State Licensure

• Licensure Regulations (see 6 CCR 1011-1, Chapter II and Chapter V)

• Letter of Intent for licensing and certification - initial application, changes and closure

Health Facilities

Nursing Homes/Nursing Care Facilities

All Colorado nursing homes - also called skilled nursing facilities, long term care facilities, and nursing care facilities - are licensed by the state through the Health Facilities and Emergency Medical Services Division. Most nursing homes are also certified to provide services to eligible Medicare and Medicaid beneficiaries and are required to meet federal Center for Medicare/Medicaid Services (CMS) regulations. Both federal and state regulations define Resident Rights (a Bill of Rights for nursing home residents.) 

The division enforces state and federal regulations through unannounced annual surveys and complaint investigations. Annual surveys take place every 9 to 15 months, with an average of 12 months. Complaint investigations are conducted whenever the division receives a formal regulatory-related complaint that falls under division jurisdiction from a family member, staff member, resident or friend.

Nursing homes are operated by for-profit and non-profit organizations. They are found throughout the state, vary in size and offer different programs. All nursing homes provide long term care services to chronically ill persons, including those with chronic mental illness. Many nursing homes also offer short term or extended care rehabilitative services, and special units for people with Alzheimer's disease or other types of dementia.

Every nursing home has an assigned ombudsman who visits the facility regularly and helps residents with any problems they encounter, including quality of care, residents' rights and problems with transfer and discharge.

Consumer Resources

• Alzheimer's Association - Colorado
• Complaint program
• Guide to choosing a nursing home  
• How the state surveys nursing homes
• Colorado long term care Ombudsman's Internet site
• Restraints have risks: make the right choice
• Resolving health care problems in nursing homes
• Resources for choosing a nursing home

Provider Resources

• Feeding assistants in long term care facilities
• Informal dispute resolution policy
  • Instructions for Informal Dispute Resolution (IDR)
• Inter-Facility transfer form (sample)
• Occurrence reporting program
• Medicare.gov
• Minimum Data Set (MDS) 3.0 training and resources
• Nursing home administrator regulations

• Post-Survey Feedback

  • Policy: Informal Methods for Providing Post-Survey Feedback

  • Policy Q&A

• Professionalism workgroup
• POC writing guide
• Protocols for prevention, treatment and management of infectious diseases
• Reporting a Crime in a Nursing Home
• Resident intimacy and sexual behavior guidelines and FAQ 
• Survey scope and severity

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