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4274S.04C
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SENATE COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE
FOR
SENATE BILL NO. 899
AN ACT
To repeal sections 192.2405 and 210.115, RSMo, and to
enact in lieu thereof six new sections relating to
reporting of abuse and neglect, with penalty
provisions.
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of Missouri, as follows:
Section A. Sections 192.2405 and 210.115, RSMo, are
repealed and six new sections enacted in lieu thereof, to be
known as sections 192.2405, 192.2510, 210.115, 210.191,
273.410, and 273.415, to read as follows:
192.2405. 1. The following persons shall be required
to immediately report or cause a report to be made to the
department under sections 192.2400 to 192.2470:
(1) Any person having reasonable cause to suspect that
an eligible adult presents a likelihood of suffering serious
physical harm, or bullying as defined in subdivision (2) of
section 192.2400, and is in need of protective services; and
(2) Any adult day care worker, animal control officer,
animal humane investigator as defined in section 273.415,
chiropractor, Christian Science practitioner, coroner,
dentist, embalmer, employee of the departments of social
services, mental health, or health and senior services,
employee of a local area agency on aging or an organized
area agency on aging program, emergency medical technician,
firefighter, first responder, funeral director, home health
agency, home health agency employee, hospital and clinic
personnel engaged in the care or treatment of others, in-
home services owner or provider, in-home services operator
or employee, law enforcement officer, long-term care
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facility administrator or employee, medical examiner,
medical resident or intern, mental health professional,
minister, nurse, nurse practitioner, optometrist, other
health practitioner, peace officer, pharmacist, physical
therapist, physician, physician's assistant, podiatrist,
probation or parole officer, psychologist, social worker, or
other person with the responsibility for the care of an
eligible adult who has reasonable cause to suspect that the
eligible adult has been subjected to abuse or neglect or
observes the eligible adult being subjected to conditions or
circumstances which would reasonably result in abuse or
neglect. Notwithstanding any other provision of this
section, a duly ordained minister, clergy, religious worker,
or Christian Science practitioner while functioning in his
or her ministerial capacity shall not be required to report
concerning a privileged communication made to him or her in
his or her professional capacity.
2. Any other person who becomes aware of circumstances
that may reasonably be expected to be the result of, or
result in, abuse or neglect of an eligible adult may report
to the department.
3. The penalty for failing to report as required under
subdivision (2) of subsection 1 of this section is provided
under section 565.188.
4. As used in this section, "first responder" means
any person trained and authorized by law or rule to render
emergency medical assistance or treatment. Such persons may
include, but shall not be limited to, emergency first
responders, police officers, sheriffs, deputy sheriffs,
firefighters, or emergency medical technicians.
192.2510. 1. All persons providing protective
services to eligible adults, as such terms are defined in
section 192.2400, and who have direct contact with such
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adults, shall be required to complete at least one and one-
half hours of training within the first sixty days of
employment. The training shall include the following:
(1) Requirements to report animal abuse or neglect and
the penalties associated with failure to report under
section 273.410;
(2) How to identify animal abuse or neglect;
(3) How to make a report of animal abuse or neglect;
and
(4) The relationship between eligible adult abuse or
neglect and animal abuse or neglect.
2. The department of health and senior services, in
consultation with the department of agriculture, shall
develop or adapt and use available training materials for
the training required under this section. Persons required
to complete training under this section shall be provided
with opportunities to do so during regular working hours.
3. As used in this section, the term "animal" shall
mean dogs, cats, rabbits, and birds.
210.115. 1. When any physician, medical examiner,
coroner, dentist, chiropractor, optometrist, podiatrist,
resident, intern, nurse, hospital or clinic personnel that
are engaged in the examination, care, treatment or research
of persons, and any other health practitioner, psychologist,
mental health professional, social worker, day care center
worker or other child-care worker, juvenile officer,
probation or parole officer, jail or detention center
personnel, teacher, principal or other school official,
minister as provided by section 352.400, peace officer or
law enforcement official, animal control officer, animal
humane investigator as defined in section 273.415, volunteer
or personnel of a community service program that offers
support services for families in crisis to assist in the
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delegation of any powers regarding the care and custody of a
child by a properly executed power of attorney pursuant to
sections 475.600 to 475.604, or other person with
responsibility for the care of children has reasonable cause
to suspect that a child has been or may be subjected to
abuse or neglect or observes a child being subjected to
conditions or circumstances which would reasonably result in
abuse or neglect, that person shall immediately report to
the division in accordance with the provisions of sections
210.109 to 210.183. No internal investigation shall be
initiated until such a report has been made. As used in
this section, the term "abuse" is not limited to abuse
inflicted by a person responsible for the child's care,
custody and control as specified in section 210.110, but
shall also include abuse inflicted by any other person.
2. If two or more members of a medical institution who
are required to report jointly have knowledge of a known or
suspected instance of child abuse or neglect, a single
report may be made by a designated member of that medical
team. Any member who has knowledge that the member
designated to report has failed to do so shall thereafter
immediately make the report. Nothing in this section,
however, is meant to preclude any person from reporting
abuse or neglect.
3. The reporting requirements under this section are
individual, and no supervisor or administrator may impede or
inhibit any reporting under this section. No person making
a report under this section shall be subject to any
sanction, including any adverse employment action, for
making such report. Every employer shall ensure that any
employee required to report pursuant to subsection 1 of this
section has immediate and unrestricted access to
communications technology necessary to make an immediate
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report and is temporarily relieved of other work duties for
such time as is required to make any report required under
subsection 1 of this section.
4. Notwithstanding any other provision of sections
210.109 to 210.183, any child who does not receive specified
medical treatment by reason of the legitimate practice of
the religious belief of the child's parents, guardian, or
others legally responsible for the child, for that reason
alone, shall not be found to be an abused or neglected
child, and such parents, guardian or other persons legally
responsible for the child shall not be entered into the
central registry. However, the division may accept reports
concerning such a child and may subsequently investigate or
conduct a family assessment as a result of that report.
Such an exception shall not limit the administrative or
judicial authority of the state to ensure that medical
services are provided to the child when the child's health
requires it.
5. In addition to those persons and officials required
to report actual or suspected abuse or neglect, any other
person may report in accordance with sections 210.109 to
210.183 if such person has reasonable cause to suspect that
a child has been or may be subjected to abuse or neglect or
observes a child being subjected to conditions or
circumstances which would reasonably result in abuse or
neglect.
6. Any person or official required to report pursuant
to this section, including employees of the division, who
has probable cause to suspect that a child who is or may be
under the age of eighteen, who is eligible to receive a
certificate of live birth, has died shall report that fact
to the appropriate medical examiner or coroner. If, upon
review of the circumstances and medical information, the
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medical examiner or coroner determines that the child died
of natural causes while under medical care for an
established natural disease, the coroner, medical examiner
or physician shall notify the division of the child's death
and that the child's attending physician shall be signing
the death certificate. In all other cases, the medical
examiner or coroner shall accept the report for
investigation, shall immediately notify the division of the
child's death as required in section 58.452 and shall report
the findings to the child fatality review panel established
pursuant to section 210.192.
7. Any person or individual required to report may
also report the suspicion of abuse or neglect to any law
enforcement agency or juvenile office. Such report shall
not, however, take the place of reporting to the division.
8. If an individual required to report suspected
instances of abuse or neglect pursuant to this section has
reason to believe that the victim of such abuse or neglect
is a resident of another state or was injured as a result of
an act which occurred in another state, the person required
to report such abuse or neglect may, in lieu of reporting to
the Missouri children's division, make such a report to the
child protection agency of the other state with the
authority to receive such reports pursuant to the laws of
such other state. If such agency accepts the report, no
report is required to be made, but may be made, to the
children's division.
9. For the purposes of providing supportive services
or verifying the status of a youth as unaccompanied or
homeless for the purposes of accessing supportive services,
the fact that a child is an unaccompanied youth as defined
in 42 U.S.C. Section 11434a(6) is not, in and of itself, a
sufficient basis for reporting child abuse or neglect,
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unless the child is under sixteen years of age or is an
incapacitated person, as defined in section 475.010.
Nothing in this subsection shall limit a mandated reporter
from making a report under this section if the mandated
reporter knows or has reasonable cause to suspect that an
unaccompanied youth has been or may be a victim of abuse or
neglect.
210.191. 1. All children's division employees, and
contractors for children's services, who have direct contact
with children through the state's child protection and
welfare system shall be required to complete at least one
and one-half hours of training within the first sixty days
of employment or contract. The training shall include the
following:
(1) Requirements to report animal abuse or neglect and
the penalties associated with failure to report under
section 273.410;
(2) How to identify animal abuse or neglect;
(3) How to make a report of animal abuse or neglect;
and
(4) The relationship between child abuse or neglect
and animal abuse or neglect.
2. The division, in consultation with the department
of agriculture, shall develop or adapt and use available
training materials for the training required under this
section. Persons required to complete training under this
section shall be provided with opportunities to do so during
regular working hours.
3. As used in this section, the term "animal" shall
mean dogs, cats, rabbits, and birds.
273.410. 1. When any psychologist, mental health
professional, social worker, school counselor, teacher, or
other school professional, or juvenile officer, law
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enforcement or peace officer, probation or parole officer,
home health aide, adult or child protective services worker,
or volunteer or personnel of a community service program
that offers support or advocacy services for children in
foster care has reasonable cause to suspect that an animal
has been or may be subjected to abuse or neglect or observes
an animal being subjected to conditions or circumstances
that would reasonably result in abuse or neglect, that
person shall make a report to the hotline established and
operated by the Missouri Animal Control Association (MACA)
within one day.
2. The hotline worker shall request all of the
following information for the report:
(1) The name and description of the animal involved,
if known;
(2) The address and telephone number of the owner or
other person responsible for the care of the animal, if
known;
(3) The nature and extent of the suspected abuse or
neglect; and
(4) Any other information that the person making the
report believes may be useful in establishing the existence
of the suspected abuse or neglect or the identity of the
person causing the abuse or neglect.
3. Upon receiving a report of suspected abuse or
neglect, MACA shall provide the report to any duly-
authorized law enforcement official, county or municipal
animal control officer, or any Missouri peace officer
standards and training (POST)-certified or MACA-certified
animal cruelty investigator.
4. Any person required to report animal abuse or
neglect under this section shall be immune from civil and
criminal liability in connection with making any required
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report if the person acted in good faith when making such
report.
5. Notwithstanding any provision of law to the
contrary, any information identifying a person who reports
suspected animal abuse or neglect under this section shall
be confidential and shall not be deemed a public record and
shall not be subject to the provisions of section 109.180 or
chapter 610.
6. No person required to make a report of animal abuse
or neglect under this section shall knowingly make a false
report. The penalty for making a false report and the
defenses to prosecution shall be the same as under section
575.080.
7. If an agency or political subdivision of the state
determines that an employee who is a mandated reporter under
this section has failed to make a report as required by this
section, the agency or political subdivision shall issue a
written notice to such employee that shall include a finding
of facts in support of the failure to make a report and an
explanation of the reporting requirement. Such notice shall
not be retained in a permanent employment file and shall be
retained in a separate file or database maintained by the
agency or political subdivision. Such notice shall be
considered a closed record under the provisions of chapter
610.
8. Any person required to make a report under this
section who is subject to professional licensure and who
fails to make a report as required by this section shall be
subject to discipline by his or her respective licensing
board as follows:
(1) For the first instance of a failure to report, the
licensing board shall issue a written notice to such
employee that shall include a finding of facts in support of
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the failure to make a report and an explanation of the
reporting requirement;
(2) For a second instance of a failure to report, the
licensing board shall impose a fine of one hundred dollars;
(3) For a third and each subsequent instance of a
failure to report, the licensing board shall impose a fine
of five hundred dollars.
9. As used in this section, the term "animal" shall
mean dogs, cats, rabbits, and birds.
273.415. 1. All persons employed or serving as animal
control officers or animal humane investigators who have
direct contact with animals shall be required to complete at
least one and one-half hours of training within the first
sixty days of employment. The training shall include the
following:
(1) Requirements to report child abuse or neglect
under section 210.115 or eligible person abuse or neglect
under section 192.2405 and the penalties associated with
failure to report such abuse or neglect;
(2) How to identify child or eligible person abuse or
neglect;
(3) How to make a report of child or eligible person
abuse or neglect; and
(4) The relationship between child, eligible adult,
and animal abuse or neglect.
2. The children's division and the department of
health and senior services, in consultation with the
department of agriculture, shall develop or adapt and use
available training materials for the training required under
this section. Persons required to complete training under
this section shall be provided with opportunities to do so
during regular working hours.
3. As used in this section, the following terms shall:
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(1) "Animal", dogs, cats, rabbits, and birds;
(2) "Animal humane investigator", a duly-authorized
county or municipal animal control officer or any Missouri
peace officer standards and training (POST)-certified or
Missouri Animal Control Association (MACA)-certified animal
cruelty investigator.