By Longoria H.B. No. 3180
Line and page numbers may not match official copy.
Bill not drafted by TLC or Senate E&E.
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
1-1 AN ACT
1-2 relating to the intake, assessment and admission of a patient to an
1-3 inpatient mental health facility.
1-4 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
1-5 SECTION 1. Section 572.0025 of the Health and Safety Code,
1-6 is amended to read as follows:
1-7 Sec. 572.0025. Intake, Assessment, and Admission. (a) The
1-8 board shall adopt rules governing the voluntary admission of a
1-9 patient to an inpatient mental health facility, including rules
1-10 governing the intake and assessment procedures of the admission
1-11 process.
1-12 (b) The rules governing the intake process shall establish
1-13 minimum standards for:
1-14 (1) reviewing a prospective patient's finances and
1-15 insurance benefits;
1-16 (2) explaining to a prospective patient the patient's
1-17 rights; and
1-18 (3) explaining to a prospective patient the facility's
1-19 services and treatment process.
1-20 (c) The assessment provided for by the rules may be
1-21 conducted only by a professional who meets the qualifications
1-22 prescribed by board rules.
1-23 (d) The rules governing the assessment process shall
2-1 prescribe:
2-2 (1) the types of professionals who may conduct an
2-3 assessment;
2-4 (2) the minimum credentials each type of professional
2-5 must have to conduct an assessment; and
2-6 (3) the type of assessment that professional may
2-7 conduct.
2-8 (e) In accordance with board rule, a facility shall provide
2-9 annually a minimum of eight hours of inservice training regarding
2-10 intake and assessment for persons who will be conducting an intake
2-11 or assessment for the facility. A person may not conduct intake or
2-12 assessments without having completed the initial and applicable
2-13 annual inservice training.
2-14 (f) A prospective voluntary patient may not be formally
2-15 accepted for treatment in a facility unless:
2-16 (1) the facility has a physician's order admitting the
2-17 prospective patient, which order may be issued orally,
2-18 electronically, or in writing, signed by the physician, provided
2-19 that, in the case of an oral order or an electronically transmitted
2-20 unsigned order, a signed original is presented to the mental health
2-21 facility within 24 hours of the initial order; the order must be
2-22 from:
2-23 (A) an admitting physician who has conducted an
2-24 in-person physical and psychiatric examination within 72 hours of
2-25 the admission; or
2-26 (B) an admitting physician who has consulted
3-1 with a physician who has conducted an in-person examination within
3-2 72 hours of the admission; and
3-3 (2) the facility administrator or a person designated
3-4 by the administrator has agreed to accept the prospective patient
3-5 and has signed a statement to that effect.
3-6 (g) An assessment conducted as required by rules adopted
3-7 under this section does not satisfy a statutory or regulatory
3-8 requirement for a personal evaluation of a patient or a prospective
3-9 patient by a physician before admission.
3-10 (h) In this section:
3-11 (1) "Admission" means the formal acceptance of a
3-12 prospective patient to a facility.
3-13 (2) "Assessment" means the administrative process a
3-14 facility uses to gather information from a prospective patient,
3-15 including a medical history and the problem for which the patient
3-16 is seeking treatment, to determine whether a prospective patient
3-17 should be examined by a physician to determine if admission is
3-18 clinically justified.
3-19 (3) "Intake" means the administrative process for
3-20 gathering information about a prospective patient and giving a
3-21 prospective patient information about the facility and the
3-22 facility's treatment and services.
3-23 (i) The physician's order admitting the prospective patient
3-24 and the in-person physical and psychiatric examination conducted by
3-25 the physician shall not be delegated to a non-physician health care
3-26 provider.