Texas 2023 - 88th Regular

Texas House Bill HB617 Compare Versions

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Version 2 (New)

Old	New	Differences
1	1	H.B. No. 617
2	2
3	3
4	4	AN ACT
5	5	relating to a pilot project to provide emergency telemedicine
6	6	medical services and telehealth services in rural areas.
7	7	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
8	8	SECTION 1. Chapter 771, Health and Safety Code, is amended
9	9	by adding Subchapter F to read as follows:
10	10	SUBCHAPTER F. NEXT GENERATION 9-1-1 TELEMEDICINE MEDICAL SERVICES
11	11	AND TELEHEALTH SERVICES PILOT PROJECT
12	12	Sec. 771.151. DEFINITIONS. In this subchapter:
13	13	(1) "Center" means the area health education center at
14	14	the Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center that meets the
15	15	requirements of 42 U.S.C. Section 294a and has been awarded federal
16	16	funding as an area health education center.
17	17	(2) "Emergency medical services" means services used
18	18	to respond to an individual's perceived need for immediate medical
19	19	care and to prevent death or aggravation of physiological or
20	20	psychological illness or injury.
21	21	(3) "Emergency medical services provider" means a
22	22	person who uses or maintains emergency medical services vehicles,
23	23	medical equipment, and emergency medical services personnel to
24	24	provide emergency medical services.
25	25	(4) "Emergency prehospital care" means care provided
26	26	to a sick or injured individual before or during transportation of
27	27	the individual to a medical facility, and includes any necessary
28	28	stabilization of the individual in connection with that
29	29	transportation.
30	30	(5) "Pilot project" means a pilot project established
31	31	under Section 771.152.
32	32	(6) "Regional trauma resource center" means a trauma
33	33	facility the center selects to participate in the pilot project.
34	34	(7) "Rural area" means:
35	35	(A) a county with a population of 50,000 or less;
36	36	or
37	37	(B) a large, isolated, and sparsely populated
38	38	area of a county with a population of more than 50,000.
39	39	(8) "Telehealth service" and "telemedicine medical
40	40	service" have the meanings assigned by Section 111.001, Occupations
41	41	Code.
42	42	(9) "Trauma facility" means a health care facility
43	43	equipped and staffed to provide comprehensive treatment of
44	44	seriously injured individuals as part of an emergency medical
45	45	services and trauma care system.
46	46	Sec. 771.152. ESTABLISHMENT OF PILOT PROJECT. (a) The
47	47	commission, with the assistance of the center, shall establish a
48	48	pilot project to provide emergency medical services instruction and
49	49	emergency prehospital care instruction through a telemedicine
50	50	medical service or telehealth service provided by regional trauma
51	51	resource centers to:
52	52	(1) health care providers in rural area trauma
53	53	facilities; and
54	54	(2) emergency medical services providers in rural
55	55	areas.
56	56	(b) The commission shall provide technical assistance to
57	57	the center in implementing the pilot project.
58	58	(c) The center, with the assistance of the commission,
59	59	shall:
60	60	(1) design criteria and protocols for each
61	61	telemedicine medical service or telehealth service offered and the
62	62	related instruction, and provide the oversight necessary to conduct
63	63	the pilot project;
64	64	(2) define criteria to determine when a telemedicine
65	65	medical service or telehealth service that provides instruction for
66	66	emergency medical services, emergency prehospital care, and trauma
67	67	care should be transferred to an emergency medical resource center
68	68	for intervention; and
69	69	(3) collect the data necessary to evaluate the
70	70	project.
71	71	(d) The center may make available appropriate resources for
72	72	individuals who do not speak English.
73	73	Sec. 771.153. PERSONNEL. The center shall provide the
74	74	telemedicine medical service or telehealth service and related
75	75	instruction for the pilot project through health care providers in
76	76	regional trauma resource centers, including physicians,
77	77	pharmacists, emergency medical personnel, and other health
78	78	professionals.
79	79	Sec. 771.154. PARTICIPATION IN PILOT PROJECT. (a) The
80	80	center shall determine the trauma facilities and emergency medical
81	81	services providers interested in participating in the pilot
82	82	project.
83	83	(b) A trauma facility or emergency medical services
84	84	provider participating in the pilot project must agree to
85	85	successfully complete any required training and to provide all
86	86	reports required by the center for the project.
87	87	Sec. 771.155. SELECTION OF PILOT PROJECT PARTICIPANTS AND
88	88	REGIONAL TRAUMA RESOURCE CENTERS. (a) The center, with the
89	89	assistance of the commission, may select trauma facilities and
90	90	emergency medical services providers to participate in the pilot
91	91	project and select trauma facilities to serve as regional trauma
92	92	resource centers.
93	93	(b) The center may not select a trauma facility to
94	94	participate in the pilot project or to serve as a regional trauma
95	95	resource center unless the facility:
96	96	(1) has a quality assurance program that measures each
97	97	health care provider's compliance with the medical protocol;
98	98	(2) uses emergency medical services and emergency
99	99	prehospital care protocols approved by a physician medical director
100	100	knowledgeable in emergency medical services and emergency
101	101	prehospital care;
102	102	(3) has experience in providing emergency medical
103	103	services and emergency prehospital care that the center determines
104	104	is sufficient; and
105	105	(4) has resources sufficient to provide the additional
106	106	telemedicine medical services or telehealth services and related
107	107	instruction required for the project in addition to the health care
108	108	services the facility already provides.
109	109	(c) In selecting a trauma facility to serve as a regional
110	110	trauma resource center, the center shall consider the facility
111	111	personnel's ability to maintain records and produce reports to
112	112	measure the effectiveness of the pilot project. The center shall
113	113	share information regarding that ability with the commission.
114	114	Sec. 771.156. FUNDING OF PILOT PROJECT. (a) Money
115	115	collected under Section 771.072(f) may be appropriated to the
116	116	commission to fund the pilot project.
117	117	(b) The center may seek grants to fund the pilot project.
118	118	(c) A political subdivision with a trauma facility that
119	119	participates in the pilot project may pay part of the project costs.
120	120	(d) If a sufficient number of political subdivisions in a
121	121	region that may be served by the pilot project agree to pay the
122	122	center an amount that together with other funding received under
123	123	this section is sufficient to fund the project for the region, the
124	124	center shall:
125	125	(1) contract with the political subdivisions for each
126	126	subdivision to pay an appropriate share of the cost; and
127	127	(2) implement the project for the region when the
128	128	amounts agreed to in the contracts and any other funding received
129	129	under this section are sufficient to fund the project for the
130	130	region.
131	131	Sec. 771.157. REPORT TO LEGISLATURE. The center, in
132	132	cooperation with the commission, shall report its findings to the
133	133	governor and the presiding officer of each house of the legislature
134	134	not later than December 31, 2028.
135	135	Sec. 771.158. LIABILITY. The operations of the center and a
136	136	regional trauma resource center are considered to be the provision
137	137	of 9-1-1 services for purposes of Section 771.053. Employees of and
138	138	volunteers at the regional trauma resource center have the same
139	139	protection from liability as a member of the governing body of a
140	140	public agency under Section 771.053.
141	141	Sec. 771.159. PROJECT WORK GROUP. (a) The center may
142	142	appoint a project work group to assist the center in developing,
143	143	implementing, and evaluating the pilot project and preparing a
144	144	report on the center's findings.
145	145	(b) A member of the project work group is not entitled to
146	146	compensation for serving on the project work group and may not be
147	147	reimbursed for travel or other expenses incurred while conducting
148	148	the business of the project work group.
149	149	(c) The project work group is not subject to Chapter 2110,
150	150	Government Code.
151	151	Sec. 771.160. EXPIRATION. This subchapter expires
152	152	September 1, 2029.
153	153	SECTION 2. Section 771.072(g), Health and Safety Code, is
154	154	amended to read as follows:
155	155	(g) Notwithstanding any other law, revenue derived from the
156	156	equalization surcharge imposed under this section may be
157	157	appropriated to the commission only for the purposes described by
158	158	Section 771.156 and Sections 773.122 through 773.124.
159	159	SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 2023.
160	160	______________________________ ______________________________
161	161	President of the Senate Speaker of the House
162	162	I certify that H.B. No. 617 was passed by the House on April
163	163	4, 2023, by the following vote: Yeas 142, Nays 2, 1 present, not
164	164	voting.
165	165	______________________________
166	166	Chief Clerk of the House
167	167	I certify that H.B. No. 617 was passed by the Senate on May
168	168	22, 2023, by the following vote: Yeas 30, Nays 1.
169	169	______________________________
170	170	Secretary of the Senate
171	171	APPROVED: _____________________
172	172	Date
173	173	_____________________
174	174	Governor