Tennessee Code Title 33. Mental Health and Substance Abuse and Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities § 33-2-404

(a) Each department shall adopt rules for licensure of services and facilities regarding adequacy of services, qualification of professional staff, and facility conditions. A department shall require for licensure satisfaction of basic quality standards set under part 3 of this chapter, as applicable, and may require higher standards. The rules shall include consideration of the adequacy of environment, life safety, treatment or habilitation services, education and training requirements of the staff, and other considerations that a department deems necessary to determine the adequacy of the provision of mental health, alcohol and drug abuse prevention and/or treatment, and intellectual and developmental disabilities services. Each department may adopt rules for the administration of the licensure program.

(b) Notwithstanding any law to the contrary, each department shall have the authority to amend its rules for licensure as needed to be consistent with the federal home-based and community-based settings final rule, published in the Federal Register at 79 FR 2947 (January 16, 2014), including the authority to differentiate licensure requirements for any entity contracted to provide medicaid-reimbursed home- and community-based services in order to allow the facility or entity to comply with the federal rule and continue to receive medicaid reimbursement for home- and community-based services. Rules adopted by the department under this subsection (b) shall be developed with input from stakeholders and promulgated in accordance with the Uniform Administrative Procedures Act, compiled in title 4, chapter 5; provided, however, that the department shall not promulgate emergency rules under this subsection (b) as defined in § 4-5-208. Licensure survey and enforcement shall be conducted in a manner consistent with any rule issued under this subsection (b).