| |
| |
|
|
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
|
|
|
AN ACT
|
|
|
relating to authority of the Hunt Memorial Hospital District to |
|
|
appoint, contract for, or employ physicians. |
|
|
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
|
|
SECTION 1. Subchapter B, Chapter 1044, Special District |
|
|
Local Laws Code, is amended by adding Section 1044.0605 to read as |
|
|
follows: |
|
|
Sec. 1044.0605. EMPLOYMENT OF PHYSICIANS. (a) The board |
|
|
may appoint, contract for, or employ physicians as the board |
|
|
considers necessary for the efficient operation of the district. |
|
|
(b) The term of an employment contract entered into under |
|
|
this section may not exceed four years. |
|
|
(c) This section may not be construed as authorizing the |
|
|
board to supervise or control the practice of medicine, as |
|
|
prohibited by Subtitle B, Title 3, Occupations Code. |
|
|
(d) The authority granted to the board under Subsection (a) |
|
|
to employ physicians shall apply as necessary for the district to |
|
|
fulfill the district's statutory mandate to provide medical care |
|
|
for the needy and indigent residents of the district as provided by |
|
|
Section 1044.101. |
|
|
(e) The medical executive board of the district shall adopt, |
|
|
maintain, and enforce policies to ensure that a physician employed |
|
|
by the district exercises the physician's independent medical |
|
|
judgment in providing care to patients. |
|
|
(f) The policies adopted by the medical executive board |
|
|
under this section must include: |
|
|
(1) policies relating to: |
|
|
(A) governance of the medical executive board; |
|
|
(B) credentialing; |
|
|
(C) quality assurance; |
|
|
(D) utilization review; |
|
|
(E) peer review; |
|
|
(F) medical decision-making; and |
|
|
(G) due process; and |
|
|
(2) rules requiring the disclosure of financial |
|
|
conflicts of interest by a member of the medical executive board. |
|
|
(g) The medical executive board and the district's board |
|
|
shall jointly develop and implement a conflict management process |
|
|
to resolve any conflict between a policy adopted by the medical |
|
|
executive board under this section and a policy of the district. |
|
|
(h) A member of the medical executive board who is a |
|
|
physician shall provide biennially to the chair of the medical |
|
|
executive board a signed, verified statement indicating that the |
|
|
board member: |
|
|
(1) is licensed by the Texas Medical Board; |
|
|
(2) will exercise independent medical judgment in all |
|
|
medical executive board matters, including matters relating to: |
|
|
(A) credentialing; |
|
|
(B) quality assurance; |
|
|
(C) utilization review; |
|
|
(D) peer review; |
|
|
(E) medical decision-making; and |
|
|
(F) due process; |
|
|
(3) will exercise the board member's best efforts to |
|
|
ensure compliance with the policies that are adopted or established |
|
|
by the medical executive board; and |
|
|
(4) will report immediately to the Texas Medical Board |
|
|
any action or event that the board member reasonably and in good |
|
|
faith believes constitutes a compromise of the independent medical |
|
|
judgment of a physician in caring for a patient. |
|
|
(i) For all matters relating to the practice of medicine, |
|
|
each physician employed by the district shall ultimately report to |
|
|
the chair of the medical executive board for the district. |
|
|
SECTION 2. This Act takes effect September 1, 2019. |