A General Assembly Committee approved new regulations making it easier to build and operate hospice residences in underserved areas of the state. Brookfield state Representative David Scribner says this paves the way for Regional Hospice and Home Care of Western Connecticut to build a 12-bed facility at the former Union Carbide property in Danbury.
Each of the suites will mirror a home-like environment for the benefit of the patient and their family with a living area and a private bathroom.
Connecticut's hospice regulations had not been updated in more than 30 years.
Scribner says right now, families from this area have to travel to Branford to one of two facilities in the state that provide this kind of care. But he notes that that hospice facility has admitted that they often have a waiting list and can't meet demand.
He says the new regulations set reasonable standards for creating smaller hospice facilities in more communities, including revised staff-to-patient ratios and the elimination of the 24-hour in-house pharmacy requirement.
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