By: Naishtat (Senate Sponsor - Zaffirini) H.B. No. 3146
(In the Senate - Received from the House May 4, 2011;
May 5, 2011, read first time and referred to Committee on Health
and Human Services; May 13, 2011, reported favorably by the
following vote: Yeas 7, Nays 0; May 13, 2011, sent to printer.)
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to consent for treatment for chemical dependency in a
treatment facility and required training for the facility's intake
personnel.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Sections 462.009(e) and (g), Health and Safety
Code, are amended to read as follows:
(e) Consent given by a patient or by a person authorized by
law to consent to treatment on the patient's behalf for the
administration of a medication, therapy, or treatment is valid only
if:
(1) for consent to therapy or treatment:
(A) the consent is given voluntarily and without
coercive or undue influence; and
(B) [(2)] before administration of the
[medication,] therapy[,] or treatment, the treating physician or
the psychologist, social worker, professional counselor, or
chemical dependency counselor explains to the patient and to the
person giving consent, in simple, nontechnical language:
(i) [(A)] the specific condition to be
treated;
(ii) [(B)] the beneficial effects on that
condition expected from the [medication,] therapy[,] or treatment;
(iii) [(C)] the probable health and mental
health consequences of not consenting to the [medication,]
therapy[,] or treatment;
(iv) [(D)] the side effects and risks
associated with the [medication,] therapy[,] or treatment;
(v) [(E)] the generally accepted
alternatives to the [medication,] therapy[,] or treatment, if any,
and whether an alternative might be appropriate for the patient;
and
(vi) [(F)] the proposed course of the
[medication,] therapy[,] or treatment;
(2) for consent to the administration of medication:
(A) the consent is given voluntarily and without
coercive or undue influence; and
(B) the treating physician provides each
explanation required by Subdivision (1)(B) to the patient and to
the person giving consent in simple, nontechnical language; and
(3) for consent to medication, therapy, or treatment,
the informed consent is evidenced in the patient's clinical record
by a signed form prescribed by the commission for this purpose or by
a statement of the treating physician or the psychologist, social
worker, professional counselor, or chemical dependency counselor
who obtained the consent that documents that consent was given by
the appropriate person and the circumstances under which the
consent was obtained.
(g) Consent given by a patient or by a person authorized by
law to consent to treatment on the patient's behalf applies to a
series of doses of medication or to multiple therapies or
treatments for which consent was previously granted. If the
treating physician or the psychologist, social worker,
professional counselor, or chemical dependency counselor obtains
new information relating to a [medication,] therapy[,] or treatment
for which consent was previously obtained, the physician or the
psychologist, social worker, professional counselor, or chemical
dependency counselor must explain the new information and obtain
new consent. If the treating physician obtains new information
relating to a medication for which consent was previously obtained,
the physician must explain the new information and obtain new
consent.
SECTION 2. The heading to Section 462.025, Health and
Safety Code, is amended to read as follows:
Sec. 462.025. INTAKE, SCREENING, ASSESSMENT, AND
ADMISSION.
SECTION 3. Section 462.025, Health and Safety Code, is
amended by amending Subsections (a) and (e) and adding Subsection
(b-1) to read as follows:
(a) The commission shall adopt rules governing the
voluntary admission of a patient to a treatment facility, including
rules governing the intake, screening, and assessment procedures of
the admission process.
(b-1) The rules governing the screening process shall
establish minimum standards for determining whether a prospective
patient presents sufficient signs, symptoms, or behaviors
indicating a potential chemical dependency disorder to warrant a
more in-depth assessment by a qualified professional. The
screening must be reviewed and approved by a qualified
professional.
(e) In accordance with commission rule, a treatment
facility shall provide annually a minimum of two [eight] hours of
inservice training regarding intake and screening [and assessment]
for persons who will be conducting an intake or screening [or
assessment] for the facility. A person may not conduct intake or
screenings [or assessments] without having completed the initial
and applicable annual inservice training.
SECTION 4. Section 462.025(h), Health and Safety Code, is
amended by amending Subdivision (2) and adding Subdivision (4) to
read as follows:
(2) "Assessment" means the clinical [administrative]
process a treatment facility uses to gather information from a
prospective patient, including a medical history and the problem
for which the patient is seeking treatment, to determine whether a
prospective patient should be admitted.
(4) "Screening" means the process a treatment facility
uses to determine whether a prospective patient presents sufficient
signs, symptoms, or behaviors to warrant a more in-depth assessment
by a qualified professional.
SECTION 5. This Act takes effect September 1, 2011.
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