Health facilities: inspections.

(1) Under existing law, the State Department of Public Health regulates the licensure and operation of various health facilities, including long-term health care facilities, some of which are collectively classified as nursing homes. Existing law requires the department to conduct periodic inspections of health facilities for which a license or special permit has been issued, to ensure the quality of care. Existing law requires inspection of general acute care hospitals, acute psychiatric hospitals, and special hospitals, no less than once every 3 years and, for other health facilities, inspections no less than once every 2 years. This bill would revise these inspection requirements, as specified. (2) Existing law, the Long‑Term Care, Health, Safety and Security Act of 1973, requires the State Department of Public Health to conduct annual inspections, without notice, of long-term health care facilities that have not had serious violations of the act within the last 12 months. The act requires every facility to be inspected at least once every 2 years, and further requires the department to vary the cycle for conducting these inspections to reduce the predictability of the inspections. This bill would delete these inspection requirements.