Rhode Island 2023 Regular Session

Rhode Island Senate Bill S0295 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.

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5	5	2023 -- S 0295
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7	7	LC000952
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9	9	S TATE OF RHODE IS LAND
10	10	IN GENERAL ASSEMBLY
11	11	JANUARY SESSION, A.D. 2023
12	12	____________
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14	14	A N A C T
15	15	RELATING TO BUSINESSES AND PROFESSIONS -- "THE RHODE ISLAND INFORMED
16	16	CONSENT PROTECTION A CT"
17	17	Introduced By: Senators de la Cruz, Rogers, F. Lombardi, Ciccone, DeLuca, E Morgan,
18	18	and Raptakis
19	19	Date Introduced: February 16, 2023
20	20	Referred To: Senate Health & Human Services
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23	23	It is enacted by the General Assembly as follows:
24	24	SECTION 1. Title 5 of the General Laws entitled "BUSINESSES AND PROFESSIONS" 1
25	25	is hereby amended by adding thereto the following chapter: 2
26	26	CHAPTER 37.8 3
27	27	THE RHODE ISLAND INFORMED CONSENT PROTECTION ACT 4
28	28	5-37.8-1. Short title. 5
29	29	This chapter shall be known and may be cited as "The Rhode Island Informed Consent 6
30	30	Protection Act." 7
31	31	5-37.8-2. Definitions. 8
32	32	The following words and phrases as used in this chapter shall have the following meanings: 9
33	33	(1) "Department" means the Rhode Island department of health. 10
34	34	(2) "Director" means the director of the Rhode Island department of health. 11
35	35	(3) "Emergency medical condition" shall have the same meaning as promulgated in § 27-12
36	36	18-76. 13
37	37	(4) "Informed consent" means the permission granted with knowledge of the possible 14
38	38	consequences to include full knowledge of the possible risks and benefits and with voluntary 15
39	39	agreement being absent of coercion, threat or punishment. 16
40	40	(5) "License" means any license or registration issued or regulated by the department of 17
41	41	health to practice medicine, provide health care services or to provide institutional health care 18
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44	44	LC000952 - Page 2 of 5
45	45	services. 1
46	46	(6) "Practitioner" means any person in possession of a license or registration and engaged 2
47	47	in providing health care services. 3
48	48	5-37.8-3. Nondiscrimination for vaccine refusal. 4
49	49	(a) A practitioner or a health care facility may not discriminate against a patient or parent 5
50	50	or guardian of a patient based solely upon a patient or parent or guardian of a patient choosing to 6
51	51	delay or decline a vaccination. Exercising the right to informed consent by delaying or declining 7
52	52	vaccinations under this chapter may not be the reason for a patient or family member of a patient 8
53	53	to be dismissed from a practice or lose medical privileges or benefits. 9
54	54	(b) Prohibition against harassment. A practitioner or health care facility shall not harass, 10
55	55	coerce, or threaten a patient or parent or guardian of a patient for exercising the right to delay or 11
56	56	decline a vaccination. 12
57	57	(c) Any insurer as defined in § 27-18.4-1 shall not deny coverage, increase a premium or 13
58	58	otherwise discriminate against an insured or applicant for insurance based on the individual's choice 14
59	59	to delay or decline a vaccination for the individual or the individual's child. 15
60	60	(d) No employer shall deny employment, terminate employment, or otherwise discriminate 16
61	61	against an individual based on the individual's choice to delay or decline vaccination. 17
62	62	(e) No insurer shall discriminate against a practitioner or health care facility by decreasing 18
63	63	reimbursement, by imposition of financial penalties, or by denial of participation in an insurance 19
64	64	plan as a result of a practitioner's decision to not vaccinate a patient. 20
65	65	5-37.8-4. Prohibited activities. 21
66	66	(a) A practitioner shall not accept a monetary payment in the form of a bonus or other 22
67	67	incentive from an insurance company or pharmaceutical company for patient vaccination. 23
68	68	(b) A practitioner shall not require a patient or parent or guardian of a patient to sign a 24
69	69	liability waiver as a condition to receive medical care in the event the patient or parent or guardian 25
70	70	of a patient chooses to delay or decline a vaccination. 26
71	71	5-37.8-5. Informed consent in writing. 27
72	72	Practitioners providing vaccines shall provide informed consent in writing to be signed by 28
73	73	the recipient, or in the case of a minor child the signature of a parent or legal guardian shall be 29
74	74	acquired prior to administration of the vaccine. The language of the informed consent shall be 30
75	75	approved by the director and shall contain an advisement of the right to decline the vaccine, and 31
76	76	information regarding the possibility of recovery pursuant to a claim filed for injury resulting from 32
77	77	a covered vaccine by petition to the National Vaccine Injury Compensation Program. 33
78	78	5-37.8-6. Civil recovery and penalties. 34
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82	82	(a) Any person who violates the provisions of this chapter may be held liable for actual 1
83	83	damages. 2
84	84	(b) Any person who, after a hearing is found to have intentionally and knowingly violated 3
85	85	the provision of this chapter, shall be fined not more than twenty-five thousand dollars ($25,000) 4
86	86	per patient, per violation. 5
87	87	5-37.8-7. Rules and regulations. 6
88	88	The director of the department of health shall develop rules and regulations to implement 7
89	89	the provisions of this chapter. 8
90	90	5-37.8-8. Enforcement. 9
91	91	The director shall have the power to investigate complaints of violation of this chapter by 10
92	92	any practitioner, to conduct evidentiary hearings, impose discipline and fines for violations. 11
93	93	5-37.8-9. Appeal procedure. 12
94	94	In the case of any adverse determination by the director pursuant to § 5-37.8-8, appeals 13
95	95	may be taken in accordance with the administrative procedures act, chapter 35 of title 42. 14
96	96	SECTION 3. Section 40-11-3 of the General Laws in Chapter 40-11 entitled "Abused and 15
97	97	Neglected Children" is hereby amended to read as follows: 16
98	98	40-11-3. Duty to report — Deprivation of nutrition or medical treatment. 17
99	99	(a) Any person who has reasonable cause to know or suspect that any child has been abused 18
100	100	or neglected as defined in § 40-11-2, or has been a victim of sexual abuse by another child, shall, 19
101	101	within twenty-four (24) hours, transfer that information to the department of children, youth and 20
102	102	families, or its agent, which shall cause the report to be investigated immediately. As a result of 21
103	103	those reports and referrals, protective social services shall be made available to those children in 22
104	104	an effort to safeguard and enhance the welfare of those children and to provide a means to prevent 23
105	105	further abuse or neglect. The department shall establish and implement a single, statewide, toll-free 24
106	106	telephone to operate twenty-four (24) hours per day, seven (7) days per week for the receipt of 25
107	107	reports concerning child abuse and neglect, which reports shall be electronically recorded and 26
108	108	placed in the central registry established by § 42-72-7. The department shall create a sign, using a 27
109	109	format that is clear, simple, and understandable to students, that contains the statewide, toll-free 28
110	110	telephone number for posting in all public and private schools in languages predominately spoken 29
111	111	in the state, containing pertinent information relating to reporting the suspicion of child abuse, 30
112	112	neglect, and sexual abuse. This sign shall be available to the school districts electronically. The 31
113	113	electronically recorded records, properly indexed by date and other essential, identifying data, shall 32
114	114	be maintained for a minimum of three (3) years; provided, however, any person who has been 33
115	115	reported for child abuse and/or neglect, and who has been determined not to have neglected and/or 34
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119	119	abused a child, shall have his or her record expunged as to that incident three (3) years after that 1
120	120	determination. The department shall continuously maintain a management-information database 2
121	121	that includes all of the information required to implement this section, including the number of 3
122	122	cases reported by hospitals, healthcare centers, emergency rooms, and other appropriate healthcare 4
123	123	facilities. 5
124	124	(b) The reporting shall include immediate notification of the department of any instance 6
125	125	where parents of an infant have requested deprivation of nutrition that is necessary to sustain life 7
126	126	and/or who have requested deprivation of medical or surgical intervention that is necessary to 8
127	127	remedy or ameliorate a life-threatening medical condition, if the nutrition or medical or surgical 9
128	128	intervention is generally provided to similar nutritional, medical, or surgical conditioned infants, 10
129	129	whether disabled or not. 11
130	130	No investigation shall be initiated against a parent or guardian for the sole reason that the 12
131	131	parent or guardian chose to delay or decline a vaccination for a child of the parent or under the care 13
132	132	of the guardian. 14
133	133	(c) Nothing in this section shall be interpreted to prevent a child’s parents and physician 15
134	134	from discontinuing the use of life-support systems or nonpalliative treatment for a child who is 16
135	135	terminally ill where, in the opinion of the child’s physician exercising competent medical judgment, 17
136	136	the child has no reasonable chance of recovery from the terminal illness despite every, appropriate 18
137	137	medical treatment to correct the condition. 19
138	138	SECTION 4. This act shall take effect upon passage. 20
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140	140	LC000952
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144	144	LC000952 - Page 5 of 5
145	145	EXPLANATION
146	146	BY THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL
147	147	OF
148	148	A N A C T
149	149	RELATING TO BUSINESSES AND PROFESSIONS -- "THE RHODE ISLAND INFORMED
150	150	CONSENT PROTECTION A CT"
151	151	***
152	152	This act would require that health care professionals provide written informed consent 1
153	153	signed by the recipient, or in the case of a minor child, by a parent or guardian prior to 2
154	154	administration of a vaccine. It would prohibit discrimination against individuals who refuse or 3
155	155	delay vaccines. The act would also provide for civil recovery and fines of up to twenty-five 4
156	156	thousand dollars ($25,000) for violations. It would further prohibit DCYF from investigating a 5
157	157	parent/guardian for failure to vaccinate child. 6
158	158	This act would take effect upon passage. 7
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160	160	LC000952
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