SLS 21RS-1990 ORIGINAL
2021 Regular Session
SENATE CONCURRENT RESOL UTION NO. 59
BY SENATOR BERNARD
HEALTH CARE. Requests the office of public health of the Louisiana Department of
Health to study and report relative to health care infrastructure needs in Louisiana.
1 A CONCURRENT RESOL UTION
2 To urge and request the office of public health of the Louisiana Department of Health to
3 study and submit a report relative to health care infrastructure needs in Louisiana.
4 WHEREAS, the health care industry has been presented with numerous challenges
5 over the past year and a half but has continued to meet the daily medical needs of patients,
6 as well as serving on the front lines protecting the lives and wellbeing of individuals in
7 emergencies, such as outbreaks of communicable disease, natural disasters, and manmade
8 emergencies; and
9 WHEREAS, to deliver the safe, timely, and effective care that Louisiana residents
10 depend upon, the health care industry continually maintains thousands of facilities
11 comprising physical infrastructure that relies on extensive, complex, and costly mechanical
12 and physical environment systems, information technology, medical equipment, and other
13 supplies such as personal protective equipment; and
14 WHEREAS, health care infrastructure faces a number of challenges some of which
15 have been exacerbated by the obstacles presented when caring for patients during the
16 COVID-19 pandemic required facilities to rapidly rethink and often "reinvent" their physical
17 infrastructure to mitigate the spread of the virus, increase critical care capacity, and adjust
18 to complex medication handling requirements to support treatments and vaccines, among
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SLS 21RS-1990 ORIGINAL
1 other needs; and
2 WHEREAS, the COVID-19 emergency, along with the unprecedented hurricane
3 season, and atypical cold weather, has also highlighted the importance of a strong digital
4 health infrastructure which includes access to adequate, affordable broadband connectivity
5 that is essential to enabling telehealth and increasing access to care for all Louisianians; and
6 WHEREAS, now, more than ever, investment is needed to ensure health care
7 facilities can meet the health care needs of residents and continue to be a source of jobs and
8 economic stability in their communities; and
9 WHEREAS, Louisiana is expected to receive significant federal funding earmarked
10 for infrastructure in the coming months and years and the state should embark on bringing
11 together stakeholders to research and report to the legislature on critical infrastructure needs
12 of the health care industry in advance of making appropriations.
13 THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the Legislature of Louisiana does hereby
14 urge and request the office of public health of the Louisiana Department of Health to study
15 health care infrastructure needs in Louisiana including but not limited to investing in
16 physical infrastructure, building capacity for emergency preparedness and response capacity,
17 expanding health care digital and data infrastructure, strengthening the health care
18 workforce, and identifying opportunities to mitigate the risks of having critical infrastructure
19 failures.
20 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the office shall engage health care industry
21 stakeholders to assess critical infrastructure needs.
22 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the office shall submit a written report of its
23 findings and recommendations to the Senate Committee on Finance, the House Committee
24 on Appropriations, and the Senate and House committees on health and welfare not later
25 than December 1, 2021.
26 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that a copy of this Resolution shall be transmitted
27 to the Louisiana Department of Health, office of public health.
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SLS 21RS-1990 ORIGINAL
The original instrument and the following digest, which constitutes no part
of the legislative instrument, were prepared by Jerry J. Guillot.
DIGEST
SCR 59 Original 2021 Regular Session Bernard
Requests the office of public health of the Louisiana Department of Health to study health
care infrastructure needs in Louisiana including but not limited to investing in physical
infrastructure, building capacity for emergency preparedness and response capacity,
expanding health care digital and data infrastructure, strengthening the health care
workforce, and identifying opportunities to mitigate the risks of having critical infrastructure
failures.
Requires the office to submit a written report of findings and recommendations to the Senate
Committee on Finance, the House Committee on Appropriations, and the Senate and House
committees on health and welfare not later than December 1, 2021.
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