SB2100

SECTION 1. Chapter 321, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended by adding a new part to be appropriately designated and to read as follows:

“Part . healthcare worker safety

     §321-A  Definitions.  As used in this part unless the context requires otherwise:

     "Department" means the department of health.

     "Good faith belief" means the belief by an employee that the information reported or disclosed is true and that a violation has occurred or may occur.

     "Healthcare worker" means an employee, independent contractor, licensee, or other individual authorized to provide services in a medical facility.

     "Hospital" means an institution with an organized medical staff, regulated under section 321-11(10), which admits patients for inpatient care, diagnosis, observation, and treatment and a health facility under chapter 323F.

     "Lift team" means a team of healthcare workers or nurses used to lift, transfer, reposition, or move a patient.

     "Minimal manual lift program" means a program that identifies, assesses, and develops strategies to control the risk of injury to patients, nurses, or other healthcare workers associated with lifting, transferring, repositioning, or moving a patient.

     "Minimal-lift philosophy" means, to the greatest extent possible, minimizing lifting tasks, encouraging a patient to assist with any lifting or moving activities without exacerbating his or her condition or putting himself or herself at risk, and avoiding any handling that involves manually lifting or moving the whole or a large part of a patient's weight.

     "Nurse" means a person licensed under chapter 457 or a person who holds a license under the laws of another state or territory of the United States that is equivalent to a license under chapter 457.

     §321-B  Department responsibilities.  The department shall:

     (1)  Review patient movement policies and the minimal manual lift program established by a hospital in accordance with section 321-D;

     (2)  Receive reports on activities related to the identification, assessment, and development of strategies to control risk of injury to patients, nurses, and other healthcare workers associated with the lifting, transferring, repositioning, or movement of a patient;

     (3)  Investigate violations or suspected violations of this part; and

     (4)  Adopt rules, in accordance with chapter 91, for the implementation of this part.

     §321–C  Program required.  The governing body of a hospital shall adopt and ensure implementation of a policy and program that identifies, assesses, and develops strategies to control the risk of injury to patients and healthcare workers and nurses associated with the lifting, transferring, repositioning, or movement of a patient.

     §321-D  Minimum requirements.  (a)  The patient movement policy adopted by the governing body of a hospital shall be consistent with a minimal-lift philosophy.

     (b)  The governing body of a hospital shall form a safe patient handling and movement committee that shall be responsible for formulating and implementing a minimal manual lift program in the hospital.  The committee may be a subcommittee of an existing hospital committee and shall include in its membership, representatives of bargaining units that are associated with patient care and are recognized by the hospital and members of the nursing staff; provided that members of the nursing staff serving on the committee shall be chosen from each of the various medical units within the hospital.

     (c)  The patient movement program adopted by the safe patient handling and movement committee shall, at a minimum, include:

     (1)  An analysis of the risk of injury to patients, nurses, and healthcare workers posed by the patient-handling and moving needs of the patient populations served by the hospital and the physical environment in which patient handling and movement occurs and shall include, but not be limited to variables such as patient handling tasks and types of nursing units;

     (2)  Methodologies that eliminate, to the greatest extent possible, the manual lifting, moving, and repositioning of patients, which poses risks of injury based on current research and practice;

     (3)  An evaluation of alternative ways to reduce risks associated with patient handling and moving, including evaluations of equipment used to move patients and the environment in which patient handling and movement occurs;

     (4)  A process for the identification of appropriate uses for the patient movement program that is based on a patient's physical and medical condition and the availability of lifting equipment or lift teams;

     (5)  A process for the acquisition and deployment of equipment to lift, move, or reposition patients to reduce manual lifting, repositioning, or movement of a patient to emergency, life-threatening, or otherwise exceptional circumstances.  The process shall also include appropriate training in the operation of any of the acquired equipment;

     (6)  The adoption of procedures for a nurse or healthcare worker to employ in cases in which a nurse or healthcare worker believes in good faith that a nurse, healthcare worker, or patient is or will be exposed to an unacceptable risk of injury;

     (7)  Rules for the publication of a hospital's policies on the movement and handling of patients, the plan for implementing the patient movement program, and the results of the annual performance evaluation of a hospital's patient movement program provided for in section 321-F; and

     (8)  Considerations of the feasibility of incorporating patient handling and movement equipment, or the physical space and construction design needed to incorporate that equipment at a later date, when developing architectural plans for constructing or remodeling a hospital, or a unit of a hospital in which patient handling and movement occurs.

      §321-E  Annual report.  The safe patient handling and movement committee shall submit an annual report to the governing body of a hospital and to the department on activities related to the identification, assessment, and development of strategies to control risk of injury to patients, nurses, and other healthcare workers associated with the lifting, transferring, repositioning, or moving of a patient.

      §321-F  Annual performance evaluation.  An annual performance evaluation of the patient movement program to determine its effectiveness shall be conducted in a method determined by each hospital's governing body.  The results of the performance evaluation shall be reported to the safe patient handling committee and the hospital's governing body.  The performance evaluation shall, at a minimum:

     (1)  Use data analysis to measure the success of a patient movement      program including the extent to which implementation of the program has resulted in a reduction in claims of musculoskeletal disorders and lost work attributable to musculoskeletal disorders caused by patient movement and handling; and

     (2)  Include any recommendations to increase the patient movement program's effectiveness.

      §321-G  Employee protections.  A hospital may not penalize, discriminate against, or retaliate in any manner against an employee with respect to compensation for, or terms, conditions, or privileges of, employment if such an employee in good faith, individually or in conjunction with another person or persons:

     (1)  Reports a violation or suspected violation of this part to the department, a private accrediting body, or management personnel of the hospital;

     (2)  Initiates, cooperates in, or otherwise participates in an investigation or proceeding brought by the department or private accrediting body concerning matters covered by this part;

     (3)  Informs or discusses violations or suspected violations of this part with any other employee, with any representative of an employee, with a patient or patient representative, or with the public; or

     (4)  Otherwise avails himself or herself of the rights set forth in this part.

§321-H Penalties for violations. (a) A hospital that violates this part shall be fined by the department not less than $500 nor more than $5,000 for each violation.

      (b)  A fine which is ordered by the department pursuant to this part shall be deposited with the director of finance to the credit of the general fund of the State.

      §321-I  Tax credit.  A hospital that purchases equipment for lifting, moving, or repositioning patients specifically for the purpose of reducing the manual lifting, repositioning, or moving of a patient shall be eligible for a tax credit established under 235-    ."

SECTION 2. Chapter 235, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended by adding a new section to be appropriately designated and to read as follows:

     "§235-     Medical lifting equipment; tax deduction.  (a) For taxable years beginning after December 31, 2008, but not after December 31, 2014, there shall be allowed as a deduction from gross income the amount paid, excluding interest paid or accrued thereon, during the taxable year by any hospital to purchase mechanical lifting devices and other equipment primarily used to minimize patient handling by healthcare providers, consistent with a patient handling program developed and implemented by the hospital.

     (b)  Deductions shall be allowed for up to one hundred per cent of the cost of the mechanical lifting devices or other equipment.  No deduction shall exceed $1,000 per available acute care inpatient bed.

(c) The director of taxation shall prepare such forms as may be necessary to claim a tax deduction under this section, may require proof of the claim for the tax deduction, including records and receipts required to verify eligibility for the deduction under this section, and may adopt rules pursuant to chapter 91.

(d) For the purposes of this section, "acute care inpatient bed" means a bed used by a patient located in a hospital, as defined in section 327-1."

SECTION 3. In codifying the new part added to Chapter 321, Hawaii Revised Statutes, by section 1 of this Act, the revisor of statutes shall substitute appropriate section numbers for the letters used in designating the new sections in this Act.

SECTION 4. New statutory material is underscored.

SECTION 5. This Act shall take effect upon its approval; provided that every hospital shall submit a report detailing the hospital's development of a patient handling policy to the department of health by January 1, 2009, and a report detailing the full implementation of the minimal manual lift program to the department of health by July 1, 2009.

INTRODUCED BY:	_____________________________

THE SENATE	S.B. NO.	2100
TWENTY-FOURTH LEGISLATURE, 2008
STATE OF HAWAII