_______________________________________________
HOUSE
BILL 1743
_______________________________________________
Passed
Legislature - 1997 Regular Session
State of Washington 55th
Legislature 1997 Regular Session
By
Read first time 02/06/97.
Referred to Committee on Health Care.
Allowing
the department of community, trade, and economic development to adopt rules to
carry out the long-term care ombudsman program.
AN
ACT Relating to the long-term care ombudsman program; amending RCW 43.190.030;
and declaring an emergency.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE
LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:
Sec.
1. RCW
43.190.030 and 1995 c 399 s 105 are each amended to read as follows:
There
is created the office of the state long-term care ombudsman. The department of
community, trade, and economic development shall contract with a private nonprofit
organization to provide long-term care ombudsman services as specified under,
and consistent with, the federal older Americans act as amended, federal
mandates, the goals of the state, and the needs of its citizens. The
department of community, trade, and economic development shall ensure that all
program and staff support necessary to enable the ombudsman to effectively
protect the interests of residents, patients, and clients of all long-term care
facilities is provided by the nonprofit organization that contracts to provide
long-term care ombudsman services. The department of community, trade, and
economic development shall adopt rules to carry out this chapter and the
long-term care ombudsman provisions of the federal older Americans act, as
amended, and applicable federal regulations. The long-term care ombudsman
program shall have the following powers and duties:
(1)
To provide services for coordinating the activities of long-term care ombudsmen
throughout the state;
(2)
Carry out such other activities as the department of community, trade, and
economic development deems appropriate;
(3)
Establish procedures consistent with RCW 43.190.110 for appropriate access by
long-term care ombudsmen to long-term care facilities and patients' records,
including procedures to protect the confidentiality of the records and ensure
that the identity of any complainant or resident will not be disclosed without
the written consent of the complainant or resident, or upon court order;
(4)
Establish a state-wide uniform reporting system to collect and analyze data
relating to complaints and conditions in long-term care facilities for the
purpose of identifying and resolving significant problems, with provision for
submission of such data to the department of social and health services and to
the federal department of health and human services, or its successor agency,
on a regular basis; and
(5)
Establish procedures to assure that any files maintained by ombudsman programs
shall be disclosed only at the discretion of the ombudsman having authority
over the disposition of such files, except that the identity of any complainant
or resident of a long-term care facility shall not be disclosed by such
ombudsman unless:
(a)
Such complainant or resident, or the complainant's or resident's legal
representative, consents in writing to such disclosure; or
(b)
Such disclosure is required by court order.
NEW SECTION. Sec. 2. This
act is necessary for the immediate preservation of the public peace, health, or
safety, or support of the state government and its existing public
institutions, and takes effect immediately.
