Connecticut General Statutes 19a-566 – Birth centers. Licensure. Regulations
(a) On and after January 1, 2024, no person, entity, firm, partnership, corporation, limited liability company or association shall establish, conduct, operate or maintain a birth center, as defined in section 19a-490, in this state without obtaining a license pursuant to the provisions of this section. Except in the case of an emergency, an outpatient clinic shall not offer any birth center services as part of its ambulatory medical services without being licensed as a birth center. For the purposes of this subsection, “birth center services” means perinatal, labor, delivery and postpartum care during and immediately after delivery to persons presenting with a low-risk pregnancy and healthy newborns for a period typically less than twenty-four hours and “low-risk pregnancy” has the same meaning as provided in subsection (t) of section 19a-490.
Terms Used In Connecticut General Statutes 19a-566
- Birth center: means a freestanding facility that is licensed by the department (1) to provide perinatal, labor, delivery and postpartum care during and immediately after delivery to persons presenting with a low-risk pregnancy and healthy newborns for a period typically less than twenty-four hours, and (2) that is not a hospital licensed pursuant to the provisions of this chapter, or attached to or located in such a hospital. See Connecticut General Statutes 19a-490
- Commissioner: means the Commissioner of Public Health or the commissioner's designee. See Connecticut General Statutes 19a-490
- Corporation: A legal entity owned by the holders of shares of stock that have been issued, and that can own, receive, and transfer property, and carry on business in its own name.
- Hospital: means an establishment for the lodging, care and treatment of persons suffering from disease or other abnormal physical or mental conditions and includes inpatient psychiatric services in general hospitals. See Connecticut General Statutes 19a-490
- low-risk pregnancy: means an uncomplicated, singleton pregnancy that has vertex presentation and is at low risk for developing complications during labor and birth, as determined by an evaluation and examination conducted by a licensed health care provider acting within the scope of such provider's practice. See Connecticut General Statutes 19a-490
- Outpatient clinic: means an organization operated by a municipality or a corporation, other than a hospital, that provides (1) ambulatory medical care, including preventive and health promotion services, (2) dental care, or (3) mental health services in conjunction with medical or dental care for the purpose of diagnosing or treating a health condition that does not require the patient's overnight care. See Connecticut General Statutes 19a-490
- Partnership: A voluntary contract between two or more persons to pool some or all of their assets into a business, with the agreement that there will be a proportional sharing of profits and losses.
- Person: means any individual, firm, partnership, corporation, limited liability company or association. See Connecticut General Statutes 19a-490
(b) Each birth center shall be accredited by the Commission for the Accreditation of Birth Centers on or before the effective date of its licensure and maintain such accreditation during the time it is licensed. If a birth center loses its accreditation, the birth center shall immediately notify the Commissioner of Public Health and cease providing birth center services to patients until authorized by the commissioner to reinstate such services.
(c) (1) Each birth center shall have a written plan to obtain services for its patients from a hospital, licensed pursuant to this chapter, to provide services in the event of an emergency or other conditions that pose a risk to the health of a patient that require transfer of the patient to a hospital. Before issuing a license pursuant to this section, the commissioner shall review and approve the information submitted by the birth center to the Commission for the Accreditation of Birth Centers, including, but not limited to, (A) information relating to the birth center’s plan for ongoing risk assessment and adherence to patient eligibility criteria, as determined by the Commission for the Accreditation of Birth Centers, during the delivery of birth center services to a patient, and (B) information relating to the birth center’s policies and procedures for the prenatal, intrapartum or postpartum transfer of a patient in the event that such patient no longer meets such patient eligibility criteria.
(2) If a patient receiving birth center services no longer presents with a low-risk pregnancy, as defined in section 19a-490, or otherwise fails to meet the patient eligibility criteria described subparagraph (A) of subdivision (1) of this subsection, the birth center providing such services shall ensure the patient’s care is transferred to a licensed health care provider capable of providing the appropriate level of obstetrical care for the patient.
(d) Each hospital licensed pursuant to this chapter that maintains an emergency department, other than a children’s hospital, shall work cooperatively with birth centers to coordinate the care of patients who may require services in the event of an emergency or other conditions that pose a risk to the health of a patient that require transfer of the patient to a hospital. Each children’s hospital that maintains an emergency department shall work cooperatively with birth centers to coordinate the care of neonatal patients who may require services in the event of an emergency or other conditions that pose a risk to the health of a patient that require transfer of the patient to a children’s hospital.
(e) The commissioner shall adopt regulations, in accordance with the provisions of chapter 54, to implement the provisions of this section and section 19a-495. The commissioner may implement policies and procedures necessary to administer the provisions of this section while in the process of adopting such policies and procedures as regulations, provided notice of intent to adopt regulations is published on the eRegulations System not later than twenty days after the date of implementation. Policies and procedures implemented pursuant to this section shall be valid until the time final regulations are adopted. The regulations and policies and procedures shall include, but need not be limited to, provisions regarding the administration of the facility, staffing requirements, infection control protocols, physical plant requirements, accommodation of the participation of support persons of the patient’s choice, limitations on the provision of anesthesia and surgical procedures, operating procedures for determining risk status of patients at admission and during labor, reportable events, medical records, pharmaceutical services, laundry services, requirements for professional and medical liability insurance for the facility and health care providers and emergency planning.