202 KAR 7:501 - Ambulance agency licensure
RELATES TO: KRS 216B.020(2)(f), 311A.030, 311A.060, 311A.190
NECESSITY, FUNCTION, AND CONFORMITY:
KRS
311A.020 requires the Board of
Section 1. Applying for Licensure.
(1) An applicant shall submit:
(a) A completed Ambulance Agency License
Application;
(b) An application fee
as established in
202 KAR
7:030;
(c)
A current map of the agency's intended service area; and
(d) A written description of the ambulance
agency's geographic service area within the Commonwealth, which shall identify
with specificity the complete boundary of the area served by the provider upon
applying for initial licensure or if the service area has changed since the
last map was provided to the KBEMS office . The map shall accurately reflect the
service area as identified by the providers Certificate of Need, if
appropriate.
(2) The
board shall conduct a physical inspection of an agency's premises prior to
granting a license or license renewal.
(3) A license to operate shall be issued only
for the person, service area, and premises, including the number of ambulances,
named in the application, and shall not be transferable.
(4) An agency shall display its license in a
prominent public area at the service base station and at any fixed satellite
location .
(5) The following
information shall be included on the license issued by the office of the board:
(a) Operating name of the provider ;
(b) Physical location of the base
station ;
(c) The number and
physical location of satellite stations, if any, operated by the
licensee;
(d) The license
classification;
(e) The level of
service provided;
(f) The number of
vehicles operated by the provider ; and
(g) The specific geographic area to be served
by the licensee.
(6) A
license shall expire on December 31 following the original date of issue and
shall subsequently expire annually on December 31 of each year.
Section 2. License Renewal. To
renew a license, the holder shall:
(1) Submit
a completed Ground Agency Renewal Application;
(2) Pass inspection conducted by the board of
the agency's premises, equipment, supplies, vehicles, and records;
and
(3) Submit a fee in the amount
established in
202 KAR
7:030.
Section 3. Agency Changes.
(1) A new application shall be filed if a
change of ownership occurs. A change of ownership for licenses shall be deemed
to occur if more than fifty (50) percent of the assets, capital stock, or
voting rights of a corporation or agency is purchased, transferred, leased, or
acquired by comparable arrangement by one (1) person or entity from
another.
(2) A new license
application filed due to a change of ownership shall be filed, at minimum, ten
(10) days prior to the change of ownership. The new license shall be issued for
the remainder of the previous licensure period.
(3) There shall be full disclosure to the
board of the changes, such as name and address, of:
(a) Each person having direct or indirect
ownership interest of ten (10) percent or more in the agency;
(b) Officers and directors of the
corporation, if an agency is organized as a corporation; or
(c) Partners, if an agency is organized as a
partnership.
Section
4. Inspections.
(1) Compliance
with licensing pursuant to this administrative regulation shall be validated
through on-site inspections of the agency by representatives or employees of
the KBEMS Office . The inspection shall include a:
(a) Safety and maintenance check of all
vehicles in operation;
(b) Review
of all equipment and supplies stocked on vehicles; and
(c) Review of personnel records, policy
manuals, and other reports required to be maintained pursuant to 202 KAR
Chapter 7.
(2) Each
representative or employee of the KBEMS Office shall have access to the service
during hours that the agency operates.
(3) A regulatory violation identified during
an inspection shall be transmitted in writing to the agency by the KBEMS
office .
(4) Within ten (10)
business days of receipt of the statement of violation, the agency shall submit
a written plan for the elimination or correction of a regulatory violation to
the KBEMS office .
(5) The plan
shall specify the date by which the violations shall be corrected.
(6) Within ten (10) business days following
receipt of the plan, the KBEMS office shall notify the agency in writing
whether or not the plan is accepted as providing for the elimination or
correction of the violation.
(7)
The KBEMS office may conduct a follow-up visit to verify compliance with the
plan.
(8) If a portion or all of
the plan is unacceptable:
(a) The KBEMS office
shall specify why the plan cannot be accepted; and
(b) The provider shall modify or amend the
plan and resubmit it to the KBEMS office within ten (10) business days after
receipt of notice that the plan is unacceptable.
(9) Unannounced inspections may be conducted
for a:
(a) Complaint allegation;
(b) Follow-up visit; or
(c) Relicensing inspection.
Section 5. Unethical
Conduct.
(1) The following acts shall be
considered unethical conduct in the practice of providing emergency medical
services and may be subject to the sanctions established in
KRS
311A.060:
(a) Failure to submit, amend, or modify a
plan of correction in order to eliminate or correct regulatory
violations;
(b) Failure to
eliminate or correct regulatory violations;
(c) Falsifying an application for
licensing;
(d) Changing a license
issued by the board;
(e) Attempting
to obtain or obtaining a license by:
1.
Fraud;
2. Forgery;
3. Deception;
4. Misrepresentation; or
5. Subterfuge;
(f) Providing false or misleading
advertising;
(g) Falsifying, or
causing to be falsified reports regarding patient care or other reports
provided to the KBEMS office ;
(h)
Providing an unauthorized level of service;
(i) Failing to provide the board or its
representative with information upon request, or obstructing an investigation
regarding alleged or confirmed violations of KRS Chapter 311A or 202 KAR
Chapter 7;
(j) Issuing a payment on
an invalid account or an account with insufficient funds to pay established
fees, fines, or charges;
(k)
Submitting fraudulent or misleading claims for reimbursement; or
(l) Failure to comply with local ordinances,
federal statutes, KRS Chapter 311A, or 202 KAR Chapter 7.
(2) An agency whose license is currently
under disciplinary review shall not be eligible to sell the license to another
entity until all fines or fees owed to the board are satisfied and any
associated legal action has been fully resolved.
(3) A licensed agency shall not be
disciplined for responding to calls outside of its geographic service area if
the agency is providing:
(a) Mutual aid at
the request of and under an existing agreement with another licensed agency
whose geographic service area includes the area in which the emergency or
non-emergency call originates;
(b)
Disaster assistance;
(c)
Interfacility medical transfer from damaged or closed health facilities;
or
(d) Interfacility medical
transfer to residents of its service area, who are patients in facilities
outside of its service area, for the purpose of returning the patients to their
home service area or transporting them to another health facility.
Section 6. Exemptions
from Administrative Regulations.
(1) The
following situations shall be exempt from the provisions of this administrative
regulation:
(a) First aid or transportation
provided in accordance with
KRS
216B.020(2)(f);
(b) A vehicle serving as an ambulance during
a disaster or major catastrophe; or
(c) A vehicle operated by the U.S. government
on property owned by the U.S. government.
(2) The following out-of-state agencies shall
be exempt from the provisions of this administrative regulation:
(a) A vehicle licensed by another state that
is transporting a patient from out of state to a Kentucky medical facility or
other location in Kentucky;
(b) A
vehicle licensed by another state that is transporting a patient from out of
state through Kentucky to another location out-of-state;
(c) A vehicle licensed in an adjoining state
that responds to a mutual aid request from a Kentucky licensed provider for
emergency assistance if the out of state service is the closest service
appropriately capable of responding to the request or if Kentucky licensed
providers:
1. Are unavailable;
2. Have already responded; or
3. Are physically unable to reach the
incident; and
(d) A
vehicle licensed by another state that is providing nonemergency transportation
from a Kentucky health care facility for a patient who is not a Kentucky
resident back to their state of residence.
Section 7. Public Notice of Negative Action.
The board office shall publish, on the KBEMS web site or similar publication of
the board, or otherwise disseminate, the name of any licensed agency that is
fined, placed on probationary status, placed on restricted status, suspended,
or had a license revoked.
Section
8. Incorporation by Reference.
(1) The following material is incorporated by
reference:
(a) "Ambulance Agency License
Application", (12/2017); and
(b)
"Ground Agency Renewal Application", (12/2017).
(2) This material may be inspected, copied,
or obtained, subject to applicable copyright law, at the Office of the Kentucky
Board of Emergency Medical Services, 118 James Court, Suite 50, Lexington,
Kentucky 40505, Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
Notes
STATUTORY AUTHORITY: KRS 311A.020, 311A.025, 311A.030, 311A.060, 311A.190
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