(a) Not later than October 1, 2017, and annually thereafter, any hospital that has been certified as a comprehensive stroke center, a primary stroke center, a thrombectomy-capable stroke center or an acute stroke-ready hospital by the American Heart Association, the Joint Commission or any other nationally recognized certifying organization shall submit an attestation of such certification to the Commissioner of Public Health, in a form and manner prescribed by the commissioner. Not later than October 15, 2017, and annually thereafter, the Department of Public Health shall post a list of certified stroke centers on its Internet web site.

(b) The department may remove a hospital from the list posted pursuant to subsection (a) of this section if (1) the hospital requests such removal, (2) the department is informed by the American Heart Association, the Joint Commission or other nationally recognized certifying organization that a hospital’s certification has expired or been suspended or revoked, or (3) the department does not receive attestation of certification from a hospital on or before October first. The department shall report to the nationally recognized certifying organization any complaint it receives related to the certification of a hospital as a comprehensive stroke center, a primary stroke center, a thrombectomy-capable stroke center or an acute stroke-ready hospital. The department shall provide the complainant with the name and contact information of the nationally recognized certifying organization if the complainant seeks to pursue a complaint with such organization.