TITLE: Relating to a requirement that certain hospitals submit a summary of parts of their emergency operations plans to the Health and Human Services Commission.

SUMMARY: Relating to a requirement that certain hospitals submit a summary of parts of their emergency operations plans to the Health and Human Services Commission.

FULL TEXT:
AN ACT relating to a requirement that certain hospitals submit a summary of parts of their emergency operations plans to the Health and Human Services Commission. BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: SECTION 1. Subchapter B, Chapter 311, Health and Safety Code, is amended by adding Section 311.025 to read as follows: Sec. 311.025. SUMMARY OF CERTAIN PARTS OF EMERGENCY OPERATIONS PLAN. (a) In this section: (1) "Commission" means the Health and Human Services Commission. (2) "Emergency operations plan" means a hospital's process for temporarily routing patients in need of emergency services to other hospitals or health facilities during a period when: (A) the hospital's capacity to provide emergency services to those patients is significantly diminished; and (B) the patients, if routed to the hospital, would likely receive substantially delayed care resulting in worse health outcomes than would otherwise occur were the patient routed to another hospital or health facility. (3) "Hospital" means a hospital licensed under Chapter 241. (b) This section applies only to a hospital that has an emergency department or otherwise regularly provides emergency services. (c) A hospital to which this section applies shall submit to the commission a written summary of the part of the hospital's emergency operations plan that addresses diversions from the hospital's emergency department in the event that the hospital experiences a cyber attack or an electrical power outage. (d) If a hospital to which this section applies makes changes to the part of the plan described by Subsection (c), the hospital shall update the previously submitted summary and submit the updated summary to the commission not later than the 30th day after the date the changes to the plan are adopted by the hospital's governing body or otherwise approved by the appropriate hospital administrator. (e) A summary submitted to the commission under this section is confidential and excepted from public disclosure under Chapter 552, Government Code. SECTION 2. A hospital to which Section 311.025, Health and Safety Code, as added by this Act, applies shall comply with the requirements of that section not later than December 1, 2025. SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 2025.