What counts as a medical facility?

Question

A certain POA for medical document gives an adult son the right to move his parent to medical facility. Would a assisted living place count as a medical facility?

Is there a precise legal definition of a medical facility?

Answer 1

This is a logical thing to ask but somewhat misses the point as described below, because a POA doesn't really give the adult son "the right to move his parent to medical facility" in the ordinary sense of that word.

Is there a precise legal definition of a medical facility?

Not usually, in the context of interpreting a power of attorney, unless the document itself defines it.

Would a assisted living place count as a medical facility?

This could go either way but often it doesn't matter much because it is mitigated by the next point, and because there is usually also a non-medical durable power of attorney put in place at the same time that would give the agent or a different agent the authority to take steps necessary to move the principal (the parent in this case) to a non-medical facility like a new apartment or home.

A certain POA for medical document gives an adult son the right to move his parent to medical facility.

This somewhat overstates what a POA does. A POA gives an agent under the POA (the adult son in this case) the authority to take action to make something happen. But a POA does not give the agent the authority for make the parent do anything if the principal (the parent in this case) is conscious and capable of expressing a contrary opinion and a POA also does not give the agent the power to prohibit the principal from doing anything.

Only a guardian of the person who is suffering from some condition has the authority to act over the objections of that person. Action with a POA requires the non-objection of the principal because the principal is silent or incapable of communicating any objections.

Normally, someone well enough to be placed in an assisted living facility has enough capacity to object to the placement and override the agent if that person is unhappy with a decision that the agent is making under the POA. This can be done on a case by case basis, or by revoking the POA entirely.

Answer 2

At the federal level, the Public Health Service Act 42 CFR 5.2 states:

Medical facility means a facility for the delivery of health services and includes:

• (1) A community health center, public health center, outpatient medical facility, or community mental health center;
• (2) a hospital, State mental hospital, facility for long-term care, or rehabilitation facility;
• (3) a migrant health center or an Indian Health service facility;
• (4) a facility for delivery of health services to inmates in a U.S. penal or correctional institution (under section 323 of the Act) or a State correctional institution;
• (5) a Public Health Service medical facility (used in connection with the delivery of health services under section 320, 321, 322, 324, 325, or 326 of the Act);
• or (6) any other Federal medical facility

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At the state level, N.J. Stat. § 26:2H-2 :

a. "Health care facility" means the facility or institution, whether public or private, that is engaged principally in providing services for health maintenance organizations, diagnosis, or treatment of human disease, pain, injury, deformity, or physical condition, including, but not limited to, a general hospital, special hospital, mental hospital, public health center, diagnostic center, treatment center, rehabilitation center, extended care facility, skilled nursing home, nursing home, intermediate care facility, tuberculosis hospital, chronic disease hospital, maternity hospital, outpatient clinic, dispensary, home health care agency, residential health care facility, dementia care home, and bioanalytical laboratory (except as specifically excluded hereunder), or central services facility serving one or more such institutions but excluding institutions that provide healing solely by prayer and excluding such bioanalytical laboratories as are independently owned and operated, and are not owned, operated, managed, or controlled, in whole or in part, directly or indirectly by any one or more health care facilities, and the predominant source of business of which is not by contract with health care facilities within the State of New Jersey and which solicit or accept specimens and operate predominantly in interstate commerce.