A licensed home health agency may also provide, or arrange for the provision of, other therapeutic services to persons in their temporary or permanent place of residence. Therapeutic services include, but are not limited to, physical, speech, or occupational therapy, medical social services, and home health aide services.

Each home health agency providing home health agency services shall do all of the following:

Any person, organization, political subdivision of the state or governmental agency desiring a license under the provisions of this chapter or a hospital as defined in Section 1401 of this division which desires to establish, conduct, or maintain a home health agency shall file with the state department a verified application on a form prescribed, prepared and furnished by the state department, containing information as may be required by the state department for the proper administration and enforcement of this chapter.

(ii) If the owner of

a private agency is a corporation, partnership, or association, any person having a 10 percent or greater interest in that corporation, partnership, or association.

(iii) The administrator of a home health agency.

(B) When the conditions set forth in paragraph (3) of subdivision (a) of Section 1265.5, subparagraph (A) of paragraph (1) of subdivision (a) of Section 1338.5, and paragraph (1) of subdivision (a) of Section 1736.6 are met, the licensing and certification program shall issue an All Facilities Letter (AFL) informing facility licensees. After the AFL is issued, facilities must not allow newly hired administrators, program directors, and fiscal officers to have direct contact with clients or residents of the facility prior to completion of the criminal record clearance. A criminal record clearance shall be complete when the department has obtained the person’s criminal

offender record information search response from the Department of Justice and has determined that the person is not disqualified from engaging in the activity for which clearance is required.

including the costs associated with capturing or transmitting the fingerprint images and related information, shall not exceed thirty-two dollars ($32) per submission.

specified in this section, as part of the background clearance process, shall provide information as to whether or not the person has any prior criminal convictions, has had any arrests within the past 12-month period, or has any active arrests, and shall certify that, to the best of their knowledge, the information provided is true. This requirement is not intended to duplicate existing requirements for individuals who are required to submit fingerprint images as part of a criminal background clearance process. Every applicant shall provide information on any prior administrative action taken against them by any federal, state, or local government agency and shall certify that, to the best of their knowledge, the information provided is true. An applicant or other person required to provide information pursuant to this section that knowingly or willfully makes false statements, representations, or omissions may be subject to administrative action, including, but not limited to, denial of their application

or exemption or revocation of any exemption previously granted.

Notwithstanding Sections 1728.1 and 1732, the state department may issue a provisional license to a home health agency if:

A provisional license issued under this section shall expire not later than six months after the date of issuance, or at an earlier time as determined by the state department at the time of issuance, and may not be renewed.

The department shall not apply less stringent criteria when granting a provisional license pursuant to this section than it applies when granting a permanent license.

additional licensure requirements of, or regulations adopted pursuant to, this chapter that the department identifies, after consulting with the national accreditation organizations, as more stringent than the accreditation requirements of the national accreditation organizations.

a survey of an accredited home health agency to investigate complaints against an accredited home health agency for substantial noncompliance, as determined by the department, with these accreditation standards.

Each application for a license under this chapter, except applications by the State of California or any state department, authority, bureau, commission, or officer, shall be accompanied by a Licensing and Certification Program fee for the headquarters or main office of the agency and for each additional branch office maintained and operated by the agency in the amount set in accordance with Section 1266. The department shall work with the home health agency industry association and providers to restructure home health agency licensing and certification program fees in a budget neutral capacity for the 2008–09 fiscal year.

No person, public or private organization, political subdivision of the state, or other governmental agency within the state, shall continue to operate, conduct, or maintain an existing home health agency after September 30, 1966, without having applied for and obtained a license as provided in this chapter or in the case of a hospital as defined in Section 1401 of this division, having been approved by the state department to establish, conduct, or maintain a home health agency.

Upon filing of the application for a license provided for in, and upon full compliance with, the provisions of this chapter and the rules and regulations promulgated under this chapter by the state department, the state department shall issue to the applicant the license applied for. However, any hospital, as defined in Section 1401 which is licensed under the provisions of Chapter 2.3 (commencing with Section 1400) is not required to obtain a license. In order for a hospital to establish, conduct, or maintain a home health agency, it shall comply with all the provisions of this chapter and be approved by the state department. The approval shall be deemed to be licensure and shall not extend past midnight on the 31st day of December of each calendar year. The fee set forth in Section 1729 shall be paid before approval is granted. Approval may be denied or withdrawn by the state department on the same grounds as provided for denial, suspension, or revocation of a home health agency license. The state department may take the same action against any approved hospital home health agency as it may against any licensed home health agency under this chapter.

Every home health agency for which a license has been issued, except a facility that is certified to participate either in the Medicare program under Title XVIII (42 U.S.C. Sec. 1395 et seq.) of the federal Social Security Act, or the medicaid program under Title XIX (42 U.S.C. Sec. 1396 et seq.) of the federal Social Security Act, or both, shall be periodically inspected by a duly authorized representative of the state department no less than once a year. Reports of each such inspection shall be prepared by the representative conducting it upon forms prepared and furnished by the state department and filed with the state department. Such inspection shall be for the purpose of ensuring that the provisions of this chapter and the rules and regulations of the department are being followed. The state department is directed to ensure by such inspection that the home health agency is providing high quality care to its patients in accordance with the orders of the patient’s physician.

of January 1 immediately following that date, this section is repealed.

The state department may deny any application for, or suspend or revoke any license issued under the provisions of this chapter upon any of the following grounds and in the manner hereinafter provided: