The Florida Senate

400.162  Property and personal affairs of residents.--

(1)  The admission of a resident to a facility and his or her presence in the facility shall not confer on the facility or its owner, administrator, employees, or representatives any authority to manage, use, or dispose of any property of the resident; nor shall such admission or presence confer on any of the aforementioned persons any authority or responsibility for the personal affairs of the resident, except that which may be necessary for the safety and orderly management of the facility.

(2)  No licensee, owner, administrator, employee, or representative thereof shall act as guardian, trustee, or conservator for any resident of the facility or any of such resident's property unless the person is the resident's spouse or a blood relative within the third degree of consanguinity.

(3)  A licensee shall provide for the safekeeping of personal effects, funds, and other property of the resident in the facility. Whenever necessary for the protection of valuables, or in order to avoid unreasonable responsibility therefor, the licensee may require that such valuables be excluded or removed from the facility and kept at some place not subject to the control of the licensee. At the request of a resident, the facility shall mark the resident's personal property with the resident's name or another type of identification, without defacing the property. Any theft or loss of a resident's personal property shall be documented by the facility. The facility shall develop policies and procedures to minimize the risk of theft or loss of the personal property of residents. A copy of the policy shall be provided to every employee and to each resident at admission. Facility policies must include provisions related to reporting theft or loss of a resident's property to law enforcement and any facility waiver of liability for loss or theft. The facility shall post notice of these policies and procedures, and any revision thereof, in places accessible to residents.

(4)  A licensee shall keep complete and accurate records of all funds and other effects and property of its residents received by it for safekeeping.

(5)(a)  Any funds or other property belonging to a resident which are received by a licensee shall be held in trust. Funds held in trust shall be kept separate from the funds and property of the facility; shall be deposited in a bank, savings association, trust company, or credit union located in this state and, if possible, located in the same district in which the facility is located; shall not be represented as part of the assets of the facility on a financial statement; and shall be used or otherwise expended only for the account of the resident.

(b)1.  Any licensee which holds resident funds in trust, as provided in paragraph (a), during the period for which a license is requested or issued shall file a surety bond with the agency in an amount equal to twice the average monthly balance in the resident trust fund during the prior year or $5,000, whichever is greater. The bond shall be executed by the licensee as principal and by a surety company authorized and licensed to do business in the state as surety. The bond shall be conditioned upon the faithful compliance of the licensee with the provisions of this section and shall run to the agency for the benefit of any resident injured by the violation by the licensee of the provisions of this section.

2.  A new bond or a proper continuation certificate shall be required on the annual renewal date of each licensee's bond. Such bond or certificate shall be filed with the agency as provided in subparagraph 1.

3.  Any surety company which cancels or does not renew the bond of any licensee shall notify the agency, in writing, not less than 30 days in advance of such action, giving the reason for the cancellation or nonrenewal.

(c)  As an alternative to posting a surety bond, the licensee may enter into a self-insurance agreement as specified in rules adopted by the agency. Funds contained in the pool shall run to any resident suffering financial loss as a result of the violation by the licensee of the provisions of this section. Such funds shall be awarded to any resident in an amount equal to the amount that the resident can establish, by affidavit or other adequate evidence, was deposited in trust with the licensee and which could not be paid to the resident within 30 days of the resident's request. The agency shall promulgate rules with regard to the establishment, organization, and operation of such self-insurance pools. Such rules shall include, but shall not be limited to, requirements for monetary reserves to be maintained by such self-insurers to assure their financial solvency.

(d)  If, at any time during the period for which a license is issued, a licensee that has not purchased a surety bond or entered into a self-insurance agreement, as provided in paragraphs (b) and (c), is requested to provide safekeeping for the personal funds of a resident, the licensee shall notify the agency of the request and make application for a surety bond or for participation in a self-insurance agreement within 7 days of the request, exclusive of weekends and holidays. Copies of the application, along with written documentation of related correspondence with an insurance agency or group, shall be maintained by the licensee for review by the agency and the State Nursing Home and Long-Term Care Facility Ombudsman Council.

(e)  Moneys or securities received as advance payment for care may at no time exceed the cost of care for a 6-month period.

(f)  At least every 3 months, the licensee shall furnish the resident and the guardian, trustee, or conservator, if any, for the resident a complete and verified statement of all funds and other property to which this subsection applies, detailing the amounts and items received, together with their sources and disposition. In any event, the licensee shall furnish such a statement annually and upon the discharge or transfer of a resident. Any governmental agency or private charitable agency contributing funds or other property on account of a resident also shall be entitled to receive such statement annually and upon discharge or transfer and such other report as it may require pursuant to law.

(6)  In the event of the death of a resident, a licensee shall return all refunds and funds held in trust to the resident's personal representative, if one has been appointed at the time the nursing home disburses such funds, and if not, to the resident's spouse or adult next of kin named in a beneficiary designation form provided by the nursing home to the resident. In the event the resident has no spouse or adult next of kin or such person cannot be located, funds due to the resident shall be placed in an interest-bearing account in a bank, savings association, trust company, or credit union located in this state and, if possible, located within the same district in which the facility is located, which funds shall not be represented as part of the assets of the facility on a financial statement, and the licensee shall maintain such account until such time as the trust funds are disbursed pursuant to the provisions of the Florida Probate Code. All other property of a deceased resident being held in trust by the licensee shall be returned to the resident's personal representative, if one has been appointed at the time the nursing home disburses such property, and if not, to the resident's spouse or adult next of kin named in a beneficiary designation form provided by the nursing home to the resident. In the event the resident has no spouse or adult next of kin or such person cannot be located, property being held in trust shall be safeguarded until such time as the property is disbursed pursuant to the provisions of the Florida Probate Code. The trust funds and property of deceased residents shall be kept separate from the funds and the property of the licensee and from the funds and property of the residents of the facility. The nursing home needs to maintain only one account in which the trust funds amounting to less than $100 of deceased residents are placed. However, it shall be the obligation of the nursing home to maintain adequate records to permit compilation of interest due each individual resident's account. Separate accounts shall be maintained with respect to trust funds of deceased residents equal to or in excess of $100. In the event the trust funds of the deceased resident are not disbursed pursuant to the provisions of the Florida Probate Code within 2 years of the death of the resident, the trust funds shall be deposited in the Resident Protection Trust Fund and expended as provided for in s. 400.063, notwithstanding the provisions of any other law of this state. Any other property of a deceased resident held in trust by a licensee which is not disbursed in accordance with the provisions of the Florida Probate Code shall escheat to the state as provided by law.

History.--s. 15, ch. 69-309; s. 14, ch. 70-361; s. 3, ch. 76-168; s. 1, ch. 77-457; ss. 7, 9, ch. 79-268; ss. 2, 3, ch. 81-318; ss. 3, 19, ch. 82-148; ss. 20, 79, 83, ch. 83-181; s. 1, ch. 85-286; s. 37, ch. 87-225; s. 30, ch. 93-177; ss. 20, 49, ch. 93-217; s. 768, ch. 95-148; s. 13, ch. 99-394.