Nevada Revised Statutes Section 449.179 - Public Health and Safety

Initial and periodic investigations of criminal history of employee or independent contractor of certain agency or facility.

1. Except as otherwise provided in subsection 2, within 10 days after hiring an employee or entering into a contract with an independent contractor, the administrator of, or the person licensed to operate, an agency to provide nursing in the home, a facility for intermediate care, a facility for skilled nursing or a residential facility for groups shall:

(a) Obtain a written statement from the employee or independent contractor stating whether he has been convicted of any crime listed in NRS 449.188;

(b) Obtain an oral and written confirmation of the information contained in the written statement obtained pursuant to paragraph (a);

(c) Obtain from the employee or independent contractor two sets of fingerprints and a written authorization to forward the fingerprints to the Central Repository for Nevada Records of Criminal History for submission to the Federal Bureau of Investigation for its report; and

(d) Submit to the Central Repository for Nevada Records of Criminal History the fingerprints obtained pursuant to paragraph (c).

2. The administrator of, or the person licensed to operate, an agency to provide nursing in the home, a facility for intermediate care, a facility for skilled nursing or a residential facility for groups is not required to obtain the information described in subsection 1 from an employee or independent contractor who provides proof that an investigation of his criminal history has been conducted by the Central Repository for Nevada Records of Criminal History within the immediately preceding 6 months and the investigation did not indicate that the employee or independent contractor had been convicted of any crime set forth in NRS 449.188.

3. The administrator of, or the person licensed to operate, an agency to provide nursing in the home, a facility for intermediate care, a facility for skilled nursing or a residential facility for groups shall ensure that the criminal history of each employee or independent contractor who works at the agency or facility is investigated at least once every 5 years. The administrator or person shall:

(a) If the agency or facility does not have the fingerprints of the employee or independent contractor on file, obtain two sets of fingerprints from the employee or independent contractor;

(b) Obtain written authorization from the employee or independent contractor to forward the fingerprints on file or obtained pursuant to paragraph (a) to the Central Repository for Nevada Records of Criminal History for submission to the Federal Bureau of Investigation for its report; and

(c) Submit the fingerprints to the Central Repository for Nevada Records of Criminal History.

4. Upon receiving fingerprints submitted pursuant to this section, the Central Repository for Nevada Records of Criminal History shall determine whether the employee or independent contractor has been convicted of a crime listed in NRS 449.188 and immediately inform the Health Division and the administrator of, or the person licensed to operate, the agency or facility at which the person works whether the employee or independent contractor has been convicted of such a crime.

5. The Central Repository for Nevada Records of Criminal History may impose a fee upon an agency or a facility that submits fingerprints pursuant to this section for the reasonable cost of the investigation. The agency or facility may recover from the employee or independent contractor not more than one-half of the fee imposed by the Central Repository. If the agency or facility requires the employee or independent contractor to pay for any part of the fee imposed by the Central Repository, it shall allow the employee or independent contractor to pay the amount through periodic payments.

Last modified: February 26, 2006