Bill Text: TX SB860 | 2011-2012 | 82nd Legislature | Enrolled
Bill Title: Relating to the authority of the El Paso County Hospital District to appoint, contract for, or employ physicians, dentists, and other health care providers.
Sponsorship: Partisan Bill (Democrat 2)
Status: (Passed) 2011-06-17 - Effective immediately [SB860 Detail]
Download: Texas-2011-SB860-Enrolled.html
| S.B. No. 860 | ||
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| relating to the authority of the El Paso County Hospital District to | ||
| appoint, contract for, or employ physicians, dentists, and other | ||
| health care providers. | ||
| BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: | ||
| SECTION 1. Subchapter B, Chapter 281, Health and Safety | ||
| Code, is amended by adding Section 281.0285 to read as follows: | ||
| Sec. 281.0285. EL PASO COUNTY HOSPITAL DISTRICT; EMPLOYMENT | ||
| OF PHYSICIANS, DENTISTS, AND OTHER HEALTH CARE PROVIDERS. (a) The | ||
| board of the El Paso County Hospital District may appoint, contract | ||
| for, or employ physicians, dentists, and other health care | ||
| providers as the board considers necessary for the efficient | ||
| operation of the district. | ||
| (b) The term of an employment contract entered into under | ||
| this section may not exceed four years. | ||
| (c) This section may not be construed as authorizing the | ||
| board of the El Paso County Hospital District to supervise or | ||
| control the practice of medicine as prohibited by Subtitle B, Title | ||
| 3, Occupations Code, or to supervise or control the practice of | ||
| dentistry as prohibited by Subtitle D, Title 3, Occupations Code. | ||
| (d) The authority granted to the board of the El Paso County | ||
| Hospital District under Subsection (a) to employ physicians shall | ||
| apply as necessary for the district to fulfill the district's | ||
| statutory mandate to provide medical care for the indigent and | ||
| needy residents of the district as provided by Section 281.046. | ||
| (e) The medical executive committee of the El Paso County | ||
| Hospital District, in accordance with the bylaws adopted by the | ||
| board of the El Paso County Hospital District, shall adopt, | ||
| maintain, and enforce policies to ensure that a physician employed | ||
| by the district exercises the physician's independent medical | ||
| judgment in providing care to patients. | ||
| (f) The policies adopted by the medical executive committee | ||
| under this section must include: | ||
| (1) policies relating to: | ||
| (A) governance of the medical executive | ||
| committee; | ||
| (B) credentialing; | ||
| (C) quality assurance; | ||
| (D) utilization review; | ||
| (E) peer review; | ||
| (F) medical decision-making; and | ||
| (G) due process; and | ||
| (2) rules requiring the disclosure of financial | ||
| conflicts of interest by a member of the medical executive | ||
| committee. | ||
| (g) The medical executive committee and the board of the El | ||
| Paso County Hospital District shall jointly develop and implement a | ||
| conflict management process to resolve any conflict between the | ||
| policies adopted under this section and a policy of the El Paso | ||
| County Hospital District. | ||
| (h) A member of the medical executive committee who is a | ||
| physician shall provide biennially to the chair of the medical | ||
| executive committee a signed, verified statement indicating that | ||
| the committee member: | ||
| (1) is licensed by the Texas Medical Board; | ||
| (2) will exercise independent medical judgment in all | ||
| medical executive committee matters, including matters relating | ||
| to: | ||
| (A) credentialing; | ||
| (B) quality assurance; | ||
| (C) utilization review; | ||
| (D) peer review; | ||
| (E) medical decision-making; and | ||
| (F) due process; | ||
| (3) will exercise the committee member's best efforts | ||
| to ensure compliance with the policies that are adopted or | ||
| established by the medical executive committee; and | ||
| (4) will report immediately to the Texas Medical Board | ||
| any action or event that the committee member reasonably and in good | ||
| faith believes constitutes a compromise of the independent medical | ||
| judgment of a physician in caring for a patient. | ||
| (i) For all matters relating to the practice of medicine, | ||
| each physician employed by the El Paso County Hospital District | ||
| shall ultimately report to the chair of the medical executive | ||
| committee for the district. | ||
| SECTION 2. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives | ||
| a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as | ||
| provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this | ||
| Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this | ||
| Act takes effect September 1, 2011. | ||
| ______________________________ | ______________________________ | |
| President of the Senate | Speaker of the House | |
| I hereby certify that S.B. No. 860 passed the Senate on | ||
| April 19, 2011, by the following vote: Yeas 31, Nays 0. | ||
| ______________________________ | ||
| Secretary of the Senate | ||
| I hereby certify that S.B. No. 860 passed the House on | ||
| May 20, 2011, by the following vote: Yeas 147, Nays 2, one | ||
| present not voting. | ||
| ______________________________ | ||
| Chief Clerk of the House | ||
| Approved: | ||
| ______________________________ | ||
| Date | ||
| ______________________________ | ||
| Governor | ||
