PROPOSALS FOR GERIATRIC CARE

(a) The department shall solicit proposals from community providers to operate community residential programs for elderly residents at least every two years. (b) The department shall require each provider to: (1) offer adequate assurances of ability to: (A) provide the required services; (B) meet department standards; and (C) safeguard the safety and well-being of each resident; and (2) sign a memorandum of agreement with the local intellectual and developmental disability authority outlining the responsibilities for continuity of care and monitoring, if the provider is not the local authority. (c) The department may fund a proposal through a contract if the provider agrees to meet the requirements prescribed by Subsection (b) and agrees to provide the services at a cost that is equal to or less than the cost to the department to provide the services. (d) The appropriate local intellectual and developmental disability authority shall monitor the services provided to a resident placed in a program funded under this section. The department may monitor any service for which it contracts.