(a) A person who is under final consideration for appointment to or employment with a home health agency in a position as a person responsible for the care, custody, or control of a child;
(b) A person who is under final consideration for employment with a home health agency in a full-time, part-time, or temporary position that involves providing direct care to an older adult. With regard to persons providing direct care to older adults, “applicant” does not include a person who provides direct care as a volunteer without receiving or expecting to receive any form of remuneration other than reimbursement for actual expenses.
(2) “Criminal records check” and “older adult” have the same meanings as in section 109.572 of the Revised Code.
(3) “Home health agency” means a person or government entity, other than a nursing home, residential care facility, or hospice care program, that has the primary function of providing any of the following services to a patient at a place of residence used as the patient’s home:
(a) Skilled nursing care;
(b) Physical therapy;
(c) Speech-language pathology;
(d) Occupational therapy;
(e) Medical social services;
(f) Home health aide services.
(4) “Home health aide services” means any of the following services provided by an individual employed with or contracted for by a home health agency:
(a) Hands-on bathing or assistance with a tub bath or shower;
(b) Assistance with dressing, ambulation, and toileting;
(c) Catheter care but not insertion;
(d) Meal preparation and feeding.
(5) “Hospice care program” has the same meaning as in section 3712.01 of the Revised Code.
(6) “Medical social services” means services provided by a social worker under the direction of a patient’s attending physician.
(7) “Minor drug possession offense” has the same meaning as in section 2925.01 of the Revised Code.
(8) “Nursing home,” “residential care facility,” and “skilled nursing care” have the same meanings as in section 3721.01 of the Revised Code.
(9) “Occupational therapy” has the same meaning as in section 4755.04 of the Revised Code.
(10) “Physical therapy” has the same meaning as in section 4755.40 of the Revised Code.
(11) “Social worker” means a person licensed under Chapter 4757. of the Revised Code to practice as a social worker or independent social worker.
(12) “Speech-language pathology” has the same meaning as in section 4753.01 of the Revised Code.
(B)(1) Except as provided in division (I) of this section, the chief administrator of a home health agency shall request the superintendent of the bureau of criminal identification and investigation to conduct a criminal records check with respect to each applicant. If the position may involve both responsibility for the care, custody, or control of a child and provision of direct care to an older adult, the chief administrator shall request that the superintendent conduct a single criminal records check for the applicant. If an applicant for whom a criminal records check request is required under this division does not present proof of having been a resident of this state for the five-year period immediately prior to the date upon which the criminal records check is requested or does not provide evidence that within that five-year period the superintendent has requested information about the applicant from the federal bureau of investigation in a criminal records check, the chief administrator shall request that the superintendent obtain information from the federal bureau of investigation as a part of the criminal records check for the applicant. Even if an applicant for whom a criminal records check request is required under this division presents proof that the applicant has been a resident of this state for that five-year period, the chief administrator may request that the superintendent include information from the federal bureau of investigation in the criminal records check.
(2) Any person required by division (B)(1) of this section to request a criminal records check shall provide to each applicant for whom a criminal records check request is required under that division a copy of the form prescribed pursuant to division (C)(1) of section 109.572 of the Revised Code and a standard impression sheet prescribed pursuant to division (C)(2) of section 109.572 of the Revised Code, obtain the completed form and impression sheet from each applicant, and forward the completed form and impression sheet to the superintendent of the bureau of criminal identification and investigation at the time the chief administrator requests a criminal records check pursuant to division (B)(1) of this section.
(3) An applicant who receives pursuant to division (B)(2) of this section a copy of the form prescribed pursuant to division (C)(1) of section 109.572 of the Revised Code and a copy of an impression sheet prescribed pursuant to division (C)(2) of that section and who is requested to complete the form and provide a set of fingerprint impressions shall complete the form or provide all the information necessary to complete the form and shall provide the impression sheets with the impressions of the applicant’s fingerprints. If an applicant, upon request, fails to provide the information necessary to complete the form or fails to provide fingerprint impressions, the home health agency shall not employ that applicant for any position for which a criminal records check is required by division (B)(1) of this section.
(C)(1) Except as provided in rules adopted by the department of health in accordance with division (F) of this section and subject to division (C)(3) of this section, no home health agency shall employ a person as a person responsible for the care, custody, or control of a child if the person previously has been convicted of or pleaded guilty to any of the following:
(a) A violation of section 2903.01, 2903.02, 2903.03, 2903.04, 2903.11, 2903.12, 2903.13, 2903.16, 2903.21, 2903.34, 2905.01, 2905.02, 2905.05, 2907.02, 2907.03, 2907.04, 2907.05, 2907.06, 2907.07, 2907.08, 2907.09, 2907.21, 2907.22, 2907.23, 2907.25, 2907.31, 2907.32, 2907.321, 2907.322, 2907.323, 2911.01, 2911.02, 2911.11, 2911.12, 2919.12, 2919.22, 2919.24, 2919.25, 2923.12, 2923.13, 2923.161, 2925.02, 2925.03, 2925.04, 2925.05, 2925.06, or 3716.11 of the Revised Code, a violation of section 2905.04 of the Revised Code as it existed prior to July 1, 1996, a violation of section 2919.23 of the Revised Code that would have been a violation of section 2905.04 of the Revised Code as it existed prior to July 1, 1996, had the violation been committed prior to that date, a violation of section 2925.11 of the Revised Code that is not a minor drug possession offense, or felonious sexual penetration in violation of former section 2907.12 of the Revised Code;
(b) A violation of an existing or former law of this state, any other state, or the United States that is substantially equivalent to any of the offenses listed in division (C)(1)(a) of this section.
(2) Except as provided in rules adopted by the department of health in accordance with division (F) of this section and subject to division (C)(3) of this section, no home health agency shall employ a person in a position that involves providing direct care to an older adult if the person previously has been convicted of or pleaded guilty to any of the following:
(b) A violation of an existing or former law of this state, any other state, or the United States that is substantially equivalent to any of the offenses listed in division (C)(2)(a) of this section.
(3)(a) A home health agency may employ conditionally an applicant for whom a criminal records check request is required under division (B) of this section as a person responsible for the care, custody, or control of a child until the criminal records check regarding the applicant required by this section is completed and the agency receives the results of the criminal records check. If the results of the criminal records check indicate that, pursuant to division (C)(1) of this section, the applicant does not qualify for employment, the agency shall release the applicant from employment unless the agency chooses to employ the applicant pursuant to division (F) of this section.
(b)(i) A home health agency may employ conditionally an applicant for whom a criminal records check request is required under division (B) of this section in a position that involves providing direct care to an older adult or in a position that involves both responsibility for the care, custody, and control of a child and the provision of direct care to older adults prior to obtaining the results of a criminal records check regarding the individual, provided that the agency shall request a criminal records check regarding the individual in accordance with division (B)(1) of this section not later than five business days after the individual begins conditional employment. In the circumstances described in division (I)(2) of this section, a home health agency may employ conditionally in a position that involves providing direct care to an older adult an applicant who has been referred to the home health agency by an employment service that supplies full-time, part-time, or temporary staff for positions involving the direct care of older adults and for whom, pursuant to that division, a criminal records check is not required under division (B) of this section. In the circumstances described in division (I)(4) of this section, a home health agency may employ conditionally in a position that involves both responsibility for the care, custody, and control of a child and the provision of direct care to older adults an applicant who has been referred to the home health agency by an employment service that supplies full-time, part-time, or temporary staff for positions involving both responsibility for the care, custody, and control of a child and the provision of direct care to older adults and for whom, pursuant to that division, a criminal records check is not required under division (B) of this section.
(ii) A home health agency that employs an individual conditionally under authority of division (C)(3)(b)(i) of this section shall terminate the individual’s employment if the results of the criminal records check requested under division (B)(1) of this section or described in division (I)(2) or (4) of this section, other than the results of any request for information from the federal bureau of investigation, are not obtained within the period ending thirty days after the date the request is made. Regardless of when the results of the criminal records check are obtained, if the individual was employed conditionally in a position that involves the provision of direct care to older adults and the results indicate that the individual has been convicted of or pleaded guilty to any of the offenses listed or described in division (C)(2) of this section, or if the individual was employed conditionally in a position that involves both responsibility for the care, custody, and control of a child and the provision of direct care to older adults and the results indicate that the individual has been convicted of or pleaded guilty to any of the offenses listed or described in division (C)(1) or (2) of this section, the agency shall terminate the individual’s employment unless the agency chooses to employ the individual pursuant to division (F) of this section. Termination of employment under this division shall be considered just cause for discharge for purposes of division (D)(2) of section 4141.29 of the Revised Code if the individual makes any attempt to deceive the agency about the individual’s criminal record.
(D)(1) Each home health agency shall pay to the bureau of criminal identification and investigation the fee prescribed pursuant to division (C)(3) of section 109.572 of the Revised Code for each criminal records check conducted in accordance with that section upon the request pursuant to division (B)(1) of this section of the chief administrator of the home health agency.
(2) A home health agency may charge an applicant a fee for the costs it incurs in obtaining a criminal records check under this section, unless the medical assistance program established under Chapter 5111. of the Revised Code reimburses the agency for the costs. A fee charged under division (D)(2) of this section shall not exceed the amount of fees the agency pays under division (D)(1) of this section. If a fee is charged under division (D)(2) of this section, the agency shall notify the applicant at the time of the applicant’s initial application for employment of the amount of the fee and that, unless the fee is paid, the agency will not consider the applicant for employment.
(E) The report of any criminal records check conducted by the bureau of criminal identification and investigation in accordance with section 109.572 of the Revised Code and pursuant to a request made under division (B)(1) of this section is not a public record for the purposes of section 149.43 of the Revised Code and shall not be made available to any person other than the following:
(1) The individual who is the subject of the criminal records check or the individual’s representative;
(2) The home health agency requesting the criminal records check or its representative;
(3) The administrator of any other facility, agency, or program that provides direct care to older adults that is owned or operated by the same entity that owns or operates the home health agency;
(4) Any court, hearing officer, or other necessary individual involved in a case dealing with a denial of employment of the applicant or dealing with employment or unemployment benefits of the applicant;
(5) Any person to whom the report is provided pursuant to, and in accordance with, division (I)(1), (2), (3), or (4) of this section.
(F) The department of health shall adopt rules in accordance with Chapter 119. of the Revised Code to implement this section. The rules shall specify circumstances under which the home health agency may employ a person who has been convicted of or pleaded guilty to an offense listed or described in division (C)(1) of this section but who meets standards in regard to rehabilitation set by the department or employ a person who has been convicted of or pleaded guilty to an offense listed or described in division (C)(2) of this section but meets personal character standards set by the department.
(G) Any person required by division (B)(1) of this section to request a criminal records check shall inform each person, at the time of initial application for employment that the person is required to provide a set of fingerprint impressions and that a criminal records check is required to be conducted and satisfactorily completed in accordance with section 109.572 of the Revised Code if the person comes under final consideration for appointment or employment as a precondition to employment for that position.
(H) In a tort or other civil action for damages that is brought as the result of an injury, death, or loss to person or property caused by an individual who a home health agency employs in a position that involves providing direct care to older adults, all of the following shall apply:
(1) If the agency employed the individual in good faith and reasonable reliance on the report of a criminal records check requested under this section, the agency shall not be found negligent solely because of its reliance on the report, even if the information in the report is determined later to have been incomplete or inaccurate;
(2) If the agency employed the individual in good faith on a conditional basis pursuant to division (C)(3)(b) of this section, the agency shall not be found negligent solely because it employed the individual prior to receiving the report of a criminal records check requested under this section;
(3) If the agency in good faith employed the individual according to the personal character standards established in rules adopted under division (F) of this section, the agency shall not be found negligent solely because the individual prior to being employed had been convicted of or pleaded guilty to an offense listed or described in division (C)(1) or (2) of this section.
(I)(1) The chief administrator of a home health agency is not required to request that the superintendent of the bureau of criminal identification and investigation conduct a criminal records check of an applicant for a position that involves the provision of direct care to older adults if the applicant has been referred to the agency by an employment service that supplies full-time, part-time, or temporary staff for positions involving the direct care of older adults and both of the following apply:
(a) The chief administrator receives from the employment service or the applicant a report of the results of a criminal records check regarding the applicant that has been conducted by the superintendent within the one-year period immediately preceding the applicant’s referral;
(b) The report of the criminal records check demonstrates that the person has not been convicted of or pleaded guilty to an offense listed or described in division (C)(2) of this section, or the report demonstrates that the person has been convicted of or pleaded guilty to one or more of those offenses, but the home health agency chooses to employ the individual pursuant to division (F) of this section.
(2) The chief administrator of a home health agency is not required to request that the superintendent of the bureau of criminal identification and investigation conduct a criminal records check of an applicant for a position that involves providing direct care to older adults and may employ the applicant conditionally in a position of that nature as described in this division, if the applicant has been referred to the agency by an employment service that supplies full-time, part-time, or temporary staff for positions involving the direct care of older adults and if the chief administrator receives from the employment service or the applicant a letter from the employment service that is on the letterhead of the employment service, dated, and signed by a supervisor or another designated official of the employment service and that states that the employment service has requested the superintendent to conduct a criminal records check regarding the applicant, that the requested criminal records check will include a determination of whether the applicant has been convicted of or pleaded guilty to any offense listed or described in division (C)(2) of this section, that, as of the date set forth on the letter, the employment service had not received the results of the criminal records check, and that, when the employment service receives the results of the criminal records check, it promptly will send a copy of the results to the home health agency. If a home health agency employs an applicant conditionally in accordance with this division, the employment service, upon its receipt of the results of the criminal records check, promptly shall send a copy of the results to the home health agency, and division (C)(3)(b) of this section applies regarding the conditional employment.
(3) The chief administrator of a home health agency is not required to request that the superintendent of the bureau of criminal identification and investigation conduct a criminal records check of an applicant for a position that involves both responsibility for the care, custody, and control of a child and the provision of direct care to older adults if the applicant has been referred to the agency by an employment service that supplies full-time, part-time, or temporary staff for positions involving both responsibility for the care, custody, and control of a child and the provision of direct care to older adults and both of the following apply:
(a) The chief administrator receives from the employment service or applicant a report of a criminal records check of the type described in division (I)(1)(a) of this section;
(b) The report of the criminal records check demonstrates that the person has not been convicted of or pleaded guilty to an offense listed or described in division (C)(1) or (2) of this section, or the report demonstrates that the person has been convicted of or pleaded guilty to one or more of those offenses, but the home health agency chooses to employ the individual pursuant to division (F) of this section.
(4) The chief administrator of a home health agency is not required to request that the superintendent of the bureau of criminal identification and investigation conduct a criminal records check of an applicant for a position that involves both responsibility for the care, custody, and control of a child and the provision of direct care to older adults and may employ the applicant conditionally in a position of that nature as described in this division, if the applicant has been referred to the agency by an employment service that supplies full-time, part-time, or temporary staff for positions involving both responsibility for the care, custody, and control of a child and the direct care of older adults and if the chief administrator receives from the employment service or the applicant a letter from the employment service that is on the letterhead of the employment service, dated, and signed by a supervisor or another designated official of the employment service and that states that the employment service has requested the superintendent to conduct a criminal records check regarding the applicant, that the requested criminal records check will include a determination of whether the applicant has been convicted of or pleaded guilty to any offense listed or described in division (C)(1) or (2) of this section, that, as of the date set forth on the letter, the employment service had not received the results of the criminal records check, and that, when the employment service receives the results of the criminal records check, it promptly will send a copy of the results to the home health agency. If a home health agency employs an applicant conditionally in accordance with this division, the employment service, upon its receipt of the results of the criminal records check, promptly shall send a copy of the results to the home health agency, and division (C)(3)(b) of this section applies regarding the conditional employment.
(a) A person who is under final consideration for appointment to or employment with a home health agency in a position as a person responsible for the care, custody, or control of a child;
(b) A person who is under final consideration for employment with a home health agency in a full-time, part-time, or temporary position that involves providing direct care to an older adult. With regard to persons providing direct care to older adults, “applicant” does not include a person who provides direct care as a volunteer without receiving or expecting to receive any form of remuneration other than reimbursement for actual expenses.
(2) “Criminal records check” and “older adult” have the same meanings as in section 109.572 of the Revised Code.
(3) “Home health agency” means a person or government entity, other than a nursing home, residential care facility, or hospice care program, that has the primary function of providing any of the following services to a patient at a place of residence used as the patient’s home:
(a) Skilled nursing care;
(b) Physical therapy;
(c) Speech-language pathology;
(d) Occupational therapy;
(e) Medical social services;
(f) Home health aide services.
(4) “Home health aide services” means any of the following services provided by an individual employed with or contracted for by a home health agency:
(a) Hands-on bathing or assistance with a tub bath or shower;
(b) Assistance with dressing, ambulation, and toileting;
(c) Catheter care but not insertion;
(d) Meal preparation and feeding.
(5) “Hospice care program” has the same meaning as in section 3712.01 of the Revised Code.
(6) “Medical social services” means services provided by a social worker under the direction of a patient’s attending physician.
(7) “Minor drug possession offense” has the same meaning as in section 2925.01 of the Revised Code.
(8) “Nursing home,” “residential care facility,” and “skilled nursing care” have the same meanings as in section 3721.01 of the Revised Code.
(9) “Occupational therapy” has the same meaning as in section 4755.04 of the Revised Code.
(10) “Physical therapy” has the same meaning as in section 4755.40 of the Revised Code.
(11) “Social worker” means a person licensed under Chapter 4757. of the Revised Code to practice as a social worker or independent social worker.
(12) “Speech-language pathology” has the same meaning as in section 4753.01 of the Revised Code.
(B)(1) Except as provided in division (I) of this section, the chief administrator of a home health agency shall request the superintendent of the bureau of criminal identification and investigation to conduct a criminal records check with respect to each applicant. If the position may involve both responsibility for the care, custody, or control of a child and provision of direct care to an older adult, the chief administrator shall request that the superintendent conduct a single criminal records check for the applicant. If an applicant for whom a criminal records check request is required under this division does not present proof of having been a resident of this state for the five-year period immediately prior to the date upon which the criminal records check is requested or does not provide evidence that within that five-year period the superintendent has requested information about the applicant from the federal bureau of investigation in a criminal records check, the chief administrator shall request that the superintendent obtain information from the federal bureau of investigation as a part of the criminal records check for the applicant. Even if an applicant for whom a criminal records check request is required under this division presents proof that the applicant has been a resident of this state for that five-year period, the chief administrator may request that the superintendent include information from the federal bureau of investigation in the criminal records check.
(2) Any person required by division (B)(1) of this section to request a criminal records check shall provide to each applicant for whom a criminal records check request is required under that division a copy of the form prescribed pursuant to division (C)(1) of section 109.572 of the Revised Code and a standard impression sheet prescribed pursuant to division (C)(2) of section 109.572 of the Revised Code, obtain the completed form and impression sheet from each applicant, and forward the completed form and impression sheet to the superintendent of the bureau of criminal identification and investigation at the time the chief administrator requests a criminal records check pursuant to division (B)(1) of this section.
(3) An applicant who receives pursuant to division (B)(2) of this section a copy of the form prescribed pursuant to division (C)(1) of section 109.572 of the Revised Code and a copy of an impression sheet prescribed pursuant to division (C)(2) of that section and who is requested to complete the form and provide a set of fingerprint impressions shall complete the form or provide all the information necessary to complete the form and shall provide the impression sheets with the impressions of the applicant’s fingerprints. If an applicant, upon request, fails to provide the information necessary to complete the form or fails to provide fingerprint impressions, the home health agency shall not employ that applicant for any position for which a criminal records check is required by division (B)(1) of this section.
(C)(1) Except as provided in rules adopted by the department of health in accordance with division (F) of this section and subject to division (C)(3) of this section, no home health agency shall employ a person as a person responsible for the care, custody, or control of a child if the person previously has been convicted of or pleaded guilty to any of the following:
(a) A violation of section 2903.01, 2903.02, 2903.03, 2903.04, 2903.11, 2903.12, 2903.13, 2903.16, 2903.21, 2903.34, 2905.01, 2905.02, 2905.05, 2907.02, 2907.03, 2907.04, 2907.05, 2907.06, 2907.07, 2907.08, 2907.09, 2907.21, 2907.22, 2907.23, 2907.25, 2907.31, 2907.32, 2907.321, 2907.322, 2907.323, 2911.01, 2911.02, 2911.11, 2911.12, 2919.12, 2919.22, 2919.24, 2919.25, 2923.12, 2923.13, 2923.161, 2925.02, 2925.03, 2925.04, 2925.05, 2925.06, or 3716.11 of the Revised Code, a violation of section 2905.04 of the Revised Code as it existed prior to July 1, 1996, a violation of section 2919.23 of the Revised Code that would have been a violation of section 2905.04 of the Revised Code as it existed prior to July 1, 1996, had the violation been committed prior to that date, a violation of section 2925.11 of the Revised Code that is not a minor drug possession offense, or felonious sexual penetration in violation of former section 2907.12 of the Revised Code;
(b) A violation of an existing or former law of this state, any other state, or the United States that is substantially equivalent to any of the offenses listed in division (C)(1)(a) of this section.
(2) Except as provided in rules adopted by the department of health in accordance with division (F) of this section and subject to division (C)(3) of this section, no home health agency shall employ a person in a position that involves providing direct care to an older adult if the person previously has been convicted of or pleaded guilty to any of the following:
(b) A violation of an existing or former law of this state, any other state, or the United States that is substantially equivalent to any of the offenses listed in division (C)(2)(a) of this section.
(3)(a) A home health agency may employ conditionally an applicant for whom a criminal records check request is required under division (B) of this section as a person responsible for the care, custody, or control of a child until the criminal records check regarding the applicant required by this section is completed and the agency receives the results of the criminal records check. If the results of the criminal records check indicate that, pursuant to division (C)(1) of this section, the applicant does not qualify for employment, the agency shall release the applicant from employment unless the agency chooses to employ the applicant pursuant to division (F) of this section.
(b)(i) A home health agency may employ conditionally an applicant for whom a criminal records check request is required under division (B) of this section in a position that involves providing direct care to an older adult or in a position that involves both responsibility for the care, custody, and control of a child and the provision of direct care to older adults prior to obtaining the results of a criminal records check regarding the individual, provided that the agency shall request a criminal records check regarding the individual in accordance with division (B)(1) of this section not later than five business days after the individual begins conditional employment. In the circumstances described in division (I)(2) of this section, a home health agency may employ conditionally in a position that involves providing direct care to an older adult an applicant who has been referred to the home health agency by an employment service that supplies full-time, part-time, or temporary staff for positions involving the direct care of older adults and for whom, pursuant to that division, a criminal records check is not required under division (B) of this section. In the circumstances described in division (I)(4) of this section, a home health agency may employ conditionally in a position that involves both responsibility for the care, custody, and control of a child and the provision of direct care to older adults an applicant who has been referred to the home health agency by an employment service that supplies full-time, part-time, or temporary staff for positions involving both responsibility for the care, custody, and control of a child and the provision of direct care to older adults and for whom, pursuant to that division, a criminal records check is not required under division (B) of this section.
(ii) A home health agency that employs an individual conditionally under authority of division (C)(3)(b)(i) of this section shall terminate the individual’s employment if the results of the criminal records check requested under division (B)(1) of this section or described in division (I)(2) or (4) of this section, other than the results of any request for information from the federal bureau of investigation, are not obtained within the period ending thirty days after the date the request is made. Regardless of when the results of the criminal records check are obtained, if the individual was employed conditionally in a position that involves the provision of direct care to older adults and the results indicate that the individual has been convicted of or pleaded guilty to any of the offenses listed or described in division (C)(2) of this section, or if the individual was employed conditionally in a position that involves both responsibility for the care, custody, and control of a child and the provision of direct care to older adults and the results indicate that the individual has been convicted of or pleaded guilty to any of the offenses listed or described in division (C)(1) or (2) of this section, the agency shall terminate the individual’s employment unless the agency chooses to employ the individual pursuant to division (F) of this section. Termination of employment under this division shall be considered just cause for discharge for purposes of division (D)(2) of section 4141.29 of the Revised Code if the individual makes any attempt to deceive the agency about the individual’s criminal record.
(D)(1) Each home health agency shall pay to the bureau of criminal identification and investigation the fee prescribed pursuant to division (C)(3) of section 109.572 of the Revised Code for each criminal records check conducted in accordance with that section upon the request pursuant to division (B)(1) of this section of the chief administrator of the home health agency.
(2) A home health agency may charge an applicant a fee for the costs it incurs in obtaining a criminal records check under this section, unless the medical assistance program established under Chapter 5111. of the Revised Code reimburses the agency for the costs. A fee charged under division (D)(2) of this section shall not exceed the amount of fees the agency pays under division (D)(1) of this section. If a fee is charged under division (D)(2) of this section, the agency shall notify the applicant at the time of the applicant’s initial application for employment of the amount of the fee and that, unless the fee is paid, the agency will not consider the applicant for employment.
(E) The report of any criminal records check conducted by the bureau of criminal identification and investigation in accordance with section 109.572 of the Revised Code and pursuant to a request made under division (B)(1) of this section is not a public record for the purposes of section 149.43 of the Revised Code and shall not be made available to any person other than the following:
(1) The individual who is the subject of the criminal records check or the individual’s representative;
(2) The home health agency requesting the criminal records check or its representative;
(3) The administrator of any other facility, agency, or program that provides direct care to older adults that is owned or operated by the same entity that owns or operates the home health agency;
(4) Any court, hearing officer, or other necessary individual involved in a case dealing with a denial of employment of the applicant or dealing with employment or unemployment benefits of the applicant;
(5) Any person to whom the report is provided pursuant to, and in accordance with, division (I)(1), (2), (3), or (4) of this section.
(F) The department of health shall adopt rules in accordance with Chapter 119. of the Revised Code to implement this section. The rules shall specify circumstances under which the home health agency may employ a person who has been convicted of or pleaded guilty to an offense listed or described in division (C)(1) of this section but who meets standards in regard to rehabilitation set by the department or employ a person who has been convicted of or pleaded guilty to an offense listed or described in division (C)(2) of this section but meets personal character standards set by the department.
(G) Any person required by division (B)(1) of this section to request a criminal records check shall inform each person, at the time of initial application for employment that the person is required to provide a set of fingerprint impressions and that a criminal records check is required to be conducted and satisfactorily completed in accordance with section 109.572 of the Revised Code if the person comes under final consideration for appointment or employment as a precondition to employment for that position.
(H) In a tort or other civil action for damages that is brought as the result of an injury, death, or loss to person or property caused by an individual who a home health agency employs in a position that involves providing direct care to older adults, all of the following shall apply:
(1) If the agency employed the individual in good faith and reasonable reliance on the report of a criminal records check requested under this section, the agency shall not be found negligent solely because of its reliance on the report, even if the information in the report is determined later to have been incomplete or inaccurate;
(2) If the agency employed the individual in good faith on a conditional basis pursuant to division (C)(3)(b) of this section, the agency shall not be found negligent solely because it employed the individual prior to receiving the report of a criminal records check requested under this section;
(3) If the agency in good faith employed the individual according to the personal character standards established in rules adopted under division (F) of this section, the agency shall not be found negligent solely because the individual prior to being employed had been convicted of or pleaded guilty to an offense listed or described in division (C)(1) or (2) of this section.
(I)(1) The chief administrator of a home health agency is not required to request that the superintendent of the bureau of criminal identification and investigation conduct a criminal records check of an applicant for a position that involves the provision of direct care to older adults if the applicant has been referred to the agency by an employment service that supplies full-time, part-time, or temporary staff for positions involving the direct care of older adults and both of the following apply:
(a) The chief administrator receives from the employment service or the applicant a report of the results of a criminal records check regarding the applicant that has been conducted by the superintendent within the one-year period immediately preceding the applicant’s referral;
(b) The report of the criminal records check demonstrates that the person has not been convicted of or pleaded guilty to an offense listed or described in division (C)(2) of this section, or the report demonstrates that the person has been convicted of or pleaded guilty to one or more of those offenses, but the home health agency chooses to employ the individual pursuant to division (F) of this section.
(2) The chief administrator of a home health agency is not required to request that the superintendent of the bureau of criminal identification and investigation conduct a criminal records check of an applicant for a position that involves providing direct care to older adults and may employ the applicant conditionally in a position of that nature as described in this division, if the applicant has been referred to the agency by an employment service that supplies full-time, part-time, or temporary staff for positions involving the direct care of older adults and if the chief administrator receives from the employment service or the applicant a letter from the employment service that is on the letterhead of the employment service, dated, and signed by a supervisor or another designated official of the employment service and that states that the employment service has requested the superintendent to conduct a criminal records check regarding the applicant, that the requested criminal records check will include a determination of whether the applicant has been convicted of or pleaded guilty to any offense listed or described in division (C)(2) of this section, that, as of the date set forth on the letter, the employment service had not received the results of the criminal records check, and that, when the employment service receives the results of the criminal records check, it promptly will send a copy of the results to the home health agency. If a home health agency employs an applicant conditionally in accordance with this division, the employment service, upon its receipt of the results of the criminal records check, promptly shall send a copy of the results to the home health agency, and division (C)(3)(b) of this section applies regarding the conditional employment.
(3) The chief administrator of a home health agency is not required to request that the superintendent of the bureau of criminal identification and investigation conduct a criminal records check of an applicant for a position that involves both responsibility for the care, custody, and control of a child and the provision of direct care to older adults if the applicant has been referred to the agency by an employment service that supplies full-time, part-time, or temporary staff for positions involving both responsibility for the care, custody, and control of a child and the provision of direct care to older adults and both of the following apply:
(a) The chief administrator receives from the employment service or applicant a report of a criminal records check of the type described in division (I)(1)(a) of this section;
(b) The report of the criminal records check demonstrates that the person has not been convicted of or pleaded guilty to an offense listed or described in division (C)(1) or (2) of this section, or the report demonstrates that the person has been convicted of or pleaded guilty to one or more of those offenses, but the home health agency chooses to employ the individual pursuant to division (F) of this section.
(4) The chief administrator of a home health agency is not required to request that the superintendent of the bureau of criminal identification and investigation conduct a criminal records check of an applicant for a position that involves both responsibility for the care, custody, and control of a child and the provision of direct care to older adults and may employ the applicant conditionally in a position of that nature as described in this division, if the applicant has been referred to the agency by an employment service that supplies full-time, part-time, or temporary staff for positions involving both responsibility for the care, custody, and control of a child and the direct care of older adults and if the chief administrator receives from the employment service or the applicant a letter from the employment service that is on the letterhead of the employment service, dated, and signed by a supervisor or another designated official of the employment service and that states that the employment service has requested the superintendent to conduct a criminal records check regarding the applicant, that the requested criminal records check will include a determination of whether the applicant has been convicted of or pleaded guilty to any offense listed or described in division (C)(1) or (2) of this section, that, as of the date set forth on the letter, the employment service had not received the results of the criminal records check, and that, when the employment service receives the results of the criminal records check, it promptly will send a copy of the results to the home health agency. If a home health agency employs an applicant conditionally in accordance with this division, the employment service, upon its receipt of the results of the criminal records check, promptly shall send a copy of the results to the home health agency, and division (C)(3)(b) of this section applies regarding the conditional employment.
(a) A person who is under final consideration for appointment to or employment with a home health agency in a position as a person responsible for the care, custody, or control of a child;
(b) A person who is under final consideration for employment with a home health agency in a full-time, part-time, or temporary position that involves providing direct care to an older adult. With regard to persons providing direct care to older adults, “applicant” does not include a person who provides direct care as a volunteer without receiving or expecting to receive any form of remuneration other than reimbursement for actual expenses.
(2) “Criminal records check” and “older adult” have the same meanings as in section 109.572 of the Revised Code.
(3) “Home health agency” means a person or government entity, other than a nursing home, residential care facility, or hospice care program, that has the primary function of providing any of the following services to a patient at a place of residence used as the patient’s home:
(a) Skilled nursing care;
(b) Physical therapy;
(c) Speech-language pathology;
(d) Occupational therapy;
(e) Medical social services;
(f) Home health aide services.
(4) “Home health aide services” means any of the following services provided by an individual employed with or contracted for by a home health agency:
(a) Hands-on bathing or assistance with a tub bath or shower;
(b) Assistance with dressing, ambulation, and toileting;
(c) Catheter care but not insertion;
(d) Meal preparation and feeding.
(5) “Hospice care program” has the same meaning as in section 3712.01 of the Revised Code.
(6) “Medical social services” means services provided by a social worker under the direction of a patient’s attending physician.
(7) “Minor drug possession offense” has the same meaning as in section 2925.01 of the Revised Code.
(8) “Nursing home,” “residential care facility,” and “skilled nursing care” have the same meanings as in section 3721.01 of the Revised Code.
(9) “Occupational therapy” has the same meaning as in section 4755.04 of the Revised Code.
(10) “Physical therapy” has the same meaning as in section 4755.40 of the Revised Code.
(11) “Social worker” means a person licensed under Chapter 4757. of the Revised Code to practice as a social worker or independent social worker.
(12) “Speech-language pathology” has the same meaning as in section 4753.01 of the Revised Code.
(B)(1) Except as provided in division (I) of this section, the chief administrator of a home health agency shall request the superintendent of the bureau of criminal identification and investigation to conduct a criminal records check with respect to each applicant. If the position may involve both responsibility for the care, custody, or control of a child and provision of direct care to an older adult, the chief administrator shall request that the superintendent conduct a single criminal records check for the applicant. If an applicant for whom a criminal records check request is required under this division does not present proof of having been a resident of this state for the five-year period immediately prior to the date upon which the criminal records check is requested or does not provide evidence that within that five-year period the superintendent has requested information about the applicant from the federal bureau of investigation in a criminal records check, the chief administrator shall request that the superintendent obtain information from the federal bureau of investigation as a part of the criminal records check for the applicant. Even if an applicant for whom a criminal records check request is required under this division presents proof that the applicant has been a resident of this state for that five-year period, the chief administrator may request that the superintendent include information from the federal bureau of investigation in the criminal records check.
(2) Any person required by division (B)(1) of this section to request a criminal records check shall provide to each applicant for whom a criminal records check request is required under that division a copy of the form prescribed pursuant to division (C)(1) of section 109.572 of the Revised Code and a standard impression sheet prescribed pursuant to division (C)(2) of section 109.572 of the Revised Code, obtain the completed form and impression sheet from each applicant, and forward the completed form and impression sheet to the superintendent of the bureau of criminal identification and investigation at the time the chief administrator requests a criminal records check pursuant to division (B)(1) of this section.
(3) An applicant who receives pursuant to division (B)(2) of this section a copy of the form prescribed pursuant to division (C)(1) of section 109.572 of the Revised Code and a copy of an impression sheet prescribed pursuant to division (C)(2) of that section and who is requested to complete the form and provide a set of fingerprint impressions shall complete the form or provide all the information necessary to complete the form and shall provide the impression sheets with the impressions of the applicant’s fingerprints. If an applicant, upon request, fails to provide the information necessary to complete the form or fails to provide fingerprint impressions, the home health agency shall not employ that applicant for any position for which a criminal records check is required by division (B)(1) of this section.
(C)(1) Except as provided in rules adopted by the department of health in accordance with division (F) of this section and subject to division (C)(3) of this section, no home health agency shall employ a person as a person responsible for the care, custody, or control of a child if the person previously has been convicted of or pleaded guilty to any of the following:
(a) A violation of section 2903.01, 2903.02, 2903.03, 2903.04, 2903.11, 2903.12, 2903.13, 2903.16, 2903.21, 2903.34, 2905.01, 2905.02, 2905.05, 2907.02, 2907.03, 2907.04, 2907.05, 2907.06, 2907.07, 2907.08, 2907.09, 2907.21, 2907.22, 2907.23, 2907.25, 2907.31, 2907.32, 2907.321, 2907.322, 2907.323, 2911.01, 2911.02, 2911.11, 2911.12, 2919.12, 2919.22, 2919.24, 2919.25, 2923.12, 2923.13, 2923.161, 2925.02, 2925.03, 2925.04, 2925.05, 2925.06, or 3716.11 of the Revised Code, a violation of section 2905.04 of the Revised Code as it existed prior to July 1, 1996, a violation of section 2919.23 of the Revised Code that would have been a violation of section 2905.04 of the Revised Code as it existed prior to July 1, 1996, had the violation been committed prior to that date, a violation of section 2925.11 of the Revised Code that is not a minor drug possession offense, or felonious sexual penetration in violation of former section 2907.12 of the Revised Code;
(b) A violation of an existing or former law of this state, any other state, or the United States that is substantially equivalent to any of the offenses listed in division (C)(1)(a) of this section.
(2) Except as provided in rules adopted by the department of health in accordance with division (F) of this section and subject to division (C)(3) of this section, no home health agency shall employ a person in a position that involves providing direct care to an older adult if the person previously has been convicted of or pleaded guilty to any of the following:
(b) A violation of an existing or former law of this state, any other state, or the United States that is substantially equivalent to any of the offenses listed in division (C)(2)(a) of this section.
(3)(a) A home health agency may employ conditionally an applicant for whom a criminal records check request is required under division (B) of this section as a person responsible for the care, custody, or control of a child until the criminal records check regarding the applicant required by this section is completed and the agency receives the results of the criminal records check. If the results of the criminal records check indicate that, pursuant to division (C)(1) of this section, the applicant does not qualify for employment, the agency shall release the applicant from employment unless the agency chooses to employ the applicant pursuant to division (F) of this section.
(b)(i) A home health agency may employ conditionally an applicant for whom a criminal records check request is required under division (B) of this section in a position that involves providing direct care to an older adult or in a position that involves both responsibility for the care, custody, and control of a child and the provision of direct care to older adults prior to obtaining the results of a criminal records check regarding the individual, provided that the agency shall request a criminal records check regarding the individual in accordance with division (B)(1) of this section not later than five business days after the individual begins conditional employment. In the circumstances described in division (I)(2) of this section, a home health agency may employ conditionally in a position that involves providing direct care to an older adult an applicant who has been referred to the home health agency by an employment service that supplies full-time, part-time, or temporary staff for positions involving the direct care of older adults and for whom, pursuant to that division, a criminal records check is not required under division (B) of this section. In the circumstances described in division (I)(4) of this section, a home health agency may employ conditionally in a position that involves both responsibility for the care, custody, and control of a child and the provision of direct care to older adults an applicant who has been referred to the home health agency by an employment service that supplies full-time, part-time, or temporary staff for positions involving both responsibility for the care, custody, and control of a child and the provision of direct care to older adults and for whom, pursuant to that division, a criminal records check is not required under division (B) of this section.
(ii) A home health agency that employs an individual conditionally under authority of division (C)(3)(b)(i) of this section shall terminate the individual’s employment if the results of the criminal records check requested under division (B)(1) of this section or described in division (I)(2) or (4) of this section, other than the results of any request for information from the federal bureau of investigation, are not obtained within the period ending thirty days after the date the request is made. Regardless of when the results of the criminal records check are obtained, if the individual was employed conditionally in a position that involves the provision of direct care to older adults and the results indicate that the individual has been convicted of or pleaded guilty to any of the offenses listed or described in division (C)(2) of this section, or if the individual was employed conditionally in a position that involves both responsibility for the care, custody, and control of a child and the provision of direct care to older adults and the results indicate that the individual has been convicted of or pleaded guilty to any of the offenses listed or described in division (C)(1) or (2) of this section, the agency shall terminate the individual’s employment unless the agency chooses to employ the individual pursuant to division (F) of this section. Termination of employment under this division shall be considered just cause for discharge for purposes of division (D)(2) of section 4141.29 of the Revised Code if the individual makes any attempt to deceive the agency about the individual’s criminal record.
(D)(1) Each home health agency shall pay to the bureau of criminal identification and investigation the fee prescribed pursuant to division (C)(3) of section 109.572 of the Revised Code for each criminal records check conducted in accordance with that section upon the request pursuant to division (B)(1) of this section of the chief administrator of the home health agency.
(2) A home health agency may charge an applicant a fee for the costs it incurs in obtaining a criminal records check under this section, unless the medical assistance program established under Chapter 5111. of the Revised Code reimburses the agency for the costs. A fee charged under division (D)(2) of this section shall not exceed the amount of fees the agency pays under division (D)(1) of this section. If a fee is charged under division (D)(2) of this section, the agency shall notify the applicant at the time of the applicant’s initial application for employment of the amount of the fee and that, unless the fee is paid, the agency will not consider the applicant for employment.
(E) The report of any criminal records check conducted by the bureau of criminal identification and investigation in accordance with section 109.572 of the Revised Code and pursuant to a request made under division (B)(1) of this section is not a public record for the purposes of section 149.43 of the Revised Code and shall not be made available to any person other than the following:
(1) The individual who is the subject of the criminal records check or the individual’s representative;
(2) The home health agency requesting the criminal records check or its representative;
(3) The administrator of any other facility, agency, or program that provides direct care to older adults that is owned or operated by the same entity that owns or operates the home health agency;
(4) Any court, hearing officer, or other necessary individual involved in a case dealing with a denial of employment of the applicant or dealing with employment or unemployment benefits of the applicant;
(5) Any person to whom the report is provided pursuant to, and in accordance with, division (I)(1), (2), (3), or (4) of this section.
(F) The department of health shall adopt rules in accordance with Chapter 119. of the Revised Code to implement this section. The rules shall specify circumstances under which the home health agency may employ a person who has been convicted of or pleaded guilty to an offense listed or described in division (C)(1) of this section but who meets standards in regard to rehabilitation set by the department or employ a person who has been convicted of or pleaded guilty to an offense listed or described in division (C)(2) of this section but meets personal character standards set by the department.
(G) Any person required by division (B)(1) of this section to request a criminal records check shall inform each person, at the time of initial application for employment that the person is required to provide a set of fingerprint impressions and that a criminal records check is required to be conducted and satisfactorily completed in accordance with section 109.572 of the Revised Code if the person comes under final consideration for appointment or employment as a precondition to employment for that position.
(H) In a tort or other civil action for damages that is brought as the result of an injury, death, or loss to person or property caused by an individual who a home health agency employs in a position that involves providing direct care to older adults, all of the following shall apply:
(1) If the agency employed the individual in good faith and reasonable reliance on the report of a criminal records check requested under this section, the agency shall not be found negligent solely because of its reliance on the report, even if the information in the report is determined later to have been incomplete or inaccurate;
(2) If the agency employed the individual in good faith on a conditional basis pursuant to division (C)(3)(b) of this section, the agency shall not be found negligent solely because it employed the individual prior to receiving the report of a criminal records check requested under this section;
(3) If the agency in good faith employed the individual according to the personal character standards established in rules adopted under division (F) of this section, the agency shall not be found negligent solely because the individual prior to being employed had been convicted of or pleaded guilty to an offense listed or described in division (C)(1) or (2) of this section.
(I)(1) The chief administrator of a home health agency is not required to request that the superintendent of the bureau of criminal identification and investigation conduct a criminal records check of an applicant for a position that involves the provision of direct care to older adults if the applicant has been referred to the agency by an employment service that supplies full-time, part-time, or temporary staff for positions involving the direct care of older adults and both of the following apply:
(a) The chief administrator receives from the employment service or the applicant a report of the results of a criminal records check regarding the applicant that has been conducted by the superintendent within the one-year period immediately preceding the applicant’s referral;
(b) The report of the criminal records check demonstrates that the person has not been convicted of or pleaded guilty to an offense listed or described in division (C)(2) of this section, or the report demonstrates that the person has been convicted of or pleaded guilty to one or more of those offenses, but the home health agency chooses to employ the individual pursuant to division (F) of this section.
(2) The chief administrator of a home health agency is not required to request that the superintendent of the bureau of criminal identification and investigation conduct a criminal records check of an applicant for a position that involves providing direct care to older adults and may employ the applicant conditionally in a position of that nature as described in this division, if the applicant has been referred to the agency by an employment service that supplies full-time, part-time, or temporary staff for positions involving the direct care of older adults and if the chief administrator receives from the employment service or the applicant a letter from the employment service that is on the letterhead of the employment service, dated, and signed by a supervisor or another designated official of the employment service and that states that the employment service has requested the superintendent to conduct a criminal records check regarding the applicant, that the requested criminal records check will include a determination of whether the applicant has been convicted of or pleaded guilty to any offense listed or described in division (C)(2) of this section, that, as of the date set forth on the letter, the employment service had not received the results of the criminal records check, and that, when the employment service receives the results of the criminal records check, it promptly will send a copy of the results to the home health agency. If a home health agency employs an applicant conditionally in accordance with this division, the employment service, upon its receipt of the results of the criminal records check, promptly shall send a copy of the results to the home health agency, and division (C)(3)(b) of this section applies regarding the conditional employment.
(3) The chief administrator of a home health agency is not required to request that the superintendent of the bureau of criminal identification and investigation conduct a criminal records check of an applicant for a position that involves both responsibility for the care, custody, and control of a child and the provision of direct care to older adults if the applicant has been referred to the agency by an employment service that supplies full-time, part-time, or temporary staff for positions involving both responsibility for the care, custody, and control of a child and the provision of direct care to older adults and both of the following apply:
(a) The chief administrator receives from the employment service or applicant a report of a criminal records check of the type described in division (I)(1)(a) of this section;
(b) The report of the criminal records check demonstrates that the person has not been convicted of or pleaded guilty to an offense listed or described in division (C)(1) or (2) of this section, or the report demonstrates that the person has been convicted of or pleaded guilty to one or more of those offenses, but the home health agency chooses to employ the individual pursuant to division (F) of this section.
(4) The chief administrator of a home health agency is not required to request that the superintendent of the bureau of criminal identification and investigation conduct a criminal records check of an applicant for a position that involves both responsibility for the care, custody, and control of a child and the provision of direct care to older adults and may employ the applicant conditionally in a position of that nature as described in this division, if the applicant has been referred to the agency by an employment service that supplies full-time, part-time, or temporary staff for positions involving both responsibility for the care, custody, and control of a child and the direct care of older adults and if the chief administrator receives from the employment service or the applicant a letter from the employment service that is on the letterhead of the employment service, dated, and signed by a supervisor or another designated official of the employment service and that states that the employment service has requested the superintendent to conduct a criminal records check regarding the applicant, that the requested criminal records check will include a determination of whether the applicant has been convicted of or pleaded guilty to any offense listed or described in division (C)(1) or (2) of this section, that, as of the date set forth on the letter, the employment service had not received the results of the criminal records check, and that, when the employment service receives the results of the criminal records check, it promptly will send a copy of the results to the home health agency. If a home health agency employs an applicant conditionally in accordance with this division, the employment service, upon its receipt of the results of the criminal records check, promptly shall send a copy of the results to the home health agency, and division (C)(3)(b) of this section applies regarding the conditional employment.
