PRIOR PRINTER'S NOS. 3619, 3851
PRINTER'S NO. 3917
THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF PENNSYLVANIA
HOUSE BILL
No.
2437
Session of
2020
INTRODUCED BY STEPHENS, JOZWIAK, MIZGORSKI, YOUNGBLOOD,
MACKENZIE, MILLARD, READSHAW, MOUL, DeLUCA, GREEN, CIRESI,
THOMAS, SIMS AND TOMLINSON, APRIL 27, 2020
AS AMENDED ON SECOND CONSIDERATION, HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES,
JUNE 9, 2020
AN ACT
Providing for health care facility reporting relating to COVID-
19 and for duties of the Department of Health and the
Department of Human Services.
The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
hereby enacts as follows:
Section 1. Short title.
This act shall be known and may be cited as the Emergency
Declaration Data Transparency Act.
Section 2. Definitions.
The following words and phrases when used in this act shall
have the meanings given to them in this section unless the
context clearly indicates otherwise:
"Care." Services provided to meet a recipient's need for
personal care or health care which requires interaction with the
recipient.
"COVID-19." The novel coronavirus as identified in the
Governor's proclamation of disaster emergency issued on March 6,
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2020.
"Employee." An individual who is:
(1) employed by a facility, or the affiliated corporate
entity of a facility, or enters into a contractual
relationship with the facility, recipient, a recipient's
family, agent, legal representative or the affiliated
corporate entity of a facility, to provide care to a
recipient;
(2) has unsupervised access to another individual and
that individual's living quarters, resources or personal
records; or
(3) is a student doing an internship or clinical
rotation or any other individual who has been granted access
to a facility or older adult to perform a clinical service
for a fee paid by the facility.
"Facility." Any of the following:
(1) Any of the following entities as defined in section
802.1 of the act of July 19, 1979 (P.L.130, No.48), known as
the Health Care Facilities Act:
(i) A long-term care nursing facility.
(ii) A hospice.
(2) A personal care home as defined in section 1001 of
the act of June 13, 1967 (P.L.31, No.21), known as the Human
Services Code.
(3) An assisted living residence as defined in section
1001 of the Human Services Code.
"Recipient." An individual who receives care, services or
treatment in or from a facility.
Section 3. Facility reporting requirements.
(A) GENERAL RULE.--A facility shall report COVID-19 related
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data to and in accordance with the appropriate licensing
department IN THE SAME MANNER THE FACILITY CURRENTLY REPORTS
SPECIFIC IDENTIFIED AND REPORTABLE DISEASES, INFECTIONS AND
CONDITIONS, as follows:
(1) A long-term care nursing facility or hospice shall
report an outbreak of a serious communicable disease as
defined in 28 Pa. Code § 27.2 (relating to specific
identified and reportable diseases, infections and
conditions).
(2) A personal care home or assisted living residence
shall report an outbreak of a serious communicable disease as
defined in 28 Pa. Code § 27.2.
(B) COVID-19 DATA.--FOR THE PURPOSES OF THIS SECTION, COVID-
19 RELATED DATA SHALL INCLUDE THE NUMBER OF POSITIVE COVID-19
CASES AND THE NUMBER OF DEATHS AS A RESULT OF COVID-19 AMONG
EMPLOYEES AND RECIPIENTS.
Section 4. Isolation protocol and infection control
requirements.
(a) Collection of data.--The Department of Health shall
summarize the infection control measures taken by each facility
to mitigate the spread of COVID-19 in accordance with the
infection control and isolation protocols as reported by the
facility to the appropriate licensing department implemented.
(b) Publication.--The data collected under this section
shall be published on the Department of Health's publicly
accessible Internet website.
(c) Local health departments.--Nothing in this section shall
prohibit a local health department from publishing the
information under this section on its publicly accessible
Internet website.
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Section 5. Data publication.
(a) Duty of department.--The EXCEPT AS PROVIDED UNDER
SUBSECTION (B), THE Department of Health shall collect the
information required to be reported under section 3 and make the
following data available on the department's publicly accessible
Internet website:
(1) The number of recipients who have tested positive
for COVID-19 in each facility.
(2) The number of recipients who have died as a result
of COVID-19 in each facility.
(3) The number of employees who have tested positive for
COVID-19 working in each facility.
(4) The number of employees working in each facility who
have died as a result of COVID-19.
(B) FACILITIES WITH LOW CASE NUMBERS.--IF A FACILITY REPORTS
LESS THAN FIVE POSITIVE CASES OR DEATHS RELATED TO COVID-19
UNDER SECTION 3, THE DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH SHALL NOT BE REQUIRED
TO LIST THE NUMBERS AS PROVIDED UNDER SUBSECTION (A) AND MAY
ONLY INDICATE THAT THE FACILITY HAS LESS THAN FIVE REPORTED
CASES OR DEATHS RELATED TO COVID-19 ON ITS PUBLICLY ACCESSIBLE
INTERNET WEBSITE.
(b) (C) Construction.--Nothing in this section shall
prohibit a local health department from publishing the data in
this section on its publicly accessible Internet website.
SECTION 6. CONSTRUCTION.
NOTHING IN THIS ACT SHALL BE CONSTRUED TO INTERFERE WITH THE
MANDATORY INVESTIGATORY REQUIREMENTS OF A CORONER UNDER SECTION
1218-B(A)(7) OF THE ACT OF AUGUST 9, 1955 (P.L.323, NO.130),
KNOWN AS THE COUNTY CODE.
Section 6 7. Expiration.
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This act shall expire upon termination, by executive order,
proclamation or operation of law, of the declaration of disaster
emergency issued by the Governor on March 6, 2020, published at
50 Pa.B. 1644 (March 21, 2020).
Section 7 8. Effective date.
This act shall take effect immediately.
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