Section 135C.24. Personal property or affairs of patients or residents.

  The admission of a resident to a health care facility and the resident’s presence therein shall not in and of itself confer on such facility, its owner, administrator, employees, or representatives any authority to manage, use, or dispose of any property of the resident, nor any authority or responsibility for the personal affairs of the resident, except as may be necessary for the safety and orderly management of the facility and as required by this section.

  1.  No health care facility, and no owner, administrator, employee or representative thereof shall act as guardian, trustee or conservator for any resident of such facility, or any of such resident’s property, unless such resident is related to the person acting as guardian within the third degree of consanguinity.

  2.  A health care facility shall provide for the safekeeping of personal effects, funds and other property of its residents, provided that whenever necessary for the protection of valuables or in order to avoid unreasonable responsibility therefor, the facility may require that they be excluded or removed from the premises of the facility and kept at some place not subject to the control of the facility.

  3.  A health care facility shall keep complete and accurate records of all funds and other effects and property of its residents received by it for safekeeping.

  4.  Any funds or other property belonging to or due a resident, or expendable for the resident’s account, which are received by a health care facility shall be trust funds, shall be kept separate from the funds and property of the facility and of its other residents, or specifically credited to such resident, and shall be used or otherwise expended only for the account of the resident. Upon request the facility shall furnish the resident, the guardian, trustee or conservator, if any, for any resident, or any governmental unit or private charitable agency contributing funds or other property on account of any resident, a complete and certified statement of all funds or other property to which this subsection applies detailing the amounts and items received, together with their sources and disposition.

  5.  The provisions of this section notwithstanding, upon the verified petition of the county board of supervisors the district court may appoint the administrator of a county care facility as conservator or guardian, or both, of a resident of such county care facility, in accordance with the provisions of chapter 633. Such administrator shall serve as conservator or guardian, or both, without fee. The county attorney shall serve as attorney for the administrator in such conservatorship or guardianship, or both, without fee. The administrator may establish either separate or common bank accounts for cash funds of such resident wards.

[C71, 73, 75, 77, 79, 81, §135C.24]