill was reformatted for the House Engrossed Version, removing draft headers and adding a reference title. Substantive policy changes include adding a new timeline requirement for complaint investigations based on severity, clarifying that destroyed records cannot be used for investigations over a year old, and adding a confidentiality clause for long-term care incident reports.

Scope change

The bill's scope remains focused on nursing facilities, records, surveys, and timelines, but the applicability of complaint investigations is now explicitly tied to Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) timeframes based on triaged severity.

TIMELINE

Added a requirement for the department to initiate complaint investigations based on CMS timeframes determined by the triaged severity level of each complaint.

ENFORCEMENT

Clarified that the department cannot cite a licensee for failure to produce records if those records were lawfully destroyed and the investigation started more than twelve months after the incident.

DEFINITION

Added a new definition for 'Long-Term Care Incident Reports' as confidential risk management tools used solely for internal investigations and quality improvement.

TECHNICAL

Removed draft metadata, page numbers, and formatting artifacts from the Introduced Version.

nursing facilities; records; surveys; timelines

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