By: Zaffirini S.B. No. 1560
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to chemical dependency treatment facilities.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Section 462.009(e), Health and Safety Code, is
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) before administration of the 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 or in writing:
(i) the specific condition to be treated;
(ii) the beneficial effects on that
condition expected from the therapy or treatment;
(iii) the probable health and mental health
consequences of not consenting to the therapy or treatment;
(iv) the side effects and risks associated
with the therapy or treatment;
(v) the generally accepted alternatives to
the therapy or treatment, if any, and whether an alternative might
be appropriate for the patient; and
(vi) the proposed course of the 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 or person delegated by
the treating physician or medical director 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.
SECTION 2. Section 462.025(h), Health and Safety Code, is
amended to read as follows:
(h) In this section:
(1) "Admission" means the formal acceptance of a
prospective patient to a treatment facility.
(2) "Assessment" means the clinical 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.
(3) "Intake" means the administrative process for
gathering information about a prospective patient and giving a
prospective patient information about the treatment facility and
the facility's treatment and services.
(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 after a patient is admitted.
SECTION 3. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives
a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as
provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this
Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this
Act takes effect September 1, 2015.