CON; certain health care facilities that relinquished CON for inpatient psych services may have those beds licensed as separate entity.

HB 1152 allows health care facilities that converted from acute care hospitals to Rural Emergency Hospitals (REHs) to separately license their existing psychiatric inpatient beds as a distinct entity. It applies to facilities that previously surrendered their Certificate of Need (a healthcare expansion approval) for psychiatric services during the conversion. The bill requires the State Department of Health to issue a separate Certificate of Need for this new psychiatric entity, while mandating strict separation of facilities, operations, finances, and governance between the REH and the psychiatric unit. This change aims to maintain psychiatric services continuity without requiring new facility construction or reapplying for full hospital licensing.