H-4929              _______________________________________________

                                    SECOND SUBSTITUTE HOUSE BILL NO. 1713

                        _______________________________________________

State of Washington                              50th Legislature                              1988 Regular Session

By House Committee on Transportation (originally sponsored by Representatives Braddock, Ballard, Sprenkle, Vekich, Lux, Haugen, Holm, Sayan, Winsley, Anderson and Baugher)

Read first time 2/5/88.

AN ACT Relating to trauma care; and creating new sections.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:

NEW SECTION. Sec. 1.     The legislature finds and declares that:

          (1) Trauma is a severe health problem in the state of Washington and a major cause of death;

          (2) Presently, trauma care is very limited in many parts of the state, and rural area health care is in transition with the danger that some communities will be without emergency medical care; and

          (3) It is in the best interest of the citizens of Washington state to establish a state-wide trauma care system to reduce costs of inappropriate and inadequate emergency service and minimize the human suffering and costs associated with preventable mortality and morbidity.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 2.     There is hereby created a steering committee composed of representatives of emergency medical providers such as physicians, nurses, hospital personnel, emergency medical technicians, paramedics, and ambulance operators, and local government officials, state officials, and persons affiliated professionally with health science schools.  The governor shall appoint members of the steering committee.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 3.     (1)  Upon the recommendation of the steering committee, the director of the office of financial management shall contract with an independent party for an analysis of the state's trauma system.

          (2) The analysis shall contain at a minimum, the following:

          (a) The identification of components of a functional state- wide trauma care system, including standards; and

          (b) An assessment of the current trauma care program compared with the functional state-wide model identified in subsection (a) of this section, including an analysis of deficiencies and reasons for the deficiencies.

          (3) The analysis shall provide a design for a state-wide trauma care system based on the findings of the committee under subsection (2) of this section, with a plan for phased-in implementation.  The plan shall include, at a minimum, the following:

          (a) Responsibility for implementation;

          (b) Administrative authority at the state, regional, and local levels;

          (c) Facility, equipment, and personnel standards;

          (d) Triage and care criteria;

          (e) Data collection and use;

          (f) Cost containment strategies;

          (g) System evaluation; and

          (h) Projected costs.

          (4) The secretary shall submit to the appropriate committees of the legislature the results of the identification and assessment phase of the analysis by July 1, 1989, and the design plan by January 1, 1990.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 4.     (1)  The trauma care system trust account is hereby created in the state treasury.  Moneys shall be transferred to the trauma care system trust account from the public safety education account or other sources as appropriated.  Disbursements shall be made by the office of financial management subject to legislative appropriation.

          (2) If a state-wide trauma care system is not established by June 30, 1992, funds in the account shall transfer to the highway safety fund and the account shall terminate.