The office shall adopt regulations setting forth statewide policies for area health planning agencies in the performance of their responsibilities under Section 127155.
In adopting the regulations, the office shall, with the advice of the Advisory Health Council, consider the following factors, and may consider other factors not inconsistent with the following:
(a)
The need for health care services in the area and the requirements of the population to be served, including evaluation of current utilization patterns.(b)
The availability and adequacy of health care services in the area’s existing facilities that currently conform to federal and state standards.(c)
The availability and adequacy of services in the area such as preadmission, ambulatory or home care services that may serve as alternatives or substitutes for care in health facilities.(d)
The possible economies and improvement in service that may be derived from the following:(1)
Operation of joint, cooperative, or shared health care resources.(2)
Maximum utilization of health facilities consistent with the appropriate levels of care, including, but not limited to, intensive care, acute general care, and skilled nursing care.(3)
Development of medical group practices, especially those providing services appropriately coordinated or integrated with institutional health service, and development of health maintenance organizations.(e)
The development of comprehensive services for the community to be served. These services may be either direct or indirect through formal affiliation with other health programs in the area, and include preventive, diagnostic, treatment and rehabilitation services. Preference shall be given to health facilities that will provide the most comprehensive health services and include outpatient and other integrated services useful and convenient to the operation of the facility and the community.(f)
The needs or reasonably anticipated needs of special populations, including members of a comprehensive group practice prepayment health care service plan, members of a religious body or denomination who desire to receive care and treatment in accordance with their religious conviction, or persons otherwise contracted or enrolled under extended health care arrangements, including life-care agreements pursuant to Chapter 10 (commencing with Section 1770), Division 2 of the Health and Safety Code.(g)
The special needs and circumstances of those entities that provide a substantial portion of their services or resources, or both, to individuals not residing in the health service areas where the entities are located. These entities may include medical and other health professional schools, multidisciplinary clinics, and specialty centers. With respect to the determination of unmet need in the community or the adverse effect of new or expanded surgical clinics on the utilization of operating rooms in hospitals, it is not the intent of the Legislature to limit the expansion of surgical clinics when the hospitals have not made efforts to fully utilize their ambulatory operating capacity and to provide ambulatory surgical services at a reasonable cost to the community.
Source:
Section 127160, https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codes_displaySection.xhtml?lawCode=HSC§ionNum=127160..