Accessibility Public Records News Calendar Human Resources

Health Care Facility CEMP Planning

Preparing for an Emergency

Patients and residents rely on their health facility to provide a high level of care, even during an emergency. A Comprehensive Emergency Management Plan (CEMP) helps health care facilities face all kinds of threats and keep their clients safe.

State law requires health care facilities to submit their CEMP to Pinellas County Emergency Management for annual review to meet the requirements of the state Agency for Health Care Administration (AHCA) and Pinellas County.

Get Your Plan Approved

Pinellas County Emergency Management accepts plans up to 60 business days in advance of the CEMP year that will be listed on the approval certificate. It usually takes 60 days to review the plan.

Submitting Your Plan

You cannot submit or pick up your CEMP in person. Only electronic submissions are accepted.

  • To submit your CEMP, email it to emahc@pinellas.gov We will send you a confirmation email to let you know that your plan has been accepted for review. The Pinellas County email system limits file attachments to less than 30 MB.

Review, Approval and Payment

After the review period, Pinellas County Emergency Management will email you to let you know whether your plan has been approved. That message will include the cost of the review. Pinellas County will mail your facility an Approval Certificate after payment is received. For a non-approved CEMP, you may submit a corrected CEMP after you have paid for the initial review. Only one resubmission is permitted in a plan year.

To pay the review fee, mail a facility check, cashier’s check or money order made out to the Pinellas County Board of County Commissioners to:

Pinellas County Emergency Management
10750 Ulmerton Road
Building 1, Suite 267
Largo, FL 33778

Facilities Reviewed and Submission Requirements

Pinellas County has different criteria for CEMPs depending on the type of facility. The required documents must accompany the submission for the CEMP to be accepted for review. The State’s CEMP forms can be found on the AHCA website, which is listed below.

Find your facility type below and include all the listed forms/documents.

A senior in a wheelchair being assisted by a young woman.

Adult Day Care Centers

Assisted Living Facilities

Assisted Living Facilities (ALFs) with a successful full CEMP review may be permitted to submit an abbreviated CEMP ALF Form on alternate years.

Ambulatory Surgical Centers

Intermediate Care Facilities for the Developmentally Disabled

Hospitals

Nursing Homes

Residential Treatment Facilities

Pinellas County does not review CEMPs for the following health care providers:

  • Home Health Agencies
  • Home Medical Equipment Providers
  • Nurse Registries
  • Hospice Agencies

The Florida Department of Health is responsible for annually reviewing and approving Comprehensive Emergency Management Plans for these agencies.

Additional Information

  • The Healthcare Facility Disaster Plan Guidance document lists every AHCA criteria that you may have a question on, how to respond, and every Pinellas County criteria. The document states the response information required for each criterion.
  • The Emergency Power Plan (EPP) Guidance document lists every piece of information to be included in an EPP response.
  • The Healthcare Sheltering Considerations provides planning considerations when sheltering in an alternative location.
  • For more information, contact Pinellas County Emergency Management at (727) 464-3800.