Care facilities: regulatory visits.

Under existing law, the State Department of Social Services regulates the licensure and operation of community care facilities, residential care facilities for the elderly, child day care centers, and family day care homes. Existing law requires that these facilities be subject to unannounced visits by the department that occur at least once every 5 years. Existing law requires the department to conduct an annual unannounced visit under specified circumstances, including when a license is on probation, and to conduct annual unannounced visits to no less than 20% of the facilities not subject to an evaluation under those specified circumstances. This bill would instead make every facility of the types described above subject to an annual unannounced visit by the department on and after July 1, 2017. The bill would revise the provisions requiring the department to conduct annual unannounced visits to no less than 20% of the facilities by instead requiring the department to conduct annual unannounced visits to no less than 30% of facilities on or before July 1, 2015, and no less than 20% of those facilities on or before July 1, 2016. The bill would also delete the provisions requiring an unannounced visit at least once every 5 years. Existing law requires the department to immediately request a fire clearance and notify an applicant to arrange a time for the department to conduct a prelicensure survey if an application for initial licensure is complete. This bill would provide that the prelicensure survey is optional at the discretion of the department if the department determines that an application is for licensure of a currently licensed facility for which there will be no material change to the management or operations of the facility.