B 26-0025 — Certificate of Need Improvement Amendment Act of 2025

ENGROSSEDENROLLED ORIGINAL ABILLANACT 3___________ 26-25 6 IN THE COUNCIL OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA 9 ___________ To amend the Health Services Planning Program Re-establishment Act of 1996 to exempt from the certificate of need process digital-only telehealth platforms and providers, federally qualified health centers, outpatient or residential behavioral health services, and primary care, dental care, and specialty care providers, to define group practice and nonpatient care project, to remove the 3 year maximum on certificate of need applications for active projects, to increase the capital expenditure thresholds, and to require the State Health Planning and Development Agency to update the capital expenditure and medical equipment spending thresholds every 2 years, to increase the number of beds that must be added or removed at a health care facility in order to trigger a certificate of need,need; to require the Department of Health to create a registration process for entities offering primary, dental, and specialty care, virtual provider networks, virtual telehealth platforms, and federally qualified health centers, and to require the Department of Health to post information about certificate of need applications for the previous 3 years on its website;

to amend the Health-Care and Community Residence Facility Hospice and Home Care Licensure Act of 1983 to require the Department of Health to create a registration process for entities offering primary, dental, and specialty care, virtual provider networks, virtual telehealth platforms, and federally qualified health centers, and to require the Department of Health to post information about certificate of need applications for the previous 3 years on its website;

BE IT ENACTED BY THE COUNCIL OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA, That this act may be cited as the “Certificate of Need Improvement Amendment Act of 2025.”2025”. Sec.

Sec.

ENGROSSED ORIGINAL (a) Section 2 (D.C.

ENROLLED ORIGINAL (A) Subparagraph (A) is amended as follows:

(I) Strike the phrase “$6 million” and insertinginsert the phrase “$15 million” in its place.

Department of Commerce;” and insertinginsert the phrase “SHPDA shall, by rule, adjust this threshold every 2 years to reflect the change in the Producer Price Index for New Health Care Building Construction issued by the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics or a comparable index;” in its place.

(I) Strike the phrase “$3.5 million” and insertinginsert the phrase “$5 million” in its place.

Department of Commerce;” and insertinginsert the phrase “SHPDA shall, by rule, adjust this threshold every 2 years to reflect the change in the Producer Price Index for New Health Care ENGROSSED ORIGINAL Building Construction issued by the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics or a comparable index;” in its place.

“(i) Each health professional who is a member of the group is licensed to practice in the District of Columbia and provides substantially the full range of services that a ENGROSSED ORIGINAL health professional with that license routinely provides, including medical care, ENROLLED ORIGINAL consultation, diagnosis, or treatment, through the joint use of shared office space, facilities, equipment and personnel;

“(C) In the case of a faculty practice plan associated with a hospital, institution of higher education, or medical school with an approved medical residency training program in ENGROSSED ORIGINAL which health professional members may provide a variety of different specialty services and provide professional services both within and outside the group, as well as perform other tasks such as research, subparagraph (A) of this paragraph shall apply only with respect to the services provided within the faculty practice plan.”.

ENROLLED ORIGINAL “(iii) A facility providing outpatient or residential behavioral health services subject to the exclusive regulatory authority of the Department of Behavioral Health;

ENGROSSED ORIGINAL “(iv) A federally qualified health center, as defined in section 1861(aa)(4) of the Social Security Act, approved July 30, 1965 (79 Stat.

(5) Paragraph (12) is amended by striking the phrase “those outpatient behavioral health services subject to the exclusive regulatory authority of the Department of Behavioral Health and services provided by physicians, dentists, HMOs, and other individual providers in individual or group practice.” and inserting the phrase “any service provided by an entity that would be exempt from the definition of health care facility under paragraph (10) of this section.section.” in its place.

” in its place.

(i)(A) Sub-subparagraph (i) is amended by striking the phrase “SHPDA may, by rule, adjust this threshold annually to reflect the change in the Consumer Price Index issued ENGROSSED ORIGINAL by the Bureau of Labor Statistics, United States Department of Labor;” and inserting the phrase “SHPDA shall, by rule, adjust this threshold every 2 years to reflect the change in the Producer Price Index for Medical Equipment and Supplies Manufacturing issued by the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics or such comparable index;” in its place.

(ii)(B) Sub-subparagraph (ii) is amended by striking the phrase “$2 million;” and inserting the phrase “$2 million;

(iii)(C) Sub-subparagraph (iii) is amended by striking the phrase “$350,000.” and inserting the phrase “$350,000;

ENROLLED ORIGINAL (i) Sub-subparagraph (iii) is amended byto strikingread theas phrasefollows: “Any new health service;” and inserting the phrase “Any new health service with a physical location;” in its place.

ENGROSSED“(iii) ORIGINALAny (ii)new Sub-subparagraphhealth (iv)service iswith amendeda byphysical strikinglocation; the phrase “or 10%” and insert the phrase “or 20%” in its place.

or”.

(ii) Sub-subparagraph (iv) is amended by striking the phrase “or 10%” and inserting the phrase “or 20%” in its place.

“(15A) “Nonpatient care project” means any capital project by a healthcare facility or a hospital that does not solely, directly or indirectly, impact clinical procedures, treatments, patient interactions, or clinical areas, such as the construction or renovation of administrative offices, purchase of non-medical equipment, such as office furniture or information technology systems, including electronic medical records, renovation or replacement of electrical, heating, cooling, ventilation systems, elevator and escalators or other means of ingress and egress, or fire and life safety systems, and other projects that are focusfocused solely on supporting the administrative functions of the facility.”.

ENGROSSED ORIGINAL “(21) “Virtual provider network” means a provider-owned and managed entity which employs or contracts with licensed health care providers, and which exclusively provides telehealth or telemedicine health care services through a virtual telehealth platform.

ENROLLED ORIGINAL “(3A) One representative of an incorporated association of hospitals in the District;”.

ENGROSSED ORIGINAL (2) Paragraph (19) is amended by striking the phrase “;

Official Code § 44-408(b)) is amended by striking the phrase “no more than 3 years old”old.” and inserting the phrase “no more than 5 years old”old.” in its place.

ENGROSSED ORIGINAL (h) Section 21(c) (D.C.

Official Code § 44- 501 et seq.), is amended as follows:

ENROLLED ORIGINAL “(2) A virtual provider network or virtual telehealth platform operating in the District;

§ 1395x(aa)(4)), or an entity that has been determined by the Health Resources and Services Administration of the United States Department of Health and Human Services to meet the definition of a federally qualified health center, but does not receive funding under section 330 of the Public Health ENGROSSED ORIGINAL Service Act, approved October 11, 1996 (110 Stat.

§ 254b) (“federally qualified health center look-alike”“(b)look-alike”). The registration process shall:

“(b) The registration process shall:

ENGROSSED ORIGINAL “(f) The revenue generated from the registration or renewal fees inunder subsection (b) of this section shall be placed in the Health Occupations Regulation Fund, established by section 4904 of the Department of Health Functions Clarification Act of 2001, effective October 3, 2001 (D.C.

ENROLLED ORIGINAL (A) Subsection (b) is amended by striking the phrase “or other entity from operating a facility or agency” and inserting the phrase “entity described in section 3a, or other entity from operating a facility or agency” in its place.

Official Code § 7-742.01(3))7-742.01(3)), is amended by ENGROSSED ORIGINAL striking the phrase “through direct, retail, and online sales,” and inserting the phrase “through direct, retail, wholesale to licensed food establishments, and online sales,” in its place.

Official Code § 3-1202.03(1))3-1202.03(a)(2A)) is amended by striking the phrase “Integrative Healthcare” and inserting the phrase “Acupuncture, Chiropractic, and Naturopathic Physicians” in its place.

ENGROSSED ORIGINAL (B) Subsection (a) is amended by striking the phrase “Integrative Healthcare to consist of 9 members” and inserting the phrase “Acupuncture, Chiropractic, and Naturopathic Physicians to consist of 7 members” in its place.

(D) Subsection (e) is amended by striking the phrase “Of the members initially appointed under this section, 3 shall be appointed for a term of one year, 3 shall be appointed for a term of 2 years, and 3 shall be appointed for a term of 3 years.” and inserting the phrase”phrase Of“Of the members initially appointed under this section, 2 shall be appointed for a term of ENROLLED ORIGINAL one year, 2 shall be appointed for a term of 2 years, and 3 shall be appointed for a term of 3 years.” in its place.