By Moncrief S.B. No. 94
76R2969 KKA-D
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
1-1 AN ACT
1-2 relating to home health services.
1-3 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
1-4 SECTION 1. Section 142.001, Health and Safety Code, is
1-5 amended to read as follows:
1-6 Sec. 142.001. DEFINITIONS. In this chapter:
1-7 (1) "Administrative support site" means a facility or
1-8 site where a home and community support services agency performs
1-9 administrative and other support functions but does not provide
1-10 direct home health, hospice, or personal assistance services.
1-11 (2) "Alternate delivery site" means a facility or
1-12 site, including a residential unit or an inpatient unit:
1-13 (A) that is owned or operated by a hospice;
1-14 (B) that is not the hospice's principal place of
1-15 business;
1-16 (C) that is located in the geographical area
1-17 served by the hospice; and
1-18 (D) from which the hospice provides hospice
1-19 services.
1-20 (3) "Bereavement" means the process by which a
1-21 survivor of a deceased person mourns and experiences grief.
1-22 (4) "Bereavement services" means support services
1-23 offered to a family during bereavement.
1-24 (5) "Branch office" means a facility or site in the
2-1 geographical area served by a home and community support agency
2-2 where home health or personal assistance services are delivered or
2-3 active client records are maintained.
2-4 (6) "Certified agency" means a home and community
2-5 support services agency that:
2-6 (A) provides a home health service; and
2-7 (B) is certified by an official of the
2-8 Department of Health and Human Services as in compliance with
2-9 conditions of participation in Title XVIII, Social Security Act (42
2-10 U.S.C. Section 1395 et seq.).
2-11 (7) "Certified home health services" means home health
2-12 services that are provided by a certified agency.
2-13 (8) "Chief financial officer" means an individual who
2-14 is responsible for supervising and managing all financial
2-15 activities for a home and community support services agency.
2-16 (9) "Controlling person" means a person who controls a
2-17 home and community support services agency or other person as
2-18 described by Section 142.0012.
2-19 (10) "Council" means the Home and Community Support
2-20 Services Advisory Council.
2-21 (11) [(10)] "Counselor" means an individual qualified
2-22 under Medicare standards to provide counseling services, including
2-23 bereavement, dietary, spiritual, and other counseling services, to
2-24 both the client and the family.
2-25 (12) [(11)] "Home and community support services
2-26 agency" means a person who provides home health, hospice, or
2-27 personal assistance services for pay or other consideration in a
3-1 client's residence, an independent living environment, or another
3-2 appropriate location.
3-3 (13) [(12)] "Home health service" means the provision
3-4 of one or more of the following health services required by an
3-5 individual in a residence or independent living environment:
3-6 (A) nursing;
3-7 (B) physical, occupational, speech, or
3-8 respiratory therapy;
3-9 (C) medical social service;
3-10 (D) intravenous therapy;
3-11 (E) dialysis;
3-12 (F) service provided by unlicensed personnel
3-13 under the delegation of a licensed health professional;
3-14 (G) the furnishing of medical equipment and
3-15 supplies, excluding drugs and medicines; or
3-16 (H) nutritional counseling.
3-17 (14) [(13)] "Hospice" means a person licensed under
3-18 this chapter to provide hospice services, including a person who
3-19 owns or operates a residential unit or an inpatient unit.
3-20 (15) [(14)] "Hospice services" means services,
3-21 including services provided by unlicensed personnel under the
3-22 delegation of a registered nurse or physical therapist, provided to
3-23 a client or a client's family as part of a coordinated program
3-24 consistent with the standards and rules adopted under this chapter.
3-25 These services include palliative care for terminally ill clients
3-26 and support services for clients and their families that:
3-27 (A) are available 24 hours a day, seven days a
4-1 week, during the last stages of illness, during death, and during
4-2 bereavement;
4-3 (B) are provided by a medically directed
4-4 interdisciplinary team; and
4-5 (C) may be provided in a home, nursing home,
4-6 residential unit, or inpatient unit according to need. These
4-7 services do not include inpatient care normally provided in a
4-8 licensed hospital to a terminally ill person who has not elected to
4-9 be a hospice client.
4-10 (16) [(15)] "Inpatient unit" means a facility that
4-11 provides a continuum of medical or nursing care and other hospice
4-12 services to clients admitted into the unit and that is in
4-13 compliance with:
4-14 (A) the conditions of participation for
4-15 inpatient units adopted under Title XVIII, Social Security Act (42
4-16 U.S.C. Section 1395 et seq.); and
4-17 (B) standards adopted under this chapter.
4-18 (17) [(16)] "Independent living environment" means:
4-19 (A) a client's individual residence, which may
4-20 include a group home or foster home; or
4-21 (B) other settings where a client participates
4-22 in activities, including school, work, or church.
4-23 (18) [(17)] "Interdisciplinary team" means a group of
4-24 individuals who work together in a coordinated manner to provide
4-25 hospice services and must include a physician, registered nurse,
4-26 social worker, and counselor.
4-27 (19) [(18)] "Investigation" means an inspection or
5-1 survey conducted by a representative of the department to determine
5-2 if a licensee is in compliance with this chapter.
5-3 (20) [(19)] "Palliative care" means intervention
5-4 services that focus primarily on the reduction or abatement of
5-5 physical, psychosocial, and spiritual symptoms of a terminal
5-6 illness.
5-7 (21) [(20)] "Person" means an individual, corporation,
5-8 or association.
5-9 (22) [(21)] "Personal assistance service" means
5-10 routine ongoing care or services required by an individual in a
5-11 residence or independent living environment that enable the
5-12 individual to engage in the activities of daily living or to
5-13 perform the physical functions required for independent living,
5-14 including respite services. The term includes health-related
5-15 services performed under circumstances that are defined as not
5-16 constituting the practice of professional nursing by the Board of
5-17 Nurse Examiners through a memorandum of understanding with the
5-18 department in accordance with Section 142.016 and health-related
5-19 tasks provided by unlicensed personnel under the delegation of a
5-20 registered nurse.
5-21 (23) [(22)] "Place of business" means an office of a
5-22 home and community support services agency that maintains client
5-23 records or directs home health, hospice, or personal assistance
5-24 services. The term does not include an administrative support
5-25 site.
5-26 (24) [(23)] "Residence" means a place where a person
5-27 resides and includes a home, a nursing home, a convalescent home,
6-1 or a residential unit.
6-2 (25) [(24)] "Residential unit" means a facility that
6-3 provides living quarters and hospice services to clients admitted
6-4 into the unit and that is in compliance with standards adopted
6-5 under this chapter.
6-6 (26) [(25)] "Respite services" means support options
6-7 that are provided temporarily for the purpose of relief for a
6-8 primary caregiver in providing care to individuals of all ages with
6-9 disabilities or at risk of abuse or neglect.
6-10 (27) [(26)] "Social worker" means an individual
6-11 licensed [certified] as a social worker under Chapter 50, Human
6-12 Resources Code.
6-13 (28) [(27)] "Support services" means social,
6-14 spiritual, and emotional care provided to a client and a client's
6-15 family by a hospice.
6-16 (29) [(28)] "Terminal illness" means an illness for
6-17 which there is a limited prognosis if the illness runs its usual
6-18 course.
6-19 (30) [(29)] "Volunteer" means an individual who
6-20 provides assistance to a home and community support services agency
6-21 without compensation other than reimbursement for actual expenses.
6-22 SECTION 2. Subchapter A, Chapter 142, Health and Safety
6-23 Code, is amended by adding Sections 142.0011 and 142.0012 to read
6-24 as follows:
6-25 Sec. 142.0011. SCOPE, PURPOSE, AND IMPLEMENTATION. (a) The
6-26 purpose of this chapter is to ensure that home and community
6-27 support services agencies in this state deliver the highest
7-1 possible quality of care. This chapter and the rules adopted under
7-2 this chapter establish minimum standards for acceptable quality of
7-3 care, and a violation of a minimum standard established or adopted
7-4 under this chapter is a violation of law. For purposes of this
7-5 chapter, components of quality of care include:
7-6 (1) client independence and self-determination;
7-7 (2) humane treatment;
7-8 (3) access to affordable care;
7-9 (4) continuity of care;
7-10 (5) coordination of services;
7-11 (6) professionalism of service providers; and
7-12 (7) quality of life.
7-13 (b) The department shall protect clients of home and
7-14 community support services agencies by regulating those agencies
7-15 and:
7-16 (1) adopting rules relating to quality of care and
7-17 quality of life;
7-18 (2) strictly monitoring factors relating to the
7-19 health, safety, welfare, and dignity of each client;
7-20 (3) imposing prompt and effective remedies for
7-21 violations of this chapter and rules and standards adopted under
7-22 this chapter;
7-23 (4) enabling agencies to provide services that allow
7-24 clients to maintain the highest possible degree of independence and
7-25 self-determination; and
7-26 (5) providing the public with helpful and
7-27 understandable information relating to agencies in this state.
8-1 (c) This chapter shall be construed broadly to accomplish
8-2 the purposes identified in this section.
8-3 Sec. 142.0012. CONTROLLING PERSON. (a) A person is a
8-4 controlling person if the person, acting alone or with others, has
8-5 the ability to directly or indirectly influence, direct, or cause
8-6 the direction of the management, expenditure of money, or policies
8-7 of a home and community support services agency or other person.
8-8 (b) For purposes of this chapter, "controlling person"
8-9 includes:
8-10 (1) a management company or other business entity that
8-11 operates or contracts with others for the operation of a home and
8-12 community support services agency;
8-13 (2) a person who is a controlling person of a
8-14 management company or other business entity that operates a home
8-15 and community support services agency or that contracts with
8-16 another person for the operation of a home and community support
8-17 services agency; and
8-18 (3) any other individual who, because of a personal,
8-19 familial, or other relationship with the owner, manager, or
8-20 provider of a home and community support services agency, is in a
8-21 position of actual control or authority with respect to the agency,
8-22 without regard to whether the individual is formally named as an
8-23 owner, manager, director, officer, provider, consultant,
8-24 contractor, or employee of the agency.
8-25 (c) A controlling person described by Subsection (b)(3) does
8-26 not include an employee, lender, secured creditor, or other person
8-27 who does not exercise formal or actual influence or control over
9-1 the operation of a home and community support services agency.
9-2 (d) The department may adopt rules that specify the
9-3 ownership interests and other relationships that qualify a person
9-4 as a controlling person.
9-5 SECTION 3. Section 142.003(a), Health and Safety Code, is
9-6 amended to read as follows:
9-7 (a) The following persons need not be licensed under this
9-8 chapter:
9-9 (1) a physician, dentist, registered nurse, or
9-10 physical therapist licensed under the laws of this state who
9-11 provides home health services to a client only as a part of and
9-12 incidental to that person's private office practice;
9-13 (2) a registered nurse, licensed vocational nurse,
9-14 physical therapist, occupational therapist, speech therapist,
9-15 medical social worker, or any other health care professional as
9-16 determined by the department who provides home health services as a
9-17 sole practitioner;
9-18 (3) a registry that operates solely as a clearinghouse
9-19 to put consumers in contact with persons who provide home health,
9-20 hospice, or personal assistance services and that does not maintain
9-21 official client records, direct client services, or compensate the
9-22 person who is providing the service;
9-23 (4) an individual whose permanent residence is in the
9-24 client's residence;
9-25 (5) an employee of a person licensed under this
9-26 chapter who provides home health, hospice, or personal assistance
9-27 services only as an employee of the license holder and who receives
10-1 no benefit for providing the services, other than wages from the
10-2 license holder;
10-3 (6) a home, nursing home, convalescent home, assisted
10-4 living [personal care] facility, special care facility, or other
10-5 institution for individuals who are elderly or who have
10-6 disabilities that provides home health or personal assistance
10-7 services only to residents of the home or institution;
10-8 (7) a person who provides one health service through a
10-9 contract with a person licensed under this chapter;
10-10 (8) a durable medical equipment supply company;
10-11 (9) a pharmacy or wholesale medical supply company
10-12 that does not furnish services, other than supplies, to a person at
10-13 the person's house;
10-14 (10) a hospital or other licensed health care facility
10-15 that provides home health or personal assistance services only to
10-16 inpatient residents of the hospital or facility;
10-17 (11) a person providing home health or personal
10-18 assistance services to an injured employee under Title 5, Labor
10-19 Code [the Texas Workers' Compensation Act (Article 8308-1.01 et
10-20 seq., Vernon's Texas Civil Statutes)];
10-21 (12) a visiting nurse service that:
10-22 (A) is conducted by and for the adherents of a
10-23 well-recognized church or religious denomination; and
10-24 (B) provides nursing services by a person exempt
10-25 from licensing by Article 4528, Revised Statutes, because the
10-26 person furnishes nursing care in which treatment is only by prayer
10-27 or spiritual means;
11-1 (13) an individual hired and paid directly by the
11-2 client or the client's family or legal guardian to provide home
11-3 health or personal assistance services;
11-4 (14) a business, school, camp, or other organization
11-5 that provides home health or personal assistance services,
11-6 incidental to the organization's primary purpose, to individuals
11-7 employed by or participating in programs offered by the business,
11-8 school, or camp that enable the individual to participate fully in
11-9 the business's, school's, or camp's programs;
11-10 (15) a person or organization providing
11-11 sitter-companion services or chore or household services that do
11-12 not involve personal care, health, or health-related services;
11-13 (16) a licensed health care facility that provides
11-14 hospice services under a contract with a hospice;
11-15 (17) a person delivering residential acquired immune
11-16 deficiency syndrome hospice care who is licensed and designated as
11-17 a residential AIDS hospice under Chapter 248; or
11-18 (18) the Texas Department of Criminal Justice.
11-19 SECTION 4. Sections 142.004(c) and (d), Health and Safety
11-20 Code, are amended to read as follows:
11-21 (c) The board by rule shall require that, at a minimum,
11-22 before the department may approve a license application, the
11-23 applicant must provide to the department:
11-24 (1) documentation establishing that, at a minimum, the
11-25 applicant has sufficient financial resources to provide the
11-26 services required by this chapter and by the department during the
11-27 term of the license;
12-1 (2) a list of the management personnel for the
12-2 proposed home and community support services agency, a description
12-3 of personnel qualifications, and a plan for providing continuing
12-4 training and education for the personnel during the term of the
12-5 license;
12-6 (3) documentation establishing that the applicant is
12-7 capable of meeting the minimum standards established by the board
12-8 relating to the quality of care;
12-9 (4) a plan that provides for the orderly transfer of
12-10 care of the applicant's clients if the applicant cannot maintain or
12-11 deliver home health, hospice, or personal assistance services under
12-12 the license; [and]
12-13 (5) identifying information on the home and community
12-14 support services agency owner, administrator, and chief financial
12-15 officer to enable the department to conduct criminal background
12-16 checks on those persons;
12-17 (6) identification of any controlling person with
12-18 respect to the applicant; and
12-19 (7) documentation relating to any controlling person
12-20 identified under Subdivision (6), if requested by the department
12-21 and relevant to the controlling person's compliance with any
12-22 applicable licensing standard required or adopted by the board
12-23 under this chapter.
12-24 (d) Information received by the department relating to the
12-25 competence and financial resources of the applicant or a
12-26 controlling person with respect to the applicant is confidential
12-27 and may not be disclosed to the public.
13-1 SECTION 5. Subchapter A, Chapter 142, Health and Safety
13-2 Code, is amended by adding Section 142.005 to read as follows:
13-3 Sec. 142.005. COMPLIANCE RECORD IN OTHER STATES. The
13-4 department may require an applicant or license holder to provide
13-5 the department with information relating to compliance by the
13-6 applicant, the license holder, or a controlling person with respect
13-7 to the applicant or license holder with regulatory requirements in
13-8 any other state in which the applicant, license holder, or
13-9 controlling person operates or operated a home and community
13-10 support services agency.
13-11 SECTION 6. Section 142.006(a), Health and Safety Code, is
13-12 amended to read as follows:
13-13 (a) The department shall issue a home and community support
13-14 services agency license to provide home health, hospice, or
13-15 personal assistance services for each place of business to an
13-16 applicant if:
13-17 (1) the [each] applicant [who]:
13-18 (A) [(1)] qualifies for the license to provide
13-19 the type of service that is to be offered by the applicant;
13-20 (B) [(2)] submits an application and license fee
13-21 as required by this chapter; and
13-22 (C) [(3)] complies with all applicable licensing
13-23 standards required or adopted by the board under this chapter; and
13-24 (2) any controlling person with respect to the
13-25 applicant complies with all applicable licensing standards required
13-26 or adopted by the board under this chapter.
13-27 SECTION 7. Section 142.009(d), Health and Safety Code, is
14-1 amended to read as follows:
14-2 (d) The reports, records, and working papers used or
14-3 developed in an investigation made under this section are
14-4 confidential and may not be released or made public except:
14-5 (1) to a state or federal agency;
14-6 (2) to federal, state, or local law enforcement
14-7 personnel;
14-8 (3) with the consent of each person identified in the
14-9 information released;
14-10 (4) in civil or criminal litigation matters or
14-11 licensing proceedings as otherwise allowed by law or judicial rule;
14-12 [or]
14-13 (5) on a form developed by the department that
14-14 identifies any deficiencies found without identifying a person,
14-15 other than the home and community support services agency;
14-16 (6) on a form required by a federal agency if:
14-17 (A) the information does not reveal the identity
14-18 of an individual, including a patient or a physician or other
14-19 medical practitioner;
14-20 (B) the service provider subject to the
14-21 investigation had a reasonable opportunity to review the
14-22 information and offer comments; and
14-23 (C) the release of the information complies with
14-24 any other federal requirement; or
14-25 (7) as provided by Section 142.0092.
14-26 SECTION 8. Subchapter A, Chapter 142, Health and Safety
14-27 Code, is amended by adding Sections 142.0091-142.0093 to read as
15-1 follows:
15-2 Sec. 142.0091. SURVEYOR TRAINING. (a) The department shall
15-3 provide specialized training to representatives of the department
15-4 who survey home and community support services agencies. The
15-5 training must include information relating to:
15-6 (1) the conduct of appropriate surveys that do not
15-7 focus exclusively on medical standards under an acute care model;
15-8 and
15-9 (2) acceptable delegation of nursing tasks.
15-10 (b) In developing and updating the training required by this
15-11 section, the department shall consult with providers of home
15-12 health, hospice, or personal assistance services and clients of
15-13 home and community support services agencies.
15-14 Sec. 142.0092. CONSUMER COMPLAINT DATA. (a) The department
15-15 shall maintain records or documents relating to complaints directed
15-16 to the department by consumers of home health, hospice, or
15-17 personal assistance services. The department shall organize the
15-18 records or documents according to standard, statewide categories as
15-19 determined by the department. In determining appropriate
15-20 categories, the department shall make distinctions based on factors
15-21 useful to the public in assessing the quality of services provided
15-22 by a home and community support services agency, including whether
15-23 the complaint:
15-24 (1) involved significant physical harm or death to a
15-25 patient;
15-26 (2) involved financial exploitation of a patient; or
15-27 (3) resulted in any sanction imposed against the
16-1 agency.
16-2 (b) The department shall make the information maintained
16-3 under this section available to the public in a useful format that
16-4 does not identify individuals implicated in the complaints.
16-5 Sec. 142.0093. RETALIATION PROHIBITED. (a) A person
16-6 licensed under this chapter may not retaliate against another
16-7 person for filing a complaint, presenting a grievance, or providing
16-8 in good faith information relating to home health, hospice, or
16-9 personal assistance services provided by the license holder.
16-10 (b) This section does not prohibit a license holder from
16-11 terminating an employee for a reason other than retaliation.
16-12 SECTION 9. Section 142.011(a), Health and Safety Code, is
16-13 amended to read as follows:
16-14 (a) The department may deny a license application or suspend
16-15 or revoke the license of a person who:
16-16 (1) fails to comply with the rules or standards for
16-17 licensing required by this chapter; or
16-18 (2) engages in conduct that violates Section 161.091.
16-19 SECTION 10. Sections 142.017(a) and (d), Health and Safety
16-20 Code, are amended to read as follows:
16-21 (a) The department may assess an administrative penalty
16-22 against a person who violates:
16-23 (1) this chapter or a rule adopted under this chapter;
16-24 or
16-25 (2) Section 161.091, if the violation relates to the
16-26 provision of home health, hospice, or personal assistance services.
16-27 (d) The department by rule shall establish a schedule of
17-1 appropriate and graduated penalties for each violation based on:
17-2 (1) the seriousness of the violation, including the
17-3 nature, circumstances, extent, and gravity of the violation and the
17-4 hazard or safety of clients;
17-5 (2) the history of previous violations by the person
17-6 or a controlling person with respect to that person;
17-7 (3) whether the affected home and community support
17-8 services agency had identified the violation as a part of its
17-9 internal quality assurance process and had made appropriate
17-10 progress on correction;
17-11 (4) the amount necessary to deter future violations;
17-12 (5) efforts made to correct the violation; and
17-13 (6) any other matters that justice may require.
17-14 SECTION 11. Subchapter A, Chapter 142, Health and Safety
17-15 Code, is amended by adding Sections 142.018 and 142.019 to read as
17-16 follows:
17-17 Sec. 142.018. REPORTS OF ABUSE, EXPLOITATION, OR NEGLECT.
17-18 (a) In this section, "abuse," "exploitation," and "neglect" have
17-19 the meanings assigned by Section 48.002, Human Resources Code.
17-20 (b) A home and community support services agency that has
17-21 cause to believe that a person receiving services from the agency
17-22 has been abused, exploited, or neglected by an employee of the
17-23 agency shall report the information to:
17-24 (1) the department; and
17-25 (2) the Department of Protective and Regulatory
17-26 Services or other appropriate state agency as required by Sections
17-27 48.036 and 48.082, Human Resources Code.
18-1 Sec. 142.019. CERTAIN PHYSICIAN REFERRALS PROHIBITED.
18-2 (a) In this section:
18-3 (1) "Compensation arrangement" means an arrangement
18-4 involving remuneration, directly or indirectly, overtly or
18-5 covertly, in cash or in kind.
18-6 (2) "Financial relationship" means:
18-7 (A) an ownership or investment interest in a
18-8 home and community support services agency, including an interest
18-9 held through equity, debt, or other means;
18-10 (B) an ownership or investment interest in an
18-11 entity that holds an ownership or investment interest in a home and
18-12 community support services agency, including an interest held
18-13 through equity, debt, or other means; or
18-14 (C) a compensation arrangement with a home and
18-15 community support services agency.
18-16 (3) "Household" means, with respect to a person, an
18-17 individual sharing a common abode as part of a single-family unit
18-18 with the person.
18-19 (4) "Immediate family" means, with respect to a
18-20 person, a spouse or dependent child of the person.
18-21 (b) Except as provided by Subsection (d) or (e), a physician
18-22 may not refer a patient to a home and community support services
18-23 agency in which the physician or a member of the physician's
18-24 household or immediate family has a financial relationship.
18-25 (c) A home and community support services agency may not
18-26 present a claim for payment for services provided to a patient
18-27 referred by a physician in violation of Subsection (b). An agency
19-1 that collects an amount in violation of this subsection shall
19-2 refund the amount immediately.
19-3 (d) A person does not have an ownership or investment
19-4 interest prohibited by Subsection (b) if the person owns only:
19-5 (1) an investment security, including a share of stock
19-6 or a bond, debenture, note, or other debt instrument, that:
19-7 (A) may be purchased on terms generally
19-8 available to the public;
19-9 (B) is in a corporation that had, at the end of
19-10 the corporation's most recent fiscal year, or on average during the
19-11 preceding three fiscal years, stockholder equity with a value
19-12 greater than $75 million; and
19-13 (C) is:
19-14 (i) listed on the New York Stock Exchange,
19-15 the American Stock Exchange, or a regional exchange in which
19-16 quotations are published daily;
19-17 (ii) a foreign security listed on a
19-18 recognized foreign, national, or regional exchange in which
19-19 quotations are published daily; or
19-20 (iii) traded under an automated
19-21 interdealer quotation system operated by the National Association
19-22 of Securities Dealers; or
19-23 (2) a share of stock in a regulated investment
19-24 company, as defined by Section 851(a), Internal Revenue Code of
19-25 1986, with total assets in excess of $75 million at the end of the
19-26 company's most recent fiscal year or on average during the
19-27 preceding three fiscal years.
20-1 (e) This section does not prohibit a physician from making a
20-2 referral necessary in special circumstances, as defined by
20-3 department rule, including circumstances in which:
20-4 (1) a home and community support services agency is
20-5 the sole provider of services in a geographical area; or
20-6 (2) a referral to a particular agency is required
20-7 under the patient's health benefits plan.
20-8 SECTION 12. Subchapter B, Chapter 531, Government Code, is
20-9 amended by adding Section 531.0431 to read as follows:
20-10 Sec. 531.0431. HOME HEALTH CARE RATES. In setting payment
20-11 rates for home health care providers, the commission and each
20-12 appropriate health and human services agency shall focus on the
20-13 provision of quality, cost-effective services to the residents of
20-14 this state.
20-15 SECTION 13. Subchapter C, Chapter 48, Human Resources Code,
20-16 is amended by adding Section 48.0381 to read as follows:
20-17 Sec. 48.0381. NOTIFICATION OF LICENSING OR CONTRACTING
20-18 AGENCY. (a) On determining after an investigation that an elderly
20-19 or disabled person has been abused, exploited, or neglected by an
20-20 employee of a home and community support services agency licensed
20-21 under Chapter 142, Health and Safety Code, the department shall:
20-22 (1) notify the state agency responsible for licensing
20-23 the home and community support services agency of the department's
20-24 determination;
20-25 (2) notify any health and human services agency, as
20-26 defined by Section 531.001, Government Code, that contracts with
20-27 the home and community support services agency for the delivery of
21-1 health care services of the department's determination; and
21-2 (3) provide to the licensing state agency and any
21-3 contracting health and human services agency access to the
21-4 department's records or documents relating to the department's
21-5 investigation.
21-6 (b) Providing access to a confidential record or document
21-7 under this section does not constitute a waiver of confidentiality.
21-8 SECTION 14. If, before implementing any provision of this
21-9 Act, a state agency determines that a waiver or authorization from
21-10 a federal agency is necessary for implementation of that provision,
21-11 the agency affected by the provision shall request the waiver or
21-12 authorization and may delay implementing that provision until the
21-13 waiver or authorization is granted.
21-14 SECTION 15. To the extent of any conflict, this Act prevails
21-15 over another Act of the 76th Legislature, Regular Session, 1999,
21-16 relating to nonsubstantive additions to and corrections in enacted
21-17 codes.
21-18 SECTION 16. (a) This Act takes effect September 1, 1999.
21-19 (b) Sections 142.011(a) and 142.017(a) and (d), Health and
21-20 Safety Code, as amended by this Act, apply only to conduct
21-21 occurring on or after the effective date of this Act. Conduct
21-22 occurring before the effective date of this Act is covered by the
21-23 law in effect when the conduct occurred, and the former law is
21-24 continued in effect for that purpose.
21-25 SECTION 17. The importance of this legislation and the
21-26 crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an
21-27 emergency and an imperative public necessity that the
22-1 constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several
22-2 days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.