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| 4 | 4 | | |
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| 5 | 5 | | A BILL TO BE ENTITLED |
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| 6 | 6 | | AN ACT |
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| 7 | 7 | | relating to authority of the Travis County Healthcare District to |
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| 8 | 8 | | appoint, contract for, or employ physicians. |
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| 9 | 9 | | BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
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| 10 | 10 | | SECTION 1. Subchapter B, Chapter 281, Health and Safety |
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| 11 | 11 | | Code, is amended by adding Section 281.02815 to read as follows: |
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| 12 | 12 | | Sec. 281.02815. EMPLOYMENT OF PHYSICIANS BY CERTAIN |
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| 13 | 13 | | HOSPITAL DISTRICTS. (a) This section applies only to a district |
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| 14 | 14 | | created in a county with a population of more than 800,000 that was |
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| 15 | 15 | | not included in the boundaries of a hospital district before |
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| 16 | 16 | | September 1, 2003. |
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| 17 | 17 | | (b) In addition to the authority to employ physicians under |
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| 18 | 18 | | Section 281.0281 in the manner and for the purposes provided by that |
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| 19 | 19 | | section, the board of the district may appoint, contract for, or |
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| 20 | 20 | | employ physicians as the board considers necessary for the |
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| 21 | 21 | | efficient operation of the district. |
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| 22 | 22 | | (c) The term of an employment contract entered into under |
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| 23 | 23 | | this section may not exceed four years. |
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| 24 | 24 | | (d) This section may not be construed as authorizing the |
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| 25 | 25 | | board to supervise or control the practice of medicine, as |
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| 26 | 26 | | prohibited by Subtitle B, Title 3, Occupations Code. |
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| 27 | 27 | | (e) The authority granted to the board under Subsection (b) |
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| 28 | 28 | | to employ physicians shall apply as necessary for the district to |
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| 29 | 29 | | fulfill the district's statutory mandate to provide medical care |
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| 30 | 30 | | for the indigent and needy residents of the district as provided by |
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| 31 | 31 | | Section 281.046. |
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| 32 | 32 | | (f) The medical executive board of the district shall adopt, |
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| 33 | 33 | | maintain, and enforce policies to ensure that a physician employed |
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| 34 | 34 | | by the district under this section exercises the physician's |
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| 35 | 35 | | independent medical judgment in providing care to patients. |
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| 36 | 36 | | (g) The policies adopted by the medical executive board |
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| 37 | 37 | | under this section must include: |
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| 38 | 38 | | (1) policies relating to: |
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| 39 | 39 | | (A) governance of the medical executive board; |
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| 40 | 40 | | (B) credentialing; |
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| 41 | 41 | | (C) quality assurance; |
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| 42 | 42 | | (D) utilization review; |
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| 43 | 43 | | (E) peer review; |
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| 44 | 44 | | (F) medical decision-making; and |
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| 45 | 45 | | (G) due process; and |
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| 46 | 46 | | (2) rules requiring the disclosure of financial |
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| 47 | 47 | | conflicts of interest by a member of the medical executive board. |
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| 48 | 48 | | (h) The medical executive board and the board of the |
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| 49 | 49 | | district shall jointly develop and implement a conflict management |
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| 50 | 50 | | process to resolve any conflict between a policy adopted by the |
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| 51 | 51 | | medical executive board under this section and a policy of the |
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| 52 | 52 | | district. |
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| 53 | 53 | | (i) A member of the medical executive board who is a |
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| 54 | 54 | | physician shall provide biennially to the chair of the medical |
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| 55 | 55 | | executive board a signed, verified statement indicating that the |
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| 56 | 56 | | board member: |
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| 57 | 57 | | (1) is licensed by the Texas Medical Board; |
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| 58 | 58 | | (2) will exercise independent medical judgment in all |
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| 59 | 59 | | medical executive board matters, including matters relating to: |
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| 60 | 60 | | (A) credentialing; |
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| 61 | 61 | | (B) quality assurance; |
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| 62 | 62 | | (C) utilization review; |
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| 63 | 63 | | (D) peer review; |
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| 64 | 64 | | (E) medical decision-making; and |
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| 65 | 65 | | (F) due process; |
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| 66 | 66 | | (3) will exercise the board member's best efforts to |
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| 67 | 67 | | ensure compliance with the policies that are adopted or established |
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| 68 | 68 | | by the medical executive board; and |
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| 69 | 69 | | (4) will report immediately to the Texas Medical Board |
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| 70 | 70 | | any action or event that the board member reasonably and in good |
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| 71 | 71 | | faith believes constitutes a compromise of the independent medical |
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| 72 | 72 | | judgment of a physician in caring for a patient. |
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| 73 | 73 | | (j) For all matters relating to the practice of medicine, |
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| 74 | 74 | | each physician employed by the district under this section shall |
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| 75 | 75 | | ultimately report to the chair of the medical executive board for |
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| 76 | 76 | | the district. |
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| 77 | 77 | | SECTION 2. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives |
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| 78 | 78 | | a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as |
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| 79 | 79 | | provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this |
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| 80 | 80 | | Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this |
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| 81 | 81 | | Act takes effect September 1, 2019. |
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