BILL ANALYSIS S.B. 436 By: Montford (Rangel) 02-28-95 Committee Report (Unamended) BACKGROUND The Texas Council on Alzheimer's Disease and Related Disorders is created in Chapter 101 of the Health and Safety Code. It is a state government advisory panel authorized to generate recommendations and advice on issues related to the care and well-being of victims of Alzheimer's disease. In 1993, the council's chairman appointed a task force to evaluate the current process for certifying special-care units for Alzheimer's patients. Following a yearlong study, the task force adopted several recommendations to improve state government oversight of special-care units and to mandate the flow of basic information from nursing homes with special-care units to Alzheimer's patients and their families. Subsequently, the Council voted to endorse legislation to implement the requirement that facilities must disclose information about their services. PURPOSE This bill encompasses the legislative recommendations of the Texas Council on Alzheimer's Disease and Related Disorders. Specifically, the legislation is intended to increase the disclosure of basic information about a licensed facility's Alzheimer's care unit to family members of Alzheimer's victims. RULEMAKING AUTHORITY It is the committee's opinion that additional rulemaking authority is expressly granted to the Board of Human Services in Section 1 of this bill (Sec. 242.204), requiring the Board to adopt rules governing the content of disclosure statements mandated by this bill and establishing an administrative penalty. SECTION BY SECTION ANALYSIS SECTION 1. Chapter 242, Health and Safety Code, is amended by adding Subchapter H, "CARE FOR RESIDENTS WITH ALZHEIMER'S DISEASE AND RELATED DISORDERS," as follows: Sec. 242.201 defines the scope of the subchapter as including an institution that advertises, markets, or otherwise promotes Alzheimer's services. Sec. 242.202 requires an institution to provide to consumers and other interested parties a disclosure statement describing its Alzheimer's services, display the statement along with the facility license, file the statement as part of the license renewal process, and update the statement to reflect changes in facility operations. Subsection (d) outlines the categories of information the statement must contain, and (e) requires institutions to update the statement to reflect changes in operations. Sec. 242.203 makes a violation of this subchapter subject to an administrative penalty under Subchapter C, Chapter 242, Health and Safety Code, and prohibits the revocation or suspension of an operating license for violation of Subchapter H. Sec. 242.204 requires the Board of Human Services to adopt rules governing the content of the disclosure statement, consistent with the information categories required by Section 242.202(d), and establishing the amount of an administrative penalty for violation of this subchapter. SECTION 2. Creates a task force to recommend the type and nature of information that should be included in the disclosure statement and lays out deadlines for carrying out the task force's work. The task force is to be appointed by the chairman of the Texas Council on Alzheimer's Disease and Related Disorders. SECTION 3. Emergency clause. SUMMARY OF COMMITTEE ACTION S.B. 436 was considered in public hearing on February 28, 1995. Testifying for the bill were Loretto Bonner, representing herself; Andrea R. Ford, representing Texas Health Care Association and Living Centers of America; Roy Ray, representing American Association of Retired Persons, Texas Senior Advocacy Coalition, and himself; and Charles Candler, representing Alzheimer's Association Coalition of Texas. No one testified against the bill. A motion to report S.B. 436 to the full House without amendment and with the recommendation that it do pass carried with a vote of 7 Ayes, 0 Nays, 0 PNV, and 2 Absent.