2957 - Designation of primary care hospitals.

§ 2957.  Designation of primary care hospitals. 1.  A general hospital  established pursuant to article twenty-eight of this chapter may request  the  commissioner to exempt such hospital from particular services or to  authorize such hospital to offer  additional  special  services.    Such  hospital   shall   be  designated  a  primary  care  hospital  upon  the  commissioner's approval of such request; provided, however, that nothing  herein contained shall be  construed  to  restrict  such  hospital  from  offering  primary, specialty or acute inpatient services for which it is  able to provide appropriate technical and human resources, to respond to  community need, or to assure quality in the delivery of services.    2. The commissioner shall establish guidelines for the designation  of  a general hospital as a primary care hospital pursuant to the provisions  of  this  section.    In  establishing such guidelines, the commissioner  shall solicit input from hospitals and physicians.