West Virginia Code 16-29B-12 – Certificate of need hearings; administrative procedures act applicable; hearings examiner; subpoenas
(a) The board shall conduct such hearings as it deems necessary for the performance of its functions and shall hold hearings when required by the provisions of this chapter or upon a written demand by a person aggrieved by any act or failure to act by the board regulation or order of the board. All hearings of the board pursuant to this section shall be announced in a timely manner and shall be open to the public. In making decisions in the certificate of need process, the board shall be guided by the state health plan approved by the Governor.
Terms Used In West Virginia Code 16-29B-12
- Authority: means the Health Care Authority created pursuant to the provisions of this article. See West Virginia Code 16-29B-3
- Board: means the five-member board of directors of the West Virginia Health Care Authority. See West Virginia Code 16-29B-3
- Department: means the West Virginia Department of Health and Human Resources: Provided, That beginning January 1, 2024, as used in this chapter, "department" and "Department of Health and Human Resources" means the Department of Health. See West Virginia Code 16-1-2
- Evidence: Information presented in testimony or in documents that is used to persuade the fact finder (judge or jury) to decide the case for one side or the other.
- Hospital: means a facility subject to licensure as such under the provisions of article five-b of this chapter, and any acute care facility operated by the state government which is primarily engaged in providing to inpatients, by or under the supervision of physicians, diagnostic and therapeutic services for medical diagnosis, treatment and care of injured, disabled or sick persons, and does not include state mental health facilities or state long-term care facilities. See West Virginia Code 16-29B-3
- in writing: includes any representation of words, letters, or figures, whether by printing, engraving, writing, or otherwise. See West Virginia Code 2-2-10
- Person: means an individual, trust, estate, partnership, committee, corporation, association or other organization such as a joint stock company, a state or political subdivision or instrumentality thereof or any legal entity recognized by the state. See West Virginia Code 16-29B-3
- Records: means accounts, books and other data related to health care costs at health care facilities subject to the provisions of this article which do not include privileged medical information, individual personal data, confidential information, the disclosure of which is prohibited by other provisions of this code and the laws enacted by the federal government, and information, the disclosure of which would be an invasion of privacy. See West Virginia Code 16-29B-3
- Secretary: means the Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Resources. See West Virginia Code 16-29B-3
- State: when applied to a part of the United States and not restricted by the context, includes the District of Columbia and the several territories, and the words "United States" also include the said district and territories. See West Virginia Code 2-2-10
- Testify: Answer questions in court.
- Testimony: Evidence presented orally by witnesses during trials or before grand juries.
(b) All pertinent provisions of article five, chapter twenty-nine-a of this code shall apply to and govern the hearing and administrative procedures in connection with and following the hearing except as specifically stated to the contrary in this article. General counsel for Department of Health and Human Resources or general counsel for the authority shall represent the interest of the authority at all hearings.
(c) Any hearing may be conducted by members of the board or by a hearing examiner appointed by the board for such purpose. The chairperson of the board may issue subpoenas and subpoenas duces tecum which shall be issued and served pursuant to the time, fee and enforcement specifications in section one, article five, chapter twenty-nine-a of this code.
(d) Notwithstanding any other provision of state law, when a hospital alleges that a factual determination made by the board is incorrect, the burden of proof shall be on the hospital to demonstrate that such determination is, in light of the total record, not supported by substantial evidence. The burden of proof remains with the hospital in all cases.
(e) After any hearing, after due deliberation, and in consideration of all the testimony, the evidence and the total record made, the board shall render a decision in writing. The written decision shall be accompanied by findings of fact and conclusions of law as specified in section three, article five, chapter twenty-nine-a of this code, and the copy of the decision and accompanying findings and conclusions shall be served by certified mail, return receipt requested, upon the party demanding the hearing, and upon its attorney of record, if any.
(f) Any interested individual, group or organization shall be recognized as affected parties upon written request from the individual, group or organization. Affected parties shall have the right to bring relevant evidence before the board and testify thereon. Affected parties shall have equal access to records, testimony and evidence before the board and shall have equal access to the expertise of the authority’s staff. The authority, with the approval of the secretary, shall have authority to propose rules to administer provisions of this section.
(g) A decision of the board is final unless reversed, vacated or modified upon judicial review thereof, in accordance with the provisions of section thirteen of this article.