Ill STAT. 372 PUBLIC LAW 105-33—AUG. 5, 1997 "(II) systems for electronic sharing of patient data. "(iii) The provision of emergency and non-emergency transportation among the facility and the hospital. "(C) CREDENTIALING AND QUALITY ASSURANCE.— Each critical access hospital that is a member of a rural health network shall have an agreement with respect to credentialing and quality assurance with at least— "(i) 1 hospital that is a member of the network; "(ii) 1 peer review organization or equivalent entity; or "(iii) 1 other appropriate and qualified entity identified in the State rural health care plan. "(e) CERTIFICATION BY THE SECRETARY.—The Secretary shall certify a facility as a critical access hospital if the facility— "(1) is located in a State that has established a medicare rural hospital flexibility program in accordance with subsection (c); "(2) is designated as a critical access hospital by the State in which it is located; and "(3) meets such other criteria as the Secretary may require. " (f) PERMITTING MAINTENANCE OF SWING BEDS. —Nothing in this section shall be construed to prohibit a State from designating or the Secretary from certifying a facility as a critical access hospital solely because, at the time the facility applies to the State for designation as a critical access hospital, there is in effect an agreement between the facility and the Secretary under section 1883 under which the facility's inpatient hospital facilities are used for the provision of extended care services, so long as the total number of beds that may be used at any time for the furnishing of either such services or acute care inpatient services does not exceed 25 beds and the number of beds used at any time for acute care inpatient services does not exceed 15 beds. For purposes of the previous sentence, any bed of a unit of the facility that is licensed as a distinct-part skilled nursing facility at the time the facility applies to the State for designation as a critical access hospital shall not be counted. " (g) GRANTS.— "(1) MEDICARE RURAL HOSPITAL FLEXIBILITY PROGRAM. — The Secretary may award grants to States that have submitted applications in accordance with subsection (b) for— "(A) engaging in activities relating to planning and implementing a rural health care plan; "(B) engaging in activities relating to planning and implementing rural health networks; and "(C) designating facilities as critical access hospitals. " (2) RURAL EMERGENCY MEDICAL SERVICES. — "(A) IN GENERAL.— The Secretary may award grants to States that have submitted applications in accordance with subparagraph (B) for the establishment or expansion of a program for the provision of rural emergency medical services. "(B) APPLICATION. —An application is in accordance with this subparagraph if the State submits to the Secretary at such time and in such form as the Secretary may require an application containing the assurances
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