1. (a) Access to the Facility and Residents. The State Ombudsman or the State Ombudsman’s designee shall have access to long-term care facilities and residents at any time deemed reasonable and necessary to effectively carry out the duties of the Long-Term Care Ombudsman program as set forth in federal law and sections 17b-411-1 through 17b-411-14, inclusive, of the Regulations of Connecticut State Agencies.

   1. (1) Access to long-term care facilities and residents shall be deemed reasonable and necessary at the following times:

      1. (A) Anytime during a facility’s regular business hours; or(B) any other time access may be required by a particular condition to be investigated or monitored and the visit is approved by the State Ombudsman or the State Ombudsman’s designee.
   2. (2) The State Ombudsman or the State Ombudsman’s designee shall make announced and unannounced visits to residents of a facility.
   3. (3) Upon entering the facility, or as soon as practicable thereafter, all representatives of the Ombudsman Program shall report their presence to the facility administration or staff in charge and, upon request, present identification as a representative of the Ombudsman Program.
   4. (4) The State Ombudsman or the State Ombudsman’s designee shall have private access to residents without willful interference from the facility or the resident’s representative, including a guardian, family member, person holding power of attorney or conservator.

2. (b) Access to Resident Records. The State Ombudsman or the State Ombudsman’s designee shall have prompt access to a resident’s records if the Ombudsman or the Ombudsman’s designee has permission of the resident or the legal representative of the resident. The State Ombudsman or the State Ombudsman’s designee shall have access to a resident’s records if the person is unable to consent and has no legal representative, or the legal representative refuses to provide consent, and the State Ombudsman or the State Ombudsman’s designee has reasonable cause to believe that the legal representative is not acting in the resident’s best interest and the State Ombudsman designee, if acting on behalf of the State Ombudsman, obtains approval from the State Ombudsman. The State Ombudsman or the State Ombudsman’s designee shall have access to the following resident records including, but not limited to:

   1. (1) Medical and social records of the resident;
   2. (2) other records of a resident necessary to investigate a complaint;
   3. (3) administrative records, policies and documents of the long-term care facility which residents and the general public also have access to; and (4) all licensing and certification records maintained with the state.

(Effective April 3, 2013)