Texas 2025 - 89th Regular

Texas House Bill HB2374 Compare Versions

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

Old	New	Differences
1	1	89R10001 MCF-D
2	2	By: Campos H.B. No. 2374
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7	7	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
8	8	AN ACT
9	9	relating to infection prevention and control programs and other
10	10	communicable diseases measures at certain long-term care
11	11	facilities; authorizing an administrative penalty.
12	12	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
13	13	SECTION 1. Section 81.014, Health and Safety Code, is
14	14	amended to read as follows:
15	15	Sec. 81.014. LONG-TERM CARE FACILITY INFECTION PREVENTION
16	16	AND CONTROL PROGRAMS [PROGRAM]. (a) Each long-term care facility
17	17	shall, with advice from and subject to the approval of a quality
18	18	assessment and assurance committee designated under Subsection
19	19	(c), establish and maintain an [facility's] infection prevention
20	20	and control program designed to:
21	21	(1) provide to facility residents and personnel a
22	22	safe, sanitary, and comfortable environment; and
23	23	(2) assist with preventing the development and
24	24	transmission of communicable diseases and infections among
25	25	facility residents and personnel.
26	26	(b) A long-term care facility's infection prevention and
27	27	control program must include:
28	28	(1) monitoring of key infectious agents, including
29	29	multidrug-resistant organisms; [and]
30	30	(2) procedures for making rapid influenza diagnostic
31	31	tests available to facility residents and personnel; and
32	32	(3) procedures for ensuring rapid antigen COVID-19
33	33	viral tests are available to facility residents and personnel as
34	34	needed.
35	35	(c) Each long-term care facility shall designate a quality
36	36	assessment and assurance committee to approve and monitor the
37	37	facility's infection prevention and control program. The facility's
38	38	committee membership must include:
39	39	(1) the facility's director of nursing or an
40	40	equivalent consultant of the facility;
41	41	(2) the facility's medical director or the director's
42	42	designee;
43	43	(3) not less than three facility employees, at least
44	44	one of whom must be a facility administrator, a facility board
45	45	member, or another individual in a leadership position with the
46	46	facility; and
47	47	(4) the facility's primary infection preventionist
48	48	designated under Section 81.0145.
49	49	(d) A long-term care facility's quality assessment and
50	50	assurance committee shall:
51	51	(1) conduct an annual review of the facility's
52	52	infection prevention and control program and modify the program as
53	53	necessary; and
54	54	(2) present the findings of each review conducted
55	55	under Subdivision (1) to facility residents and personnel at annual
56	56	meetings that are open to the public.
57	57	(e) A long-term care facility's primary infection
58	58	preventionist designated under Section 81.0145 shall:
59	59	(1) with the assistance of the facility's secondary
60	60	infection preventionist designated under that section, implement
61	61	the facility's infection prevention and control program; and
62	62	(2) submit regular reports to the facility's quality
63	63	assessment and assurance committee on the implementation of the
64	64	program.
65	65	SECTION 2. Subchapter A, Chapter 81, Health and Safety
66	66	Code, is amended by adding Sections 81.0145 and 81.0146 to read as
67	67	follows:
68	68	Sec. 81.0145. LONG-TERM CARE FACILITY INFECTION
69	69	PREVENTIONISTS. (a) Each long-term care facility shall designate
70	70	a primary and a secondary infection preventionist. The primary and
71	71	secondary infection preventionists must:
72	72	(1) have professional training or other specialized
73	73	training in nursing, medical technology, microbiology, or another
74	74	related field;
75	75	(2) have completed specialized training in infection
76	76	prevention and control;
77	77	(3) work at least part-time at the facility; and
78	78	(4) annually complete at least eight hours of training
79	79	the commission approves related to infectious diseases and
80	80	vaccinations.
81	81	(b) A long-term care facility's primary infection
82	82	preventionist and, under the direction of the primary infection
83	83	preventionist, secondary infection preventionist shall:
84	84	(1) implement the facility's infection prevention and
85	85	control program in the manner described by Section 81.014;
86	86	(2) serve as the facility's contact for the local
87	87	health department or health authority to notify of a potential
88	88	exposure to a reportable disease at the facility;
89	89	(3) notify the local health department or health
90	90	authority of a potential exposure to a reportable disease at the
91	91	facility not later than eight hours from the time of exposure;
92	92	(4) notify facility residents, personnel, and
93	93	resident representatives not later than 12 hours from the time a
94	94	reportable disease at the facility is verified;
95	95	(5) investigate and evaluate incidents in which
96	96	facility residents or personnel were or may have been exposed to a
97	97	communicable disease, using current evidence-based information on
98	98	the possible risks associated with exposure to the communicable
99	99	disease;
100	100	(6) implement control measures to prevent the spread
101	101	of infection of a communicable disease among facility residents and
102	102	personnel, including:
103	103	(A) immunization;
104	104	(B) detention;
105	105	(C) restrictions;
106	106	(D) disinfection;
107	107	(E) decontamination;
108	108	(F) isolation;
109	109	(G) quarantine;
110	110	(H) disinfestation;
111	111	(I) chemoprophylaxis;
112	112	(J) preventive therapy;
113	113	(K) prevention methods; and
114	114	(L) education;
115	115	(7) in accordance with applicable law, monitor all
116	116	treatment provided to a facility resident or employee who is
117	117	exposed to and as a result of that exposure infected with a
118	118	communicable disease at the facility;
119	119	(8) maintain records of and respond in a timely
120	120	manner, as the facility determines, to each communicable disease
121	121	complaint made by facility residents, personnel, or resident
122	122	representatives;
123	123	(9) as required by the executive commissioner, submit
124	124	to the department or the local health department or health
125	125	authority accurate information on the total number of reportable
126	126	disease cases among facility residents or personnel; and
127	127	(10) perform other duties for the facility as assigned
128	128	by the executive commissioner.
129	129	(c) A primary or secondary infection preventionist may not
130	130	serve concurrently as an infection preventionist for more than
131	131	three long-term care facilities.
132	132	(d) Each long-term care facility shall provide to the local
133	133	health department or health authority the names and qualifications
134	134	of the facility's primary and secondary infection preventionists.
135	135	Sec. 81.0146. ADMINISTRATIVE PENALTY RELATED TO LONG-TERM
136	136	CARE FACILITY COMMUNICABLE DISEASE AND PREVENTION CONTROL
137	137	MEASURES. (a) The commission may impose an administrative penalty
138	138	against a long-term care facility that violates Section 81.014 or
139	139	81.0145 in an amount the executive commissioner determines in
140	140	accordance with commission rules.
141	141	(b) The amount of an administrative penalty imposed under
142	142	this section shall be based on:
143	143	(1) the seriousness of the violation, including the
144	144	nature, circumstances, extent, and gravity of any prohibited acts,
145	145	and the hazard or potential hazard created to the health and safety
146	146	of facility residents and personnel;
147	147	(2) enforcement costs relating to the violation;
148	148	(3) the history of previous violations;
149	149	(4) the amount necessary to deter future violations;
150	150	(5) efforts to correct the violation; and
151	151	(6) any other matter that justice may require.
152	152	SECTION 3. (a) As soon as practicable after the effective
153	153	date of this Act, each long-term care facility licensed under
154	154	Chapter 242, 247, or 252, Health and Safety Code, shall:
155	155	(1) establish an infection prevention and control
156	156	program and designate a quality assessment and assurance committee
157	157	to approve the program as required by Section 81.014, Health and
158	158	Safety Code, as amended by this Act; and
159	159	(2) designate a primary and a secondary infection
160	160	preventionist as required by Section 81.0145, Health and Safety
161	161	Code, as added by this Act.
162	162	(b) As soon as practicable after the effective date of this
163	163	Act, the executive commissioner of the Health and Human Services
164	164	Commission shall adopt the rules necessary to implement the changes
165	165	in law made by this Act.
166	166	SECTION 4. This Act takes effect September 1, 2025.