Montana Code Annotated
Part 3. Certificate of Need
50-5-301. When certificate of need is required -- definitions -- report on capital expenditures not subject to certificate of need

50-5-301. When certificate of need is required -- definitions -- report on capital expenditures not subject to certificate of need. (1) Unless a person has submitted an application for and is the holder of a certificate of need granted by the department, the person may not initiate any of the following:
(a) a change in the bed capacity of a long-term care facility through an increase in the number of beds or a relocation of beds from one long-term care facility or site to another, unless:
(i) the number of beds involved is 10 or less or 10% or less of the licensed beds, if fractional, rounded down to the nearest whole number, whichever figure is smaller, and no beds have been added or relocated during the 2 years prior to the date on which the letter of intent for the proposal is received;
(ii) a letter of intent is submitted to the department; and
(iii) the department determines that the proposal will not significantly increase the cost of care provided or exceed the bed need projected in the state long-term care facilities plan;
(b) the addition of a health service that is offered by or on behalf of a long-term care facility that was not offered by or on behalf of the facility within the 12-month period before the month in which the service would be offered and that will result in additional annual operating and amortization expenses of $150,000 or more;
(c) the incurring of an obligation for a capital expenditure by any person or persons to acquire 50% or more of an existing long-term care facility unless:
(i) the person submits the letter of intent required by 50-5-302(2); and
(ii) the department finds that the acquisition will not significantly increase the cost of care provided or increase bed capacity;
(d) the construction, development, or other establishment of a long-term care facility that is being replaced or that did not previously exist, by any person, including another type of long-term care facility;
(e) the use of hospital beds in excess of five to provide services to patients or residents needing only skilled nursing care, intermediate nursing care, or intermediate developmental disability care, as those levels of care are defined in 50-5-101; or
(f) the provision by a hospital of services for long-term care.
(2) (a) For purposes of this part, "long-term care facility" means an entity that provides skilled nursing care, intermediate nursing care, or intermediate developmental disability care, as defined in 50-5-101, to a total of two or more individuals.
(b) The term does not include residential care facilities, as defined in 50-5-101; community homes for persons with developmental disabilities, licensed under 53-20-305; community homes for persons with severe disabilities, licensed under 52-4-203; boarding or foster homes for children, licensed under 52-2-622; hotels, motels, boardinghouses, roominghouses, or similar accommodations providing for transients, students, or individuals not requiring institutional health care; or correctional facilities operating under the authority of the department of corrections.
(3) This section may not be construed to require a long-term care facility to obtain a certificate of need for a nonreviewable service that would not be subject to a certificate of need if undertaken by a person other than a long-term care facility.
(4) (a) When a person incurs an obligation by or on behalf of a long-term care facility for a capital expenditure that exceeds $5 million and does not otherwise require a certificate of need under this part, the person shall, upon completion of the project:
(i) notify the department of the total amount of the expenditure; and
(ii) provide a description of the project.
(b) This subsection (4) does not apply to a capital expenditure that involves the acquisition of an existing long-term care facility.
History: En. Sec. 170, Ch. 197, L. 1967; amd. Sec. 21, Ch. 366, L. 1969; amd. Sec. 2, Ch. 447, L. 1975; R.C.M. 1947, 69-5212(1); amd. Sec. 3, Ch. 37, L. 1979; amd. Sec. 12, Ch. 347, L. 1979; amd. Sec. 2, Ch. 329, L. 1983; amd. Sec. 2, Ch. 140, L. 1985; amd. Sec. 3, Ch. 450, L. 1987; amd. Sec. 2, Ch. 477, L. 1987; amd. Sec. 14, Ch. 330, L. 1989; amd. Sec. 1, Ch. 377, L. 1989; amd. Sec. 1, Ch. 244, L. 1991; amd. Sec. 1, Ch. 262, L. 1991; amd. Sec. 2, Ch. 764, L. 1991; amd. Sec. 4, Ch. 590, L. 1993; amd. Sec. 21, Ch. 255, L. 1995; amd. Sec. 7, Ch. 366, L. 1995; amd. Sec. 3, Ch. 398, L. 1995; amd. Sec. 257, Ch. 546, L. 1995; amd. Sec. 4, Ch. 93, L. 1997; amd. Sec. 5, Ch. 98, L. 1999; amd. Sec. 1, Ch. 286, L. 2001; amd. Sec. 100, Ch. 114, L. 2003; amd. Sec. 28, Ch. 339, L. 2021; amd. Sec. 2, Ch. 477, L. 2021.