Texas 2011 - 82nd Regular

Texas House Bill HB2040 Compare Versions

The same version is selected twice. Please select two different versions to compare.

Version 1 (Old)

Version 2 (New)

Old	New	Differences
1	1	By: Hamilton (Senate Sponsor - Williams) H.B. No. 2040
2	2	(In the Senate - Received from the House April 26, 2011;
3	3	May 4, 2011, read first time and referred to Committee on
4	4	Transportation and Homeland Security; May 17, 2011, reported
5	5	favorably by the following vote: Yeas 6, Nays 0; May 17, 2011,
6	6	sent to printer.)
7	7
8	8
9	9	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
10	10	AN ACT
11	11	relating to critical incident stress management and crisis response
12	12	services.
13	13	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
14	14	SECTION 1. Subtitle B, Title 9, Health and Safety Code, is
15	15	amended by adding Chapter 784 to read as follows:
16	16	CHAPTER 784. CRITICAL INCIDENT STRESS MANAGEMENT AND CRISIS
17	17	RESPONSE SERVICES
18	18	Sec. 784.001. DEFINITIONS. In this chapter:
19	19	(1) "Crisis response service" means consultation,
20	20	risk assessment, referral, and on-site crisis intervention
21	21	services provided by an emergency response team member to an
22	22	emergency service provider affected by a crisis or disaster.
23	23	(2) "Critical incident stress" means the acute or
24	24	cumulative psychological stress or trauma that an emergency service
25	25	provider may experience in providing emergency services in response
26	26	to a critical incident, including a crisis, disaster, or emergency.
27	27	The stress or trauma is an unusually strong emotional, cognitive,
28	28	or physical reaction that has the potential to interfere with
29	29	normal functioning, including:
30	30	(A) physical and emotional illness;
31	31	(B) failure of usual coping mechanisms;
32	32	(C) loss of interest in the job;
33	33	(D) personality changes; and
34	34	(E) loss of ability to function.
35	35	(3) "Critical incident stress management service"
36	36	means a service providing a process of crisis intervention designed
37	37	to assist an emergency service provider in coping with critical
38	38	incident stress. The term includes consultation, counseling,
39	39	debriefing, defusing, intervention services, case management
40	40	services, prevention, and referral.
41	41	(4) "Emergency response team member" means an
42	42	individual providing critical incident stress management services
43	43	or crisis response services, or both, who is designated by an
44	44	appropriate state or local governmental unit to provide those
45	45	services as a member of an organized team or in association with the
46	46	governmental unit.
47	47	(5) "Emergency service provider" means an individual
48	48	who provides emergency response services, including a law
49	49	enforcement officer, firefighter, emergency medical services
50	50	provider, dispatcher, or rescue service provider.
51	51	Sec. 784.002. CLOSED MEETINGS. (a) Except as provided by
52	52	Subsection (b) and notwithstanding Chapter 551, Government Code, or
53	53	any other law, a meeting in which critical incident stress
54	54	management services or crisis response services are provided to an
55	55	emergency service provider:
56	56	(1) is closed to the general public; and
57	57	(2) may be closed to any individual who was not
58	58	directly involved in the critical incident or crisis.
59	59	(b) Subsection (a) does not apply if:
60	60	(1) the emergency service provider or the legal
61	61	representative of the provider expressly agrees that the meeting
62	62	may be open to the general public or to certain individuals; or
63	63	(2) the emergency service provider is deceased.
64	64	Sec. 784.003. CONFIDENTIALITY. (a) Except as otherwise
65	65	provided by this section:
66	66	(1) a communication made by an emergency service
67	67	provider to an emergency response team member while the provider
68	68	receives critical incident stress management services or crisis
69	69	response services is confidential and may not be disclosed in a
70	70	civil, criminal, or administrative proceeding; and
71	71	(2) a record kept by an emergency response team member
72	72	relating to the provision of critical incident stress management
73	73	services or crisis response services to an emergency service
74	74	provider by the team is confidential and is not subject to subpoena,
75	75	discovery, or introduction into evidence in a civil, criminal, or
76	76	administrative proceeding.
77	77	(b) A court in a civil or criminal case or the
78	78	decision-making entity in an administrative proceeding may allow
79	79	disclosure of a communication or record described by Subsection (a)
80	80	if the court or entity finds that the benefit of allowing disclosure
81	81	of the communication or record is more important than protecting
82	82	the privacy of the individual.
83	83	(c) A communication or record described by Subsection (a)
84	84	is not confidential if:
85	85	(1) the emergency response team member reasonably
86	86	needs to make an appropriate referral of the emergency service
87	87	provider to or consult about the provider with another member of the
88	88	team or an appropriate professional associated with the team;
89	89	(2) the communication conveys information that the
90	90	emergency service provider is or appears to be an imminent threat to
91	91	the provider or anyone else;
92	92	(3) the communication conveys information relating to
93	93	a past, present, or future criminal act that does not directly
94	94	relate to the critical incident or crisis;
95	95	(4) the emergency service provider or the legal
96	96	representative of the provider expressly agrees that the
97	97	communication or record is not confidential; or
98	98	(5) the emergency service provider is deceased.
99	99	(d) A communication or record described by Subsection (a) is
100	100	not confidential to the extent that it conveys information
101	101	concerning the services and care provided to or withheld by the
102	102	emergency service provider to an individual injured in the critical
103	103	incident or during the crisis.
104	104	Sec. 784.004. LIMITATION ON LIABILITY. (a) Except as
105	105	provided by Subsection (b), an emergency response team or an
106	106	emergency response team member providing critical incident stress
107	107	management services or crisis response services is not liable for
108	108	damages, including personal injury, wrongful death, property
109	109	damage, or other loss related to the team's or member's act, error,
110	110	or omission in the performance of the services, unless the act,
111	111	error, or omission constitutes wanton, wilful, or intentional
112	112	misconduct.
113	113	(b) Subsection (a) limits liability for damages in any civil
114	114	action, other than an action under Chapter 74, Civil Practice and
115	115	Remedies Code.
116	116	SECTION 2. Chapter 784, Health and Safety Code, as added by
117	117	this Act, applies only to critical incident stress management
118	118	services and crisis response services, as those terms are defined
119	119	by Section 784.001, Health and Safety Code, as added by this Act,
120	120	provided in relation to a critical incident or crisis that occurs
121	121	on or after the effective date of this Act.
122	122	SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 2011.
123	123	* * * * *