Texas 2021 - 87th 1st C.S.

Texas House Bill HB206 Compare Versions

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

Old	New	Differences
1	1	87S10014 MCF-F
2	2	By: Darby H.B. No. 206
3	3
4	4
5	5	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
6	6	AN ACT
7	7	relating to a pilot project to provide emergency telemedicine
8	8	medical services and telehealth services in rural areas.
9	9	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
10	10	SECTION 1. Chapter 771, Health and Safety Code, is amended
11	11	by adding Subchapter F to read as follows:
12	12	SUBCHAPTER F. NEXT GENERATION 9-1-1 TELEMEDICINE MEDICAL SERVICES
13	13	AND TELEHEALTH SERVICES PILOT PROJECT
14	14	Sec. 771.151. DEFINITIONS. In this subchapter:
15	15	(1) "Center" means the area health education center at
16	16	the Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center that meets the
17	17	requirements of 42 U.S.C. Section 294a and has been awarded federal
18	18	funding as an area health education center.
19	19	(2) "Emergency medical services" means services used
20	20	to respond to an individual's perceived need for immediate medical
21	21	care and to prevent death or aggravation of physiological or
22	22	psychological illness or injury.
23	23	(3) "Emergency medical services provider" means a
24	24	person who uses or maintains emergency medical services vehicles,
25	25	medical equipment, and emergency medical services personnel to
26	26	provide emergency medical services.
27	27	(4) "Emergency prehospital care" means care provided
28	28	to a sick or injured individual before or during transportation of
29	29	the individual to a medical facility, and includes any necessary
30	30	stabilization of the individual in connection with that
31	31	transportation.
32	32	(5) "Pilot project" means a pilot project established
33	33	under Section 771.152.
34	34	(6) "Regional trauma resource center" means a trauma
35	35	facility the center selects to participate in the pilot project.
36	36	(7) "Rural area" means:
37	37	(A) a county with a population of 50,000 or less;
38	38	or
39	39	(B) a geographically large, isolated, and
40	40	sparsely populated area of a county with a population of more than
41	41	50,000.
42	42	(8) "Telehealth service" and "telemedicine medical
43	43	service" have the meanings assigned by Section 111.001, Occupations
44	44	Code.
45	45	(9) "Trauma facility" means a health care facility
46	46	equipped and staffed to provide comprehensive treatment of
47	47	seriously injured individuals as part of an emergency medical
48	48	services and trauma care system.
49	49	Sec. 771.152. ESTABLISHMENT OF PILOT PROJECT. (a) The
50	50	commission, with the assistance of the center, shall establish a
51	51	pilot project to provide emergency medical services instruction and
52	52	emergency prehospital care instruction through a telemedicine
53	53	medical service or telehealth service provided by regional trauma
54	54	resource centers to:
55	55	(1) health care providers in rural area trauma
56	56	facilities; and
57	57	(2) emergency medical services providers in rural
58	58	areas.
59	59	(b) The commission shall provide technical assistance to
60	60	the center in implementing the pilot project.
61	61	(c) The center, with the assistance of the commission,
62	62	shall:
63	63	(1) design criteria and protocols for each
64	64	telemedicine medical service or telehealth service offered and the
65	65	related instruction and provide the oversight necessary to conduct
66	66	the pilot project;
67	67	(2) define criteria to determine when a telemedicine
68	68	medical service or telehealth service that provides instruction for
69	69	emergency medical services, emergency prehospital care, and trauma
70	70	care should be transferred to an emergency medical resource center
71	71	for intervention; and
72	72	(3) collect the data necessary to evaluate the
73	73	project.
74	74	(d) The center may make available appropriate resources for
75	75	individuals who do not speak English.
76	76	Sec. 771.153. PERSONNEL. The center shall provide the
77	77	telemedicine medical service or telehealth service and related
78	78	instruction for the pilot project through health care providers in
79	79	regional trauma resource centers, including physicians,
80	80	pharmacists, emergency medical personnel, and other health
81	81	professionals.
82	82	Sec. 771.154. PARTICIPATION IN PILOT PROJECT. (a) The
83	83	center shall determine the trauma facilities and emergency medical
84	84	services providers interested in participating in the pilot
85	85	project.
86	86	(b) A trauma facility or emergency medical services
87	87	provider participating in the pilot project must agree to
88	88	successfully complete any required training and to provide all
89	89	reports required by the center for the project.
90	90	Sec. 771.155. SELECTION OF PROJECT PARTICIPANTS AND
91	91	REGIONAL TRAUMA RESOURCE CENTERS. (a) The center, with the
92	92	assistance of the commission, may select trauma facilities and
93	93	emergency medical services providers to participate in the pilot
94	94	project and select trauma facilities to serve as regional trauma
95	95	resource centers.
96	96	(b) The center may not select a trauma facility to
97	97	participate in the pilot project or to serve as a regional trauma
98	98	resource center unless the facility:
99	99	(1) has a quality assurance program that measures each
100	100	health care provider's compliance with the medical protocol;
101	101	(2) uses emergency medical services and emergency
102	102	prehospital care protocols approved by a physician medical director
103	103	knowledgeable in emergency medical services and emergency
104	104	prehospital care;
105	105	(3) has experience in providing emergency medical
106	106	services and emergency prehospital care that the center determines
107	107	is sufficient; and
108	108	(4) has resources sufficient to provide the additional
109	109	telemedicine medical services or telehealth services and related
110	110	instruction required for the project in addition to the health care
111	111	services already provided by the facility.
112	112	(c) In selecting a trauma facility to serve as a regional
113	113	trauma resource center, the center shall consider the facility
114	114	personnel's ability to maintain records and produce reports to
115	115	measure the effectiveness of the pilot project. The center shall
116	116	share information regarding that ability with the commission.
117	117	Sec. 771.156. FUNDING OF PILOT PROJECT. (a) Money
118	118	collected under Section 771.072(f) may be appropriated to the
119	119	commission to fund the pilot project.
120	120	(b) The center may seek grants to fund the pilot project.
121	121	(c) A political subdivision with a trauma facility that
122	122	participates in the pilot project may pay part of the costs of the
123	123	project.
124	124	(d) If a sufficient number of political subdivisions in a
125	125	region that may be served by the pilot project agree to pay the
126	126	center an amount that together with other funding received under
127	127	this section is sufficient to fund the project for the region, the
128	128	center shall:
129	129	(1) contract with the political subdivisions for each
130	130	to pay an appropriate share of the cost; and
131	131	(2) implement the project for the region when the
132	132	amounts agreed to in the contracts and any other funding received
133	133	under this section are sufficient to fund the project for the
134	134	region.
135	135	Sec. 771.157. REPORT TO LEGISLATURE. The center, in
136	136	cooperation with the commission, shall report its findings to the
137	137	governor and the presiding officer of each house of the legislature
138	138	not later than December 31, 2026.
139	139	Sec. 771.158. LIABILITY. The operations of the center and a
140	140	regional trauma resource center are considered to be the provision
141	141	of 9-1-1 services for purposes of Section 771.053. Employees of and
142	142	volunteers at the regional trauma resource center have the same
143	143	protection from liability as a member of the governing body of a
144	144	public agency under Section 771.053.
145	145	Sec. 771.159. WORK GROUP. (a) The center may appoint a
146	146	project work group to assist the center in developing,
147	147	implementing, and evaluating the pilot project and preparing a
148	148	report on the center's findings.
149	149	(b) A member of the work group is not entitled to
150	150	compensation for serving on the project work group and may not be
151	151	reimbursed for travel or other expenses incurred while conducting
152	152	the business of the project work group.
153	153	(c) The project work group is not subject to Chapter 2110,
154	154	Government Code.
155	155	Sec. 771.160. EXPIRATION. This subchapter expires
156	156	September 1, 2027.
157	157	SECTION 2. Section 771.072(g), Health and Safety Code, is
158	158	amended to read as follows:
159	159	(g) Notwithstanding any other law, revenue derived from the
160	160	equalization surcharge imposed under this section may be
161	161	appropriated to the commission only for the purposes described by
162	162	Section 771.156 and Sections 773.122 through 773.124.
163	163	SECTION 3. This Act takes effect on the 91st day after the
164	164	last day of the legislative session.