(1) A nursing home licensed under this chapter may employ physicians for the provision of professional services to its residents under the following conditions:

(a) The nursing home may not in any manner, directly or indirectly, supplant, diminish, or regulate any employed physician's judgment concerning the practice of medicine or the diagnosis and treatment of any patient; and

(b) The employed physicians may provide professional services only to residents of the nursing home or a related living facility.

(2) The employment of physicians as authorized by this section may be through the following entities:

(a) The entity licensed to operate the nursing home; or

(b) A separate entity authorized to conduct business in the state of Washington that has common or overlapping ownership as an affiliate or subsidiary of the licensee, as long as the licensee complies with subsection (3) of this section.

(3) Nothing in this section relieves the licensee of its ultimate responsibility for the daily operations of the nursing home.

(4) Nothing in this section may be construed to interfere with the federal resident rights requirements found in 42 C.F.R. 483.10, or successor rules, or found in this chapter, chapter 74.42 RCW, or the rules adopted by the department addressing resident's rights under this chapter or chapter 74.42 RCW.

(5) As used in this section, "related living facility" means (a) a separate nursing home that is owned, controlled, or managed by the same or an affiliated or subsidiary entity; or (b) a facility that (i) provides independent living services or *boarding home services under chapter 18.20 RCW, in a single contiguous campus as the nursing home, and (ii) is owned, controlled, or managed by the same or related entity as the nursing home. For purposes of this subsection "contiguous" means land adjoining or touching property on which the nursing home is located, including land divided by a public road.

*Reviser's note: The term "boarding home" was changed to "assisted living facility" by 2012 c 10.