Connecticut 2025 Regular Session

Connecticut House Bill HB06913 Compare Versions

Version 1 (Old)

Version 2 (New)

Old	New		Differences
1	1
2	2
3		-	LCO 1 of 5
	3	+	LCO No. 4357 1 of 6
4	4
5		-	General Assembly ~~Substitute~~ Bill No. 6913
	5	+	General Assembly Raised Bill No. 6913
6	6		January Session, 2025
	7	+	LCO No. 4357
	8	+
	9	+
	10	+	Referred to Committee on AGING
	11	+
	12	+
	13	+	Introduced by:
	14	+	(AGE)
	15	+
7	16
8	17
9	18
10	19		AN ACT CONCERNING LGBTQ+ DISCRIMINATION IN LONG -TERM
11	20		CARE FACILITIES.
12	21		Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General
13	22		Assembly convened:
14	23
15	24		Section 1. (NEW) (Effective October 1, 2025) (a) As used in this section: 1
16	25		(1) "Gender identity or expression" has the same meaning as 2
17	26		provided in section 1-1n of the general statutes; 3
18	27		(2) "Long-term care facility" or "facility" means a nursing home 4
19	28		facility, as defined in section 19a-490 of the general statutes, or a 5
20	29		managed residential community, as defined in section 19a-693 of the 6
21	30		general statutes, with assisted living services regulated by the 7
22	31		Department of Public Health; 8
23	32		(3) "Long-term care facility staff" or "facility staff" means all persons 9
24	33		employed by or contracted directly with a long-term care facility; and 10
25	34		(4) "Resident" means a resident or patient of a long-term care facility. 11
26	35		(b) (1) It shall be unlawful for a long-term care facility or long-term 12
27	36		care facility staff to discriminate against any resident on the basis of such 13
	37	+	Raised Bill No. 6913
	38	+
	39	+
	40	+
	41	+	LCO No. 4357 2 of 6
	42	+
28	43		resident's actual or perceived sexual orientation, gender identity or 14
29	44		expression or human immunodeficiency virus status, including, but not 15
30		-	limited to, by: 16 Substitute Bill No. 6913
31		-
32		-
33		-	LCO 2 of 5
34		-
	45	+	limited to, by: 16
35	46		(A) Denying admission to a long-term care facility, transferring or 17
36	47		refusing to transfer a resident within a facility or to another facility or 18
37	48		discharging or evicting a resident from a facility; 19
38	49		(B) Denying a request by residents to share a room; 20
39	50		(C) In a facility where rooms are assigned by gender, assigning, 21
40	51		reassigning or refusing to assign a room to a transgender resident other 22
41	52		than in accordance with the transgender resident's gender identity, 23
42	53		unless at the transgender resident's request; 24
43	54		(D) Prohibiting a resident from using, or harassing a resident who 25
44	55		seeks to use or does use, a restroom available to other persons of the 26
45	56		same gender identity, regardless of whether the resident has taken or is 27
46	57		taking hormones, has had transition-related surgery or is making a 28
47	58		gender transition or appears to be gender-nonconforming. For the 29
48	59		purposes of this subdivision, "harassing" includes, but is not limited to, 30
49	60		requiring a resident to show identity documents in order to gain 31
50	61		entrance to a restroom available to other persons of the same gender 32
51	62		identity; 33
52	63		(E) Wilfully and repeatedly failing to use a resident's preferred name 34
53	64		or pronouns, including when the resident is not physically present; 35
54	65		(F) Denying a resident the right to wear or be dressed in clothing, 36
55	66		accessories or cosmetics that are permitted for any other resident; 37
56	67		(G) Restricting a resident's right to associate with other residents or 38
57	68		visitors, including the right to consensual expression of intimacy or 39
58	69		sexual relations, unless the restriction is uniformly applied to all 40
59	70		residents in a nondiscriminatory manner; and 41
60	71		(H) Denying or restricting a resident from accessing appropriate 42
	72	+	Raised Bill No. 6913
	73	+
	74	+
	75	+
	76	+	LCO No. 4357 3 of 6
	77	+
61	78		medical or nonmedical care, or providing medical or nonmedical care 43
62	79		that unreasonably demeans the resident's dignity or causes avoidable 44
63	80		discomfort. 45
64		-	(2) The provisions of this subsection shall not apply to the extent that 46 Substitute Bill No. 6913
65		-
66		-
67		-	LCO 3 of 5
68		-
	81	+	(2) The provisions of this subsection shall not apply to the extent that 46
69	82		they are incompatible with any professionally reasonable clinical 47
70	83		judgment regarding the care of a resident. 48
71	84		(c) Each long-term care facility shall post in a prominent place in such 49
72	85		facility the following notice printed in at least fourteen-point boldface 50
73	86		capital letters: "(NAME OF FACILITY) DOES NOT DISCRIMINATE 51
74	87		AND DOES NOT PERMIT DISCRIMINATION, INCLUDING, BUT 52
75	88		NOT LIMITED TO, BULLYING, ABUSE, HARASSMENT OR 53
76	89		DIFFERENTIAL TREATMENT ON THE BASIS OF ACTUAL OR 54
77	90		PERCEIVED SEXUAL ORIENTATION, GENDER IDENTI TY OR 55
78	91		EXPRESSION OR HIV STATUS. YOU MAY FILE A COMPLAINT 56
79	92		WITH THE OFFICE OF THE LONG -TERM CARE OMBUDSMAN 57
80	93		(PROVIDE CONTACT INFORMATION) IF YOU BELIEVE THAT YOU 58
81	94		HAVE EXPERIENCED THIS KIND OF DISCRIMINATION." 59
82	95		(d) (1) Each long-term care facility shall develop and implement 60
83	96		procedures for recordkeeping, including, but not limited to, records 61
84	97		generated at the time of a resident's admission that include the resident's 62
85	98		gender identity, correct name and pronouns, as indicated by the 63
86	99		resident. Each facility shall keep such records up to date. 64
87	100		(2) The State Ombudsman shall establish policies and procedures for 65
88		-	recording complaints filed ~~by or on behalf of~~ residents of long-term care 66
89		-	~~facilities~~ pursuant to the provisions of this section. 67
	101	+	recording complaints filed from residents of long-term care facilities 66
	102	+	pursuant to the provisions of this section. 67
90	103		(e) Long-term care facilities shall protect personally identifiable 68
91	104		information regarding residents' sexual orientation, whether a resident 69
92	105		is transgender, a resident's transition history and a resident's human 70
93	106		immunodeficiency virus status from unauthorized disclosure in 71
94	107		accordance with the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability 72
95	108		Act of 1996, P.L. 104-191, as amended from time to time, if applicable, 73
	109	+	Raised Bill No. 6913
	110	+
	111	+
	112	+
	113	+	LCO No. 4357 4 of 6
	114	+
96	115		and any other applicable provision of federal or state law. A facility shall 74
97	116		take any steps reasonably necessary to minimize the likelihood of 75
98	117		inadvertent or incidental disclosure of such information to other 76
99	118		residents, visitors or facility staff, except to the minimum extent 77
100		-	necessary for facility staff to perform their duties. 78 Substitute Bill No. 6913
101		-
102		-
103		-	LCO 4 of 5
104		-
	119	+	necessary for facility staff to perform their duties. 78
105	120		(f) Long-term care facility staff not directly involved in providing 79
106	121		direct care to a resident, including, but not limited to, a transgender or 80
107	122		gender-nonconforming resident, shall not be present during physical 81
108	123		examination or the provision of personal care to such resident if such 82
109	124		resident is partially or fully unclothed without the express permission 83
110	125		of such resident or such resident's legal guardian, legal representative 84
111	126		or other legally responsible party. A facility shall use doors, curtains, 85
112	127		screens or other effective visual barriers to provide bodily privacy for 86
113	128		all residents, including, but not limited to, transgender or gender-87
114	129		nonconforming residents, whenever such residents are partially or fully 88
115	130		unclothed. All residents, including, but not limited to, lesbian, gay, 89
116	131		bisexual, transgender or gender-nonconforming residents, shall be 90
117	132		informed of and have the right to refuse to be examined, observed or 91
118	133		treated by any facility staff when the primary purpose of such 92
119	134		examination, observation or treatment is educational or informational 93
120	135		rather than therapeutic, or for the evaluation or reevaluation of a 94
121	136		resident's health. Such refusal shall not diminish the resident's access to 95
122	137		care for the primary purpose of diagnosis or treatment. 96
123	138		(g) (1) At least once every two years, a long-term care facility shall 97
124	139		ensure that every facility staff member who works directly with 98
125	140		residents receives training, developed by the Commissioner of Public 99
126	141		Health pursuant to subdivision (2) of this subsection, on cultural 100
127	142		competency focusing on residents who identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual, 101
128	143		transgender or gender-nonconforming or who are living with human 102
129	144		immunodeficiency virus. 103
130	145		(2) Not later than January 1, 2026, the Commissioner of Public Health 104
131	146		shall develop training materials for the purposes of subdivision (1) of 105
	147	+	Raised Bill No. 6913
	148	+
	149	+
	150	+
	151	+	LCO No. 4357 5 of 6
	152	+
132	153		this subsection. Such training materials (A) may be developed in 106
133	154		consultation with entities with expertise in the legal and social 107
134	155		challenges faced by aging persons who identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual 108
135	156		or transgender or gender-nonconforming or who are living with human 109
136	157		immunodeficiency virus, and (B) shall provide facility staff with the 110
137	158		knowledge and skills necessary to provide effective care, in compliance 111
138		-	with the provisions of this section, for such persons. 112 Substitute Bill No. 6913
139		-
140		-
141		-	LCO 5 of 5
142		-
	159	+	with the provisions of this section, for such persons. 112
143	160		(3) Each long-term care facility shall ensure that a facility staff 113
144	161		member required to receive training pursuant to the provisions of this 114
145		-	subsection ~~receives~~ such training not more than six months after such 115
	162	+	subsection receive such training not more than six months after such 115
146	163		facility staff member is hired unless such facility staff member provides 116
147	164		proof of having received comparable training within the prior two years 117
148	165		that the facility determines complies with the provisions of this 118
149	166		subsection. If a facility determines that a facility staff member's prior 119
150	167		training complies with the provisions of this subsection, a record of the 120
151	168		content of such training sufficient to determine its compliance with the 121
152	169		provisions of this subsection shall be kept on site at such facility. 122
153	170		(h) If the Commissioner of Public Health finds that a long-term care 123
154	171		facility has failed to comply with the provisions of this section, the 124
155	172		commissioner may take any disciplinary action against such long-term 125
156	173		care facility permitted under section 19a-494 of the general statutes. 126
157	174		This act shall take effect as follows and shall amend the following
158	175		sections:
159	176
160	177		Section 1 October 1, 2025 New section
161	178
162		-	Statement of Legislative Commissioners:
163		-	In Subsec. (d)(2), "filed from" was changed to "filed by or on behalf of"
164		-	for clarity.
	179	+	Statement of Purpose:
	180	+	To prohibit long-term care facilities or long-term care facility staff from
	181	+	discriminating against any long-term care facility resident on the basis
	182	+	of such resident's actual or perceived sexual orientation, gender identity
	183	+	or expression or human immunodeficiency virus status.
165	184
166		-	AGE Joint Favorable Subst. -LCO
	185	+	Raised Bill No. 6913
	186	+
	187	+
	188	+
	189	+	LCO No. 4357 6 of 6
	190	+
	191	+	[Proposed deletions are enclosed in brackets. Proposed additions are indicated by underline, except
	192	+	that when the entire text of a bill or resolution or a section of a bill or resolution is new, it is not
	193	+	underlined.]
167	194