BILL ANALYSIS |
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C.S.H.B. 2425 |
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By: Price |
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Public Health |
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Committee Report (Substituted) |
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BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE
Interested parties contend that it would be beneficial for the caregiver of a patient discharged from a hospital to be given post-hospital care instructions in providing aftercare to the patient. C.S.H.B. 2425 seeks to address this issue by establishing requirements for a hospital to provide a patient the opportunity to designate a caregiver, notify the caregiver of the patient’s discharge or transfer, and provide the caregiver information to assist the caregiver in providing any necessary aftercare.
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CRIMINAL JUSTICE IMPACT
It is the committee's opinion that this bill does not expressly create a criminal offense, increase the punishment for an existing criminal offense or category of offenses, or change the eligibility of a person for community supervision, parole, or mandatory supervision.
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RULEMAKING AUTHORITY
It is the committee's opinion that rulemaking authority is expressly granted to the executive commissioner of the Health and Human Services Commission in SECTION 1 of this bill.
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ANALYSIS
C.S.H.B. 2425 amends the Health and Safety Code to require a hospital to provide a patient, the patient's legal guardian, or the patient's surrogate decision-maker, on admission to the hospital or before the patient is discharged or transferred to another facility, the opportunity to designate a caregiver who is at least 18 years of age, has a significant relationship with the patient, and will provide aftercare to the patient. The bill requires a hospital to document in the patient's medical record the name, telephone number, and address of the patient's designated caregiver and the relationship of a designated caregiver to the patient and to request written authorization from the patient, the patient's legal guardian, or the patient's surrogate decision-maker to disclose health care information to the patient's designated caregiver. The bill requires the hospital to promptly record in the patient's medical record that the patient, the patient's legal guardian, or the patient's surrogate decision-maker did not wish to designate a caregiver if such a person declines to designate a caregiver. The bill authorizes a patient, a patient's legal guardian, or a patient's surrogate decision-maker to change the patient's designated caregiver at any time and requires the hospital to document the change in the patient's medical record. The bill establishes that the designation of a person as the patient's caregiver does not obligate the person to serve as the patient's designated caregiver or to provide aftercare to the patient.
C.S.H.B. 2425 requires a hospital, as soon as possible before a patient's discharge or transfer to another facility but not later than the time the patient's attending physician issues a discharge order, to notify the designated caregiver of the patient's discharge or transfer. The bill prohibits the inability of the hospital to contact the designated caregiver from interfering with, delaying, or otherwise affecting any medical care provided to the patient or the discharge of the patient. The bill requires a hospital that is unable to contact the designated caregiver to promptly record in the patient's medical record that the hospital attempted to contact the designated caregiver. The bill requires a hospital, before a patient's discharge from the hospital, to provide to the patient and designated caregiver a written discharge plan that describes the patient's aftercare needs and prescribes the required contents of the discharge plan. The bill excepts from these notice and discharge plan provisions a hospital to which a patient, a patient's legal guardian, or a patient's surrogate decision-maker declines to give authorization to disclose health care information to the designated caregiver. The bill requires a hospital, before a patient's discharge from the hospital to any setting in which health care services are not regularly provided to others, to provide the designated caregiver instruction and training as necessary for the caregiver to perform aftercare tasks.
C.S.H.B. 2425 requires the executive commissioner of the Health and Human Services Commission to adopt rules necessary to implement the bill's provisions. The bill prohibits its provisions from being construed to interfere with the rights of an agent operating under a valid advance directive in accordance with the Advance Directives Act or to alter, amend, revoke, or supersede any existing right or remedy granted under any other provision of law. The bill's provisions expressly do not create a private right of action against a hospital, a hospital employee, or a person in a contractual relationship with a hospital or against a designated caregiver. The bill prohibits a hospital, a hospital employee, or a person in a contractual relationship with a hospital from being held liable in any way for services rendered or not rendered by a patient's designated caregiver to the patient and prohibits a designated caregiver from being reimbursed by a government or commercial payer for aftercare assistance provided under the bill's provisions. The bill establishes that nothing in the bill's provisions may be construed to alter the obligation of specified entities issuing health benefit plans to provide coverage required under a health benefit plan; to affect, impede, or otherwise disrupt or reduce the reimbursement obligations of an entity issuing health benefit plans; or to affect the time at which a patient may be discharged or transferred from a hospital to another facility.
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EFFECTIVE DATE
On passage, or, if the bill does not receive the necessary vote, September 1, 2017.
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COMPARISON OF ORIGINAL AND SUBSTITUTE
While C.S.H.B. 2425 may differ from the original in minor or nonsubstantive ways, the following comparison is organized and formatted in a manner that indicates the substantial differences between the introduced and committee substitute versions of the bill.
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