88R3105 JG-F
By: Schwertner, Perry S.B. No. 652
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to the office of the state long-term care ombudsman.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Section 101A.251, Human Resources Code, is
amended by adding Subdivision (3-b) to read as follows:
(3-b) "Patient care record" means a record related to
a specific patient's direct care.
SECTION 2. Section 101A.257, Human Resources Code, is
amended by adding Subsection (a-1) and amending Subsection (b) to
read as follows:
(a-1) An investigation conducted under this section is for
the sole purpose of gathering information necessary to resolve a
resident's complaint or grievance to the resident's satisfaction.
In an investigation conducted under this section, the state
long-term care ombudsman or a representative, including an
ombudsman designated under Section 101A.255, is not required to
collect evidence to satisfy a burden of proof required in an
investigation conducted by a licensing or regulatory agency or a
law enforcement agency, and the results of the investigation do not
need to include any determinations on whether a law or rule has been
violated for purposes of civil or criminal enforcement.
(b) The state long-term care ombudsman shall ensure that
each ombudsman designated under Section 101A.255 who investigates
complaints has received proper training and has been approved by
the office as qualified to investigate complaints. The training
must include instruction regarding state laws and regulations
applicable to the institutional setting in which the ombudsman will
conduct the investigation.
SECTION 3. Section 101A.258, Human Resources Code, is
amended by amending Subsections (a) and (a-1) and adding Subsection
(a-2) to read as follows:
(a) The state long-term care ombudsman and representatives
shall, as provided by commission rules, have access to a resident's
patient care records and to a long-term care facility's
administrative records, policies, and other documents that
residents and the general public have access to in the normal course
of business [of residents as provided by commission rules]. For
purposes of this subsection, documents obtained through litigation
are not considered to have been obtained in the normal course of
business. Except as provided by Subsection (b), all records and
information created or obtained by the state long-term care
ombudsman or a representative remain confidential.
(a-1) The state long-term care ombudsman and
representatives shall have access to a resident's patient care
records [of a resident] if:
(1) the state long-term care ombudsman or
representative has obtained the resident's [resident] or the
resident's legal representative's informed consent [representative
consents] to [the] access the records;
(2) the resident is unable to consent to the access and
the resident has no legal representative; or
(3) access to the records is necessary to investigate
a complaint and:
(A) a legal representative of the resident
refuses to consent to the access;
(B) the state long-term care ombudsman or
representative has reasonable cause to believe that the legal
representative of the resident is not acting in the best interests
of the resident; and
(C) the state long-term care ombudsman approves
the access.
(a-2) The office shall provide documentation to a long-term
care facility that is the subject of an investigation conducted
under Section 101A.257 evidencing that the state long-term care
ombudsman or a representative is entitled to access a resident's
patient care records by having satisfied the requirements of
Subsection (a-1)(1), (a-1)(2), or (a-1)(3), as applicable.
SECTION 4. Section 101A.261, Human Resources Code, is
amended to read as follows:
Sec. 101A.261. PUBLIC INFORMATION. (a) The office shall
provide information and make recommendations to public agencies,
legislators, and other persons about the problems and concerns of
residents.
(b) The office shall include on each of the office's
publications a disclosure statement explaining that:
(1) the office acts independently of the commission;
(2) the office does not regulate long-term care
facilities; and
(3) information the office publishes is for
educational purposes only.
SECTION 5. Section 101A.262(a), Human Resources Code, is
amended to read as follows:
(a) The office shall prepare a report that contains:
(1) information and findings relating to the problems
and concerns of residents; [and]
(2) policy, regulatory, and legislative
recommendations to solve the problems, resolve the concerns, and
improve the quality of the residents' care and lives;
(3) a list of persons representing the office who
submitted a sworn statement to a committee of the legislature
indicating the office was present in favor of, in opposition to, or
without taking a position on legislation and a description of the
legislation, including the bill number, the position taken, and a
summary of the testimony given; and
(4) if the office submitted a public comment on a
proposed rule published in the Texas Register, a citation to the
volume and page numbers in the Texas Register that included the
proposed rule and a summary of the submitted comment.
SECTION 6. This Act takes effect September 1, 2023.