37.106.2510    RETIREMENT HOMES: PHYSICAL REQUIREMENTS

(1) A retirement home must comply with the local and state building code and fire code.

(2) A retirement home must comply with the following physical requirements:

(a) There must be adequate and convenient janitorial facilities including a sink and storage area for equipment and chemicals.

(b) Floors and walls in toilet and bathing rooms, laundries, janitorial closets, and other rooms subject to large amounts of moisture, must be smooth and non-absorbent.

(c) The floor mounted and wall mounted furnishings must be easily moveable to allow for cleaning or mounted in such a manner as to allow for cleaning around and under such furnishings.

(d) Bathing facilities must be equipped with:

(i) anti-slip surfaces; and

(ii) handicapped grab bars, capable of supporting a concentrated load of 250 pounds.

(3) Each bedroom in a retirement home must include:

(a) floor to ceiling walls;

(b) one door which can be closed to allow privacy for residents;

(c) at least one operable window; and

(d) access to a toilet room without entering through another resident's room.

(4) If a retirement home elects to provide furnishings as part of its services, the retirement home must provide in each bedroom an adequate closet or wardrobe, bureau or dresser or its equivalent, and at least one arm chair, for every two residents.

(5) Traffic to and from any room shall not be through a resident's bedroom.

(6) No occupied room shall have as its means of access a trap door, ladder, or folding stairs.

(7) No required path of travel to the outside shall be through rooms that are subject to locking or otherwise controlled by a person other than the person seeking to escape.

(8) No more than four residents may reside in a single bedroom.

(9) Exclusive of toilet rooms, closets, lockers, wardrobes, alcoves, or vestibules, each single bedroom must contain at least 100 square feet, and each multi-bedroom must contain at least 80 square feet per bed.

(10) With respect to any conditions in existence prior to July 4, 1996, any requirement of ARM 37.106.2510 may be waived at the discretion of the department if:

(a) physical limitations of the retirement home would require disproportionate expense or effort to comply with a requirement, with little or no increase in the level of safety to the residents and staff; or

(b) compliance with a requirement would involve unreasonable hardship or unnecessary inconvenience, with little or no increase in the level of safety to the residents and staff.

(11) With respect to any conditions in existence prior to July 4, 1996, the specific requirements of ARM 37.106.2510 may be modified by the department to allow alternative arrangements that will provide the same level of safety to the residents and staff, but in no case shall the modification afford less safety than that which, in the discretion of the department, would be provided by compliance with the corresponding requirement in ARM 37.106.2510.

History: Sec. 50-5-103, MCA; IMP, Sec. 50-5-103 and 50-5-214, MCA; NEW, 1996 MAR p. 1867, Eff. 7/4/96; TRANS, from DHES, 2002 MAR p. 185.