Facilities must document in the resident’s record the reasons for the transfer or discharge. In order to justify the transfer or discharge, one of the following reasons must be substantiated:

1. the resident needs a higher level of care,

2. the resident has improved sufficiently and no longer needs nursing facility care,

3. the resident endangers the safety or health of other individuals in the facility,

4. the resident has failed to pay for his/her stay, or

5. the facility will be closing.

The facility must provide a written notice to the resident and the resident’s representative in a language and manner they understand. The notice must contain very specific information, including: the reason for the transfer or discharge, the effective date of the transfer or discharge, the location to where the facility plans to transfer or discharge the resident to, information about the resident’s right to appeal the transfer and discharge, including contact information to relevant agencies, contact information to the appropriate Long-Term Care Ombudsman and much more.

Read CANHR’s Transfer & Discharge Rights fact sheet or call the CANHR office directly at (800) 474-1116 in order to speak to an advocate to learn more about the exceptions to a written notice, the process of appealing a transfer or discharge, readmission after a hospital stay, discharge planning and more. (Source: Code of Federal Regulations 483.12 (a); California Health & Safety Code §1599.1).