Title: An act relating to reducing injuries among patients and health care workers.

Brief Description: Requiring hospitals to establish a safe patient handling committee.

Sponsors: House Committee on Commerce & Labor (originally sponsored by Representatives Conway, Hudgins, Green, Cody, Appleton, Morrell, Wood, McCoy, Kenney, Moeller and Chase).

Brief History: Passed House: 3/07/06, 85-13.

SENATE COMMITTEE ON LABOR, COMMERCE, RESEARCH & DEVELOPMENT

Staff: Jennifer Strus (786-7316)

Background: The Department of Labor and Industries (Department) administers and enforces the Washington Industrial Safety and Health Act (WISHA). WISHA directs the Department to adopt rules governing safety and health standards for workplaces covered by the WISHA. Washington is a "state plan state" under the federal Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSHA). As a state plan state, Washington is authorized to assume responsibility for occupational safety and health in the state. To maintain its status, Washington's safety and health standards must be at least as effective as those standards adopted or recognized under the OSHA.

In 2003, OSHA adopted voluntary guidelines for nursing homes, including recommendations for nursing home employers to help reduce the number and severity of work-related musculoskeletal disorders in their facilities. These guidelines recommend that (1) manual lifting be minimized in all cases and eliminated when feasible; and (2) employers implement an effective ergonomics process covering specified topics. These guidelines state that they are advisory and do not create any new employer duties under OSHA. They also suggest that other employers, such as hospitals, assisted living centers, and homes for the aged or disabled, would find the guidelines useful.

Both the Department and OSHA have had generally applicable ergonomics standards that were repealed. In March of 2001, the Congress adopted a resolution, signed by the President, that repealed an OSHA ergonomics standard that had taken effect a month earlier. In Washington, the voters approved Initiative 841 in 2003 that repealed ergonomics rules that had been adopted by the Department on May 26, 2000. Under Initiative 841, the Director does not have authority to adopt rules dealing with musculoskeletal disorders until, and to the extent, required by the Congress or OSHA.

Summary of Bill: By February 1, 2007, each hospital must establish a safe patient handling committee either by creating a new committee or assigning the functions of a safe patient handling committee to an existing committee.

By December 1, 2007, each hospital must establish a safe patient handling program. As part of this program, a hospital must:
        (a)   Implement a safe patient handling policy for all shifts and units of the    hospital;
        (b)   Conduct a patient handling hazard assessment;
        (c)   Develop a process to identify the appropriate use of the safe patient handling policy based on the patient's physical and medical condition and the availability of lifting equipment or lift teams;
        (d)   Conduct an annual performance evaluation of the program to determine its effectiveness, with the results of the evaluation reported to the safe patient handling committee; and
        (e)   When developing architectural plans for constructing or remodeling a hospital or a unit of a hospital in which patient handling and movement occurs, consider the feasibility of incorporating patient handling equipment or the physical space and construction design needed to incorporate that equipment at a later date.

By January 30, 2010, each hospital must complete, at a minimum, acquiring one of the following: (a) one readily available lift per acute care unit on the same floor unless the safe patient handling committee determines a lift is unnecessary in the unit; (b) one lift for every ten acute care available inpatient beds; or (c) equipment for use by lift teams.

These requirements in the bill also apply to the state mental health hospitals.

By January 1, 2007, the Department must develop rules to provide a reduced workers' compensation premium for hospitals that implement a safe patient handling program.

A Business and Occupation (B&O) tax credit for the cost of purchasing mechanical lifting devices and other equipment that are primarily used to minimize patient handling by health care providers, consistent with a safe patient handling program developed and implemented by the hospital.

Appropriation: None.

Fiscal Note: Not requested.

Committee/Commission/Task Force Created: No.

Effective Date: Ninety days after adjournment of session in which bill is passed.