1-1 AN ACT
1-2 relating to the management of persons with communicable diseases.
1-3 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
1-4 SECTION 1. Sections 81.151(a) and (d), Health and Safety
1-5 Code, are amended to read as follows:
1-6 (a) At the request of the health authority [or the
1-7 department], a municipal, county, or district attorney shall [may]
1-8 file a sworn written application for a court order for the
1-9 management of a person with a communicable disease. At the request
1-10 of the department, the attorney general shall file a sworn written
1-11 application for a court order for the management of a person with a
1-12 communicable disease.
1-13 (d) A copy of written orders made under Section 81.083 and a
1-14 medical evaluation must be filed with the application, except that
1-15 a copy of the written orders need not be filed with an application
1-16 for outpatient treatment.
1-17 SECTION 2. Section 81.152(c), Health and Safety Code, is
1-18 amended to read as follows:
1-19 (c) Any application must contain the following information
1-20 according to the applicant's information and belief:
1-21 (1) the person's name and address;
1-22 (2) the person's county of residence in this state;
1-23 (3) a statement that the person is infected with or is
1-24 reasonably suspected of being infected with a communicable disease
2-1 that presents a threat to public health and that the person meets
2-2 the criteria of this chapter for court orders for the management of
2-3 a person with a communicable disease; and
2-4 (4) a statement, to be included only in an application
2-5 for inpatient treatment, that the person fails or refuses to comply
2-6 with written orders of the department or health authority under
2-7 Section 81.083.
2-8 SECTION 3. Sections 81.154(a) and (c), Health and Safety
2-9 Code, are amended to read as follows:
2-10 (a) The judge or a magistrate designated under this chapter
2-11 shall set a date for a hearing to be held within 14 days after the
2-12 date on which the application is served on the person [filed].
2-13 (c) The court may grant one or more continuances of the
2-14 hearing on the motion by a party and for good cause shown or on
2-15 agreement of the parties. However, the hearing shall be held not
2-16 later than the 30th day after the date on which the original
2-17 application is served on the person [filed].
2-18 SECTION 4. Sections 81.156(a) and (b), Health and Safety
2-19 Code, are amended to read as follows:
2-20 (a) The person's attorney may request information from the
2-21 attorney general or the municipal, county, or district attorney, as
2-22 appropriate, in accordance with this section if the attorney cannot
2-23 otherwise obtain the information. The attorney must request the
2-24 information at least 48 hours before the time set for the hearing.
2-25 (b) If the person's attorney requests the information in
2-26 accordance with Subsection (a), the attorney general or the
2-27 municipal, county, or district attorney shall, within a reasonable
3-1 time before the hearing, provide the attorney with a statement that
3-2 includes:
3-3 (1) the provisions of this chapter that will be relied
3-4 on at the hearing to establish that the person requires a court
3-5 order for the temporary or extended management of a person with a
3-6 communicable disease;
3-7 (2) the name, address, and telephone number of each
3-8 witness who may testify at the hearing;
3-9 (3) a brief description of the reasons why temporary
3-10 or extended management is required; and
3-11 (4) a list of any acts committed by the person that
3-12 the applicant will attempt to prove at the hearing.
3-13 SECTION 5. Section 81.157, Health and Safety Code, is
3-14 amended to read as follows:
3-15 Sec. 81.157. District Court Jurisdiction. (a) A proceeding
3-16 under this chapter must be held in a district court of the county
3-17 in which the person is found, resides, or is receiving
3-18 court-ordered health services.
3-19 (b) If a person subject to an order for temporary management
3-20 is receiving services in a county other than the county in which
3-21 the court that entered the temporary order is located and requires
3-22 extended management, the county in which the temporary order was
3-23 issued shall pay the expenses of transporting the person back to
3-24 the county for the hearing unless the court that entered the
3-25 temporary order arranges with the appropriate court in the county
3-26 in which the person is receiving services to hold the hearing on
3-27 the application for extended order before the temporary order
4-1 expires.
4-2 SECTION 6. Section 81.159, Health and Safety Code, is
4-3 amended to read as follows:
4-4 Sec. 81.159. DESIGNATION OF FACILITY [RECOMMENDATION FOR
4-5 TREATMENT]. (a) The commissioner shall designate health care
4-6 facilities throughout the state that are capable of providing
4-7 services for the examination, observation, isolation, or treatment
4-8 of persons having or suspected of having a communicable disease.
4-9 However, the commissioner may not designate a nursing home or
4-10 custodial care home required to be licensed under Chapter 242.
4-11 (b) The health authority shall select a designated facility
4-12 in the county in which the application is filed. If no facility is
4-13 designated in the county, the commissioner shall select the
4-14 facility.
4-15 (c) [The court shall direct the facility to file, before the
4-16 date set for the hearing, a recommendation for the person's
4-17 treatment.]
4-18 [(d) The hearing on an application may not be held before
4-19 the recommendation for treatment is filed unless the court
4-20 determines that an emergency exists.]
4-21 [(e)] This section does not relieve a county of its
4-22 responsibility under other provisions of this chapter or applicable
4-23 law for providing health care services.
4-24 (d) [(f)] A designated facility must comply with this
4-25 section only to the extent that the commissioner determines that
4-26 the facility has sufficient resources to perform the necessary
4-27 services.
5-1 (e) [(g)] This section does not apply to a person for whom
5-2 treatment in a private health facility is proposed.
5-3 SECTION 7. Section 81.161(b), Health and Safety Code, is
5-4 amended to read as follows:
5-5 (b) The motion may be filed by the municipal, county, or
5-6 district attorney on behalf of the [department or] health
5-7 authority. The motion shall be filed by the attorney general at
5-8 the request of the department.
5-9 SECTION 8. Section 81.167(c), Health and Safety Code, is
5-10 amended to read as follows:
5-11 (c) A person under a protective custody order may [not] be
5-12 detained in a nonmedical facility used to detain persons who are
5-13 charged with or convicted of a crime only with the consent of the
5-14 medical director of the facility and only if the facility has
5-15 respiratory isolation capability for airborne communicable
5-16 diseases. The person may not be detained in a nonmedical facility
5-17 under this subsection [unless an extreme emergency exists and in no
5-18 case] for longer than 72 hours, excluding Saturdays, Sundays, legal
5-19 holidays, and the period prescribed by Section 81.165(b) for an
5-20 extreme weather emergency. The person must be isolated from any
5-21 person who is charged with or convicted of a crime.
5-22 SECTION 9. Section 81.170(f), Health and Safety Code, is
5-23 amended to read as follows:
5-24 (f) The jury shall determine if the person is infected with
5-25 or is reasonably suspected of being infected with a communicable
5-26 disease that presents a threat to the public health and, if the
5-27 application is for inpatient treatment, has refused or failed to
6-1 follow the orders of the health authority. The jury may not make a
6-2 finding about the type of services to be provided to the person.
6-3 SECTION 10. Section 81.171(a), Health and Safety Code, is
6-4 amended to read as follows:
6-5 (a) The court shall enter an order denying an application
6-6 for a court order for temporary or extended management if after a
6-7 hearing the judge or jury fails to find, from clear and convincing
6-8 evidence, that the person:
6-9 (1) is infected with or is reasonably suspected of
6-10 being infected with a communicable disease that presents a threat
6-11 to the public health;
6-12 (2) [,] has refused or failed to follow the orders of
6-13 the health authority if the application is for inpatient treatment;
6-14 and
6-15 (3) [, and] meets the applicable criteria for orders
6-16 for the management of a person with a communicable disease.
6-17 SECTION 11. Section 81.172, Health and Safety Code, is
6-18 amended by amending Subsection (a) and adding Subsection (e) to
6-19 read as follows:
6-20 (a) The judge or jury may determine that a person requires
6-21 court-ordered examination, observation, isolation, or treatment
6-22 only if the judge or jury finds, from clear and convincing
6-23 evidence, that:
6-24 (1) the person is infected with or is reasonably
6-25 suspected of being infected with a communicable disease that
6-26 presents a threat to the public health and, if the application is
6-27 for inpatient treatment, has failed or refused to follow the orders
7-1 of the health authority or department; and
7-2 (2) as a result of the communicable disease the
7-3 person:
7-4 (A) is likely to cause serious harm to himself;
7-5 or
7-6 (B) will, if not examined, observed, isolated,
7-7 or treated, continue to endanger public health.
7-8 (e) The department, with the cooperation of the head of the
7-9 facility, shall submit to the court a general program of treatment
7-10 to be provided. The program must be submitted not later than the
7-11 14th day after the date the order is issued and must be
7-12 incorporated into the court order.
7-13 SECTION 12. Section 81.173, Health and Safety Code, is
7-14 amended by amending Subsection (a) and adding Subsection (e) to
7-15 read as follows:
7-16 (a) The jury, or the judge if the right to a jury is waived,
7-17 may determine that a proposed patient requires court-ordered
7-18 examination, observation, isolation, or treatment only if the jury
7-19 or judge finds, from clear and convincing evidence, that:
7-20 (1) the person is infected with a communicable disease
7-21 that presents a threat to the public health and, if the application
7-22 is for inpatient treatment, has failed to follow the orders of the
7-23 health authority or department;
7-24 (2) as a result of that communicable disease the
7-25 person:
7-26 (A) is likely to cause serious harm to himself;
7-27 or
8-1 (B) will, if not examined, observed, isolated,
8-2 or treated, continue to endanger public health; and
8-3 (3) the person's condition is expected to continue for
8-4 more than 90 days.
8-5 (e) The department, with the cooperation of the head of the
8-6 facility, shall submit to the court a general program of treatment
8-7 to be provided. The program must be submitted not later than the
8-8 14th day after the date the order is issued and must be
8-9 incorporated into the court order.
8-10 SECTION 13. Section 81.174(a), Health and Safety Code, is
8-11 amended to read as follows:
8-12 (a) The judge shall dismiss the jury, if any, after a
8-13 hearing in which a person is found:
8-14 (1) to be infected with or reasonably suspected of
8-15 being infected with a communicable disease;
8-16 (2) [,] to have failed or refused to follow the orders
8-17 of a health authority or the department if the application is for
8-18 inpatient treatment;[,] and
8-19 (3) to meet the criteria for orders for the management
8-20 of a patient with a communicable disease.
8-21 SECTION 14. Section 81.179(a), Health and Safety Code, is
8-22 amended to read as follows:
8-23 (a) The court shall order [may authorize] the sheriff or
8-24 constable to transport the person to the designated health care
8-25 facility.
8-26 SECTION 15. Section 81.182(a), Health and Safety Code, is
8-27 amended to read as follows:
9-1 (a) At the request of the [The] health authority, a
9-2 municipal, county, or district attorney, as appropriate, shall
9-3 [department, or head of a facility to which a person is committed
9-4 for inpatient health services may] request the court that entered
9-5 the commitment order to modify the order to provide for outpatient
9-6 care. At the request of the department, the attorney general shall
9-7 request the court that entered the commitment order to modify the
9-8 order to provide for outpatient care.
9-9 SECTION 16. Section 81.183(a), Health and Safety Code, is
9-10 amended to read as follows:
9-11 (a) The court that entered an order directing a person to
9-12 participate in outpatient health services may set a hearing to
9-13 determine if the order should be modified in a way that is a
9-14 substantial deviation from the original program of treatment
9-15 incorporated in the court's order. The court may set the hearing
9-16 on its own motion, on the motion of a municipal, county, or
9-17 district attorney at the request of the health authority, on the
9-18 motion of the attorney general at the request of the [or]
9-19 department, or at the request of any other interested person.
9-20 SECTION 17. Section 81.184(a), Health and Safety Code, is
9-21 amended to read as follows:
9-22 (a) At the request of the [The] health authority, a
9-23 municipal, county, or district attorney, as appropriate, shall
9-24 [department, or head of an outpatient facility in which the person
9-25 receives treatment may] file a sworn application for the person's
9-26 temporary detention pending a modification hearing under Section
9-27 81.183. At the request of the department, the attorney general
10-1 shall file a sworn application for the person's temporary detention
10-2 pending a modification hearing under Section 81.183.
10-3 SECTION 18. Section 81.187(a), Health and Safety Code, is
10-4 amended to read as follows:
10-5 (a) A municipal, county, or district attorney, as
10-6 appropriate, at the request of the health authority, shall [or
10-7 department, may] file an application to renew an order for extended
10-8 management. At the request of the department, the attorney general
10-9 shall file an application to renew an order for extended
10-10 management.
10-11 SECTION 19. Subchapter G, Chapter 81, Health and Safety
10-12 Code, is amended by adding Section 81.210 to read as follows:
10-13 Sec. 81.210. COSTS. (a) A county shall pay the costs for a
10-14 hearing or proceeding under this subchapter if a health authority:
10-15 (1) initiates an application for a court order under
10-16 Section 81.151; or
10-17 (2) has an application for court-ordered management
10-18 transferred to it under Section 81.157.
10-19 (b) Costs under this section include:
10-20 (1) attorney's fees;
10-21 (2) physician examination fees;
10-22 (3) compensation for court-ordered personal services;
10-23 (4) security; and
10-24 (5) expenses of transportation to a designated
10-25 facility.
10-26 (c) A county is entitled to reimbursement for costs actually
10-27 paid by the county from:
11-1 (1) the person who is the subject of the application;
11-2 or
11-3 (2) a person or estate liable for the person's
11-4 support.
11-5 (d) The department shall pay the costs of returning a person
11-6 absent without authorization unless the person is able to pay the
11-7 costs.
11-8 SECTION 20. This Act applies only to an application for a
11-9 court order for the management of a person with a communicable
11-10 disease filed on or after the effective date of this Act.
11-11 SECTION 21. The importance of this legislation and the
11-12 crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an
11-13 emergency and an imperative public necessity that the
11-14 constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several
11-15 days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended,
11-16 and that this Act take effect and be in force from and after its
11-17 passage, and it is so enacted.
_______________________________ _______________________________
President of the Senate Speaker of the House
I certify that H.B. No. 911 was passed by the House on April
3, 1997, by the following vote: Yeas 146, Nays 0, 2 present, not
voting.
_______________________________
Chief Clerk of the House
I certify that H.B. No. 911 was passed by the Senate on May
12, 1997, by the following vote: Yeas 31, Nays 0.
_______________________________
Secretary of the Senate
APPROVED: _____________________
Date
_____________________
Governor