HCAI outlines integrated plan-review process, fees and roles in hourlong webinar

Presenters from the Department of Health Care Access and Information (HCAI) and a hospital owner explained the agency's integrated plan‑review process during a PIN 15 webinar that walked design teams through eligibility, schedule expectations and online tools.

Diana Navarro, supervisor of health facilities review at HCAI, said integrated review is “an optional plan review process that allows owners and design professionals to engage early on during the conceptualization phase of design, thereby eliminating the waste associated with developing a noncompliant design through to later design phases.” Navarro and Gary Downer, executive director of design and construction at Cedars‑Sinai Health System, spoke about when projects qualify, how increments and phase segments are defined, and how design teams should use HCAI’s e‑plan and reporting tools.

Navarro said the integrated review fee is higher than a standard incremental review: “The fee for integrated review and approval is 1.95% of the estimated construction costs as opposed to the 1.64% fee for incremental reviews.” She said integrated review typically applies to projects with estimated construction costs greater than $50,000,000 and that projects over $100,000,000 generally require building information modeling (BIM)…