Section 1271.1 Of Article 2. Administration From California Health And Safety Code >> Division 2. >> Chapter 2. >> Article 2.
1271.1
. (a) A health facility may place up to 50 percent of its
licensed bed capacity in voluntary suspension for a period not
exceeding three years, upon submitting written notification to the
state department and to the Office of Statewide Health Planning and
Development. However, this section does not authorize a health
facility to deactivate all beds utilized for the provision of a basic
service or to deactivate all beds utilized for a special service or
other supplemental service for which the health facility holds a
special permit or licensure approval. Prior to the expiration of the
voluntary suspension, the health facility may request an extension,
that may be granted by the director if the director finds, after
consultation with the Director of the Office of Statewide Health
Planning and Development, that there is no identified need for
additional beds (of the category suspended) in the service area of
the health facility. If during a period of voluntary suspension under
this section the statewide Health Facilities and Services Plan
identifies a need for additional beds (of the category suspended) in
the health facility's service area, the Director of the Office of
Statewide Health Planning and Development may require the health
facility to terminate the voluntary suspension and exercise one of
the following options, at the discretion of the health facility: (1)
place some or all of the suspended beds in operation, in accordance
with the identified need, within one year following his or her order,
or (2) alternatively have the beds deemed permanently converted to
other than patient use within the meaning of Section 1268.
(b) A health facility may remove all or any portion of its
voluntarily suspended bed capacity from voluntary suspension by
request to the state department, which request shall be granted
unless the areas housing the suspended beds fail to meet currently
applicable operational requirements or fail to meet construction
requirements for the health facility in effect at the time the
request for suspension of the beds was received by the state
department.
(c) While health facility beds are in suspension pursuant to
subdivision (a), the beds shall not be deemed to be permanently
converted to other than patient use, for purposes of Section 1268.
The requirements of this section shall not apply to any temporary
deactivation of beds necessitated by the work of construction or
other activities required with respect to a project for which a
certificate of need or certificate of exemption has been granted
pursuant to Chapter 1 (commencing with Section 127125) of Part 2 of
Division 107. Nothing in this section shall in any way limit or
affect the authority of a health facility to use a portion of its
beds in one bed classification in another bed classification as
permitted by subdivision (a) of Section 127170, including the use of
general acute care beds as skilled nursing beds; provided, however,
that when beds in a particular classification are suspended pursuant
to this section, the remainder of the health facility's beds in the
same classification may not be used so as to result in elimination of
all beds utilized for provision of a basic service or utilized for
provision of a special service or other supplemental service for
which the health facility holds a special permit or licensure
approval.