Designated caregiver.

ORIGINAL
House
Bill No
.
HB0076

ENROLLED ACT NO. 27,

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

SIXTY-THIRD LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF
WYOMING
2016 Budget Session

AN ACT relating to public health and safety; providing for the appointment of a designated caregiver; providing definitions; requiring patient consent; requiring hospital record keeping; requiring notices to caregivers as specified; requiring coordination between hospitals and caregivers as specified; limiting applicability of the act; prohibiting the use of specified funds; prohibiting impacts on state or federal funds; and providing for an effective date.

Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Wyoming:

Section 1
.

W.S. 35
‑
30
‑
101 through 35
‑
30
‑
106
are
created to read:

CHAPTER

3
0
Wyoming

CAREGIVER
ACT

35
‑
30
‑
101
.

Definitions.

(a)

As used in this act
:

(i)

"Aftercare" means any assistance provided by a designated caregiver to
a patient pursuant to
this
act
after the patient's discharge from a hospital.
A
ssistance
under this
act

may include
the performance of
tasks
necessary for the treatment of the
patient's condition at the time of discharge
and which
do not require a licensed professional;

(ii)

"Caregiver" means any person eighteen (18) years of age or older, including next of kin, duly designated as a caregiver pursuant to the provisions of this act who provides aftercare to a patient in the patient's residence;

(ii
i
)

"Discharge" means a patient's exit or release from a hospital to the patient's residence following any inpatient stay;

(
i
v)

"Hospital" means as defined by W.S. 35
‑
2
‑
901(a)(xiii);

(v)

"Representative of the patient" means any person who:

(A)

Is a legal guardian;

(B)

Holds a medical or legal power of attorney; or

(C)

Is a representative named in an advanced care directive in Wyoming or other similar law in another state.

(v
i
)

"Residence" means a dwelling considered by a patient to be his home,
but does
not includ
e:

(A)

A
hospital
;

(B)

A
nursing
care facility

as defined by W.S. 35
‑
2
‑
901(a)(xvi); or

(C)

An
assisted living facility as defined by

W.S. 35
‑
2
‑
901(a)(xxii)
.

(vi
i
)

"
This act
"
means
W.S. 35
‑
30
‑
101 through 35
‑
30
‑
106.

35
‑
30
‑
102
.

Designation of caregivers by hospital patients.

(a)

Hospitals shall provide each patient or the
representative of the patient
with an opportunity to designate one
(1)
caregiver following the
inpatient
admission
a
t the
hospital and prior to the patient's discharge to the patient's residence
or to another place
:

(i)

In the event the patient is unconscious or otherwise incapacitated upon admission to the hospital, the hospital shall provide the
representative of the patient
with an opportunity to designate a caregiver
to care for the patient
so long as the designation or lack of a designation does not interfere with, delay or otherwise affect the medical care provided to the patient;

(ii)

In the event the patient or the
representative of the patient
declines to designate a caregiver under this
act
, the hospital shall document that determination in the patient's medical record and the hospital shall be deemed to
be in compliance
with the provisions of this
act
;

(iii)

In the event that the patient or the
representative of the patient
designates an individual as a caregiver under this
act
, the hospital shall promptly request the written consent of the patient or the
representative of the patient
to release
personal health information

pertinent
to the patient's designated caregiver pursuant to the hospital's established procedures for releasing personal health information and in compliance with applicable state and federal law;

(iv)

If the patient or the
representative of the patient
declines to consent to the release of
personal health
information to the patient's designated caregiver, the hospital is not required to provide notice to the caregiver
as provided in
W.S. 35
‑
30
‑
10
3
and shall not release personal health information
;

(v)

The hospital shall record the patient's designation of a caregiver, the relationship of the caregiver to the patient and the name, telephone number and physical address of the patient's designated caregiver
, if available,
in the patient's medical record.

(b)

A patient
or
representative of the patient

may elect to change
the
designated caregiver.

(c)

Designation of a caregiver by a patient or a
representative of the patient
pursuant to the provisions of this
act

shall
not obligate any individual to perform any aftercare tasks for the patient.

(d)

This section shall not be
deemed
to require a patient or a
representative of the patient
to designate any individual as a caregiver under this
act
.

35
‑
30
‑
103
.

Notification by hospital to caregiver
.

If a patient has designated a caregiver, a hospital shall notify
the
caregiver of the patient's discharge to the patient's residence or
to an
other place
,

including another hospital or medical facility,
as soon as practicable
.

In the event the hospital is unable to contact the designated caregiver, the lack of contact shall not interfere with, delay or otherwise affect the medic
al care provided to the patient
or
the
discharge of the patient.

35
‑
30
‑
104
.

Consultation with caregiver by hospital;
d
ischarge plan
.

(a)

As soon as practicable
after designation of a caregiver
, the hospital shall attempt to consult with the designated caregiver to prepare for the patient's aftercare
and
shall
issue a discharge plan describing a patient's aftercare needs
.

(b)

Before discharge, the hospital shall provide individualized explanations and in
‑
person instruction about tasks the caregiver will need to carry out at home after discharge.

(c)

In the event the hospital is unable to contact the designated caregiver, the lack of contact shall not interfere with, delay or otherwise affect
the
discharge of the patient.

35
‑
30
‑
105
.

Construction of
act
.

(a)

No
thing in this
act
shall
interfere with the rights of a person legally authorized to make health care decisions
for
a
patient.

(b)

Nothing in this
act
shall create a private right of action against a hospital, hospita
l employee
or
a duly authorized agent of
a
hospital
,
or otherwise supersede or replace rights or remedies
available
under any other law.

35
‑
30
‑
106
.

Impact on state or federal program funding.

No
monies of the
state or federal
government
shall be used for
the
payment
of
any caregiver
pursuant to this act
. No state or federal program funding shall be impacted by this
act
.

Section
2
.

This
act is effective July 1,
201
6
.

(END)

Speaker of the
House

President of the Senate

Governor

TIME APPROVED: _________

DATE APPROVED: _________

I hereby certify that this act originated in the
House
.

Chief Clerk

1