Texas 2021 - 87th Regular

Texas House Bill HB933 Compare Versions

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

Old	New	Differences
1	1	87R569 EAS-F
2	2	By: Raymond H.B. No. 933
3	3
4	4
5	5	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
6	6	AN ACT
7	7	relating to inspection procedures in and a legislative oversight
8	8	committee for certain long-term care facilities.
9	9	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
10	10	SECTION 1. Section 247.027, Health and Safety Code, is
11	11	amended by adding Subsections (c), (d), and (e) to read as follows:
12	12	(c) An officer or employee of an assisted living facility
13	13	may require a commission inspector who is a licensed health care
14	14	professional to provide proof of licensure before the inspector
15	15	conducts an inspection of the facility.
16	16	(d) A commission inspector shall include on the
17	17	commission's inspection checklist:
18	18	(1) a brief description of the evidence supporting
19	19	each cited violation; and
20	20	(2) the name and title of the person who discovered
21	21	each cited violation.
22	22	(e) The executive commissioner shall:
23	23	(1) adopt rules to ensure that among the commission's
24	24	community services regions the commission uniformly administers
25	25	inspections and consistently interprets and enforces the laws and
26	26	rules regulating assisted living facilities; and
27	27	(2) prepare and deliver a semiannual progress report
28	28	on uniform administration, interpretation, and enforcement to
29	29	appropriate health and human services legislative standing
30	30	committees.
31	31	SECTION 2. Section 247.0271, Health and Safety Code, is
32	32	amended by adding Subsections (c-1) and (e) to read as follows:
33	33	(c-1) The inspector may not:
34	34	(1) conduct an additional inspection during an
35	35	additional exit conference; or
36	36	(2) use an additional exit conference to retaliate
37	37	against an assisted living facility for:
38	38	(A) filing a complaint against the commission or
39	39	the inspector regarding an inspection; or
40	40	(B) requesting an administrative hearing to
41	41	contest a cited violation.
42	42	(e) The inspector may not require an assisted living
43	43	facility, through an inspection or the final official statement of
44	44	violations, to take any action that conflicts with a written order
45	45	of a physician. A facility in the facility's plan of correction
46	46	shall provide evidence that the statement of violations conflicts
47	47	with the physician's written order. A facility is not required to
48	48	correct a violation that conflicts with the physician's written
49	49	order.
50	50	SECTION 3. Section 252.040, Health and Safety Code, is
51	51	amended by amending Subsection (i) and adding Subsections (j) and
52	52	(k) to read as follows:
53	53	(i) The commission [department] shall have specialized
54	54	staff conduct inspections, surveys, or investigations of
55	55	facilities under this section. An officer or employee of a facility
56	56	may require a commission representative who is a licensed health
57	57	care professional to provide proof of licensure before the
58	58	representative conducts an inspection, survey, or investigation of
59	59	the facility.
60	60	(j) The commission or the commission's representative shall
61	61	include on the commission's inspection form:
62	62	(1) a brief description of the evidence supporting
63	63	each cited violation; and
64	64	(2) the name and title of the person who discovered
65	65	each cited violation.
66	66	(k) The executive commissioner shall:
67	67	(1) adopt rules to ensure that among the commission's
68	68	community services regions the commission uniformly administers
69	69	inspections, surveys, and investigations and consistently
70	70	interprets and enforces the laws and rules regulating facilities
71	71	licensed under this chapter; and
72	72	(2) prepare and deliver a semiannual progress report
73	73	on uniform administration, interpretation, and enforcement to the
74	74	appropriate health and human services legislative standing
75	75	committees.
76	76	SECTION 4. Section 252.044, Health and Safety Code, is
77	77	amended by adding Subsections (b-1) and (d) to read as follows:
78	78	(b-1) The commission or the commission's representative may
79	79	not:
80	80	(1) conduct an additional inspection, survey, or
81	81	investigation during an additional exit conference; or
82	82	(2) use an additional exit conference to retaliate
83	83	against a facility for:
84	84	(A) filing a complaint against the commission or
85	85	the commission's representative regarding an inspection, survey,
86	86	or investigation; or
87	87	(B) requesting an administrative hearing to
88	88	contest a cited violation.
89	89	(d) The commission or the commission's representative may
90	90	not require a facility, through an inspection, survey, or
91	91	investigation or the final official statement of violations, to
92	92	take any action that conflicts with a written order of a physician.
93	93	A facility in the facility's plan to correct violations shall
94	94	provide evidence that the statement of violations conflicts with
95	95	the physician's written order. A facility is not required to
96	96	correct a violation that conflicts with the physician's written
97	97	order.
98	98	SECTION 5. Chapter 531, Government Code, is amended by
99	99	adding Subchapter E-1 to read as follows:
100	100	SUBCHAPTER E-1. LONG-TERM CARE LEGISLATIVE OVERSIGHT COMMITTEE
101	101	Sec. 531.181. DEFINITIONS. In this subchapter:
102	102	(1) "Committee" means the long-term care legislative
103	103	oversight committee.
104	104	(2) "Facility" means:
105	105	(A) a nursing facility licensed under Chapter
106	106	242, Health and Safety Code;
107	107	(B) an assisted living facility licensed under
108	108	Chapter 247, Health and Safety Code; and
109	109	(C) an intermediate care facility licensed under
110	110	Chapter 252, Health and Safety Code.
111	111	Sec. 531.182. COMPOSITION OF COMMITTEE; PRESIDING OFFICER.
112	112	(a) The committee is composed of:
113	113	(1) two members of the senate and one public member
114	114	appointed by the lieutenant governor; and
115	115	(2) two members of the house of representatives and
116	116	one public member appointed by the speaker of the house of
117	117	representatives.
118	118	(b) A member of the committee serves at the pleasure of the
119	119	appointing official.
120	120	(c) The lieutenant governor and the speaker of the house of
121	121	representatives shall alternate appointing the presiding officer
122	122	of the committee. The presiding officer shall serve a two-year term
123	123	expiring February 1 of each odd-numbered year.
124	124	Sec. 531.183. COMMITTEE POWERS AND DUTIES. (a) The
125	125	committee shall:
126	126	(1) meet at the call of the presiding officer;
127	127	(2) receive, review, and comment on rules proposed by
128	128	the executive commissioner; and
129	129	(3) review recommendations for legislation proposed
130	130	by the commission or the attorney general relating to facilities.
131	131	(b) Notwithstanding Chapter 551 or any other law, the
132	132	committee may meet by telephone conference call, videoconference,
133	133	or other similar telecommunication method. A meeting held by
134	134	telephone conference call, videoconference, or other similar
135	135	telecommunication method is subject to the requirements of Sections
136	136	551.125(c), (d), (e), and (f).
137	137	(c) The committee may hear a facility's complaint regarding
138	138	an operational dispute and make a recommendation to the commission.
139	139	(d) The committee may issue process, in accordance with
140	140	Section 301.024, to compel the attendance of witnesses and the
141	141	production of books, records, documents, and instruments required
142	142	by the committee.
143	143	(e) The committee may monitor the effectiveness and
144	144	efficiency of the facility regulatory system of this state.
145	145	(f) The committee may propose legislation relating to
146	146	facilities.
147	147	(g) The committee may request reports and other information
148	148	from the commission and the attorney general relating to:
149	149	(1) the facility regulatory and enforcement system of
150	150	this state;
151	151	(2) the standards for including a facility in the
152	152	STAR+PLUS Medicaid managed care program; and
153	153	(3) the effectiveness of the STAR+PLUS Medicaid
154	154	managed care program in reducing preventable acute care costs.
155	155	(h) The committee shall use the existing staff resources of
156	156	the senate and the house of representatives to assist the committee
157	157	in performing its duties under this section.
158	158	Sec. 531.184. REPORT. (a) The committee shall submit a
159	159	report to the governor, lieutenant governor, and speaker of the
160	160	house of representatives not later than November 15 of each
161	161	even-numbered year.
162	162	(b) The report must:
163	163	(1) identify any significant problems in the facility
164	164	regulatory and enforcement system, with recommendations for
165	165	action;
166	166	(2) examine the effectiveness and efficiency of the
167	167	facility regulatory system of this state, with recommendations for
168	168	action; and
169	169	(3) include recommendations for any necessary or
170	170	appropriate legislative action.
171	171	Sec. 531.185. EXPIRATION. This subchapter expires
172	172	September 1, 2025.
173	173	SECTION 6. (a) As soon as practicable after the effective
174	174	date of this Act, the executive commissioner of the Health and Human
175	175	Services Commission shall adopt the rules necessary to implement
176	176	the changes in law made by this Act.
177	177	(b) Not later than December 1, 2021, the Health and Human
178	178	Services Commission shall modify inspection forms to conform to the
179	179	requirements of this Act.
180	180	(c) The changes in law made by this Act apply only to an
181	181	inspection, survey, or investigation conducted on or after January
182	182	1, 2022.
183	183	(d) As soon as practicable after the effective date of this
184	184	Act, the lieutenant governor and the speaker of the house of
185	185	representatives shall appoint members to the long-term care
186	186	legislative oversight committee as required by Subchapter E-1,
187	187	Chapter 531, Government Code, as added by this Act. The speaker of
188	188	the house of representatives shall appoint the first presiding
189	189	officer of the committee.
190	190	SECTION 7. This Act takes effect September 1, 2021.