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Official Website

of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania

    The .gov means its official.

    Local, state, and federal government websites often end in .gov. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania government websites and email systems use "pennsylvania.gov" or "pa.gov" at the end of the address. Before sharing sensitive or personal information, make sure you're on an official state website. 

    The Department of Health is responsible for the licensing and oversight of Pennsylvania’s hospitals. ​The department conducts the Medicare and licensure surveys, as well as complaint and incident investigations for these facilities.

    For questions about how to become a licensed facility, please contact:
    Division of Acute and Ambulatory Care
    Room 532, Health & Welfare Building
    Harrisburg, PA 17120
    RA-DAAC@pa.gov
     
    For information on how to use deemed accreditation in lieu of licensure, please complete the following form and return to the Division of Acute and Ambulatory Care.

    To add new or replace old equipment or to add a new service, please complete the following form(s) and return to the Division of Acute and Ambulatory Care.

    Act 43 of 2023

    Background

    Act 43 of 2023 requires fentanyl and xylazine testing when a urine drug screening is conducted in an emergency department within an acute care hospital for the purposes of diagnosing a patient's condition. Xylazine testing is only required if testing is available as part of the urine drug screening panel. If the urine drug screening performed under Act 43 detects fentanyl or xylazine, the de-identified results shall be reported to the Department of Health (Department). Emergency departments are expected to begin collecting data starting on May 1, 2024, with the first report due to the Department on June 1, 2024. See 54 Pa.B. 1268.

    Reporting

    Please submit monthly aggregate data reports to the Department using the online form.

    Informational Materials

    Act 43 of 2023 requires informational materials on the dangers of human use of xylazine be provided to Commonwealth residents when fentanyl or xylazine is detected. ​

    Frequently Asked Questions

    ​The reporting period will begin the first day of each calendar month and end the last day of that calendar month. If an emergency department has zero positive results, they are still required to complete the form indicating there are no positive results for the reporting period.​

    ​The hospital's emergency department is responsible for ensuring monthly reports are submitted to the Department. As outlined in the Department's Notice published in the PA bulletin on March 9, 2024, the emergency department conducting the urine drug screening may designate a reporter to the Department consistent with the hospital's policies and procedures.​

    ​No, a positive test result for fentanyl due to a legally prescribed course of treatment, as determined by the patient's health care practitioner, should not be reported.​

    ​Emergency departments should use minimal threshold values as appropriately outlined by manufacturer's instructions on the test. Laboratories should follow manufacturer's instructions for waived tests. Laboratories should follow federal regulations for nonwaived tests.​

    ​Urine drug screenings conducted at commercial laboratories are not required to be reported.  The law applies to emergency departments located within acute care hospitals. If the urine drug screening is conducted in an emergency department, but it is tested at another location outside of the hospital, the emergency department is still required to report the results.​