NURSING FACILITY BEDS IN CERTAIN COUNTIES

(a) At the request of the commissioners court of a county in which not more than two nursing facilities are certified to participate in the state Medicaid program, and subject to Subsection (d), the commission may contract for additional nursing facility beds under the state Medicaid program in the county without regard to the occupancy rate of available Medicaid beds. (b) A commissioners court that intends to make a request under Subsection (a) shall publish notice of its intent in the Texas Register and in a newspaper of general circulation in the county. The notice must request: (1) comments on whether the request should be made; and (2) proposals from persons interested in providing additional Medicaid beds in the county, including persons providing Medicaid beds in a nursing facility with a high occupancy rate. (c) A commissioners court shall determine whether to proceed with a request after considering all comments and proposals received in response to the notices provided under Subsection (b). If the commissioners court proceeds with the request, the court may recommend that the commission contract with a specific nursing facility that submitted a proposal. In determining whether to proceed with the request and whether to recommend a specific nursing facility, the commissioners court shall consider: (1) the demographic and economic needs of the county; (2) the quality of existing nursing facility services under the state Medicaid program in the county; (3) the quality of the proposals submitted; and (4) the degree of community support for additional nursing facility services. (d) The commission may not contract under this section for more than 120 additional nursing facility beds per county per year and may not exceed 500 additional nursing facility beds statewide in a calendar year.