New Tennessee laws that took effect on July 1, Part 4

This is the fourth in a series of reports on the new laws approved by the Tennessee General Assembly earlier this year and that went into effect July 1. You can see links to parts 1-3 in the online version of this article at www.therogersvillereview.com

Health

CON reform to increase health care access, lower costs - A new law gradually phases out the Certificate of Need (CON) permit requirements needed to provide nearly a dozen various health care services in the state during the next five years. The Tennessee Health Facilities Commission currently regulates the healthcare industry statewide through the CON program. That process requires a permit to be issued for the establishment or modification of a health care institution, facility or service at a designated location.

The timeline for removal of CON permit requirements is as follows:

July 1, 2025: Freestanding emergency departments not located within 10 miles of a competing acute care hospital or other freestanding emergency department would no longer need a CON. Additionally, any county without an actively licensed acute care hospital would also not require a CON for any services except rehabilitation hospitals, home health agencies, hospice, methadone clinics and nursing homes.Dec. 1, 2025: Intellectual disability institutional habilitation facilities, burn units, neonatal intensive care units, magnetic resonance imaging services and positron emission tomographyDec. 1, 2027: Ambulatory surgical treatment centers, linear accelerator procedures and long-term care hospitalsDec. 1, 2029: Open heart surgery

The law requires rehabilitation hospitals, home health agencies, hospices, methadone clinics, and nursing homes to continue operating under CON in all 95 counties. Cardiac catheterization services, outpatient diagnostic clinics, acute care hospitals, and organ transplants will remain under CON in counties that currently have a licensed acute care hospital.

More accessible hospital records for families - Lawmakers passed a law that will grant families the right to obtain their loved ones medical records from a hospital or other licensed health care facility in the state without the need for legal intervention. This law is specifically applicable in cases where there is no authorized representative after the death of a family member. Previous Tennessee law mandates that hospital records of deceased patients can only be accessed by their authorized representative appointed by a court. The law acknowledges the importance of familial relationships and the need for compassionate access to healthcare information after the passing of a loved one.

Newborn screenings for rare genetic disorders - Tennessee lawmakers passed legislation this session ensuring new diseases are reported from the Recommended Uniform Screening Panel (RUSP) within three years for newborn screenings. The Recommended Uniform Screening Panel (RUSP) is a list of conditions that should be tested for during the newborn screening. Oftentimes, it takes years for new diseases to be added to this list. This legislation ensures a quicker timeline for reporting these rare genetic disorders and diseases.

Increasing access to life-changing testing for children with rare disorders - A new law allows TennCare to cover medical expenses for genetic testing to identify treatments for children with rare diseases. According to the National Organization for Rare Disorders, over 7,000 such conditions exist, predominantly affecting children, with 80% stemming from genetic origins. The law offers hope to families by easing the financial burdens of identifying and treating a rare disease. It would allow parents to access testing that could streamline the diagnosis process and potentially save a child’s life.

Dr. Benjamin Mauck Act - Lawmakers passed a law that increases penalties for assault in a healthcare facility. On July 11, 2023, Dr. Benjamin Mauck was shot point blank three times in his Collierville medical facility. One week prior, his life had been threatened by the individual who savagely murdered him. The law enhances the punishment for assault in healthcare facilities to a Class A misdemeanor and aggravated assault in healthcare facilities to a Class C felony.

Smart Heart Act - To improve safety for Tennessee athletes and educate coaches of health and safety problems that could occur during cardiovascular activity lawmakers passed the Smart Heart Act this year. The new measure expands upon previous law and requires high schools to provide automated external defibrillators (AED) accessible to students during school hours and within 1,000 feet of any athletic student activity. It also adds that the existing program must include training in cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR), first aid, and the use of an automated external defibrillator (AED) for all participants. This new law will help keep more students safe and all students and coaches informed. Previous law only required coaches and athletes to be educated on cardiac arrest symptoms

Protecting power of attorney rights in healthcare decisions - Lawmakers passed a law that ensures those with power of attorney for healthcare decisions cannot be prevented from visiting the patient in the hospital. During the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, some hospitals suspended or revoked a patient’s power of attorney’s right to visit and make healthcare decisions. Unfortunately, this caused many patients to pass away without being able to say goodbye to their loved ones. This new law prohibits hospitals from restricting or terminating a power of attorney’s visiting rights during a state of emergency. Visitors would still be required to follow safety protocols, but visitors cannot be forced to adhere to any invasive protocols such as having a vaccination or medical procedure done before entering the hospital.

Anti-blocking healthcare information - Lawmakers passed a law that helps prevent information blocking in Tennessee’s healthcare communities.The law enforces a federal anti-blocking law for electronic health records.

Expanding Mental Health Coverage - Legislation passed this year which expands health coverage for those in need of mental health services. It requires TennCare to cover mental health services at the same coverage rate for alcoholism and drug dependent patients.

Healthcare Professionals Licensure

Scope of practice for physicians assistants - To help delegate physicians’ high workload, the general assembly approved legislation to expand the scope of practice for physicians assistants. The new law allows PA’s to perform minor operations without supervision as well as perform certain tasks with a physician’s oversight.

Mental health medical practitioners - Lawmakers passed a law that adds licensed professional counselors, marital and family therapists and clinical pastoral therapists to the list of medical practitioners in code. This will allow for these mental health specialists to serve more people across Tennessee.

Physician Assistants Compact – Tennessee has many compacts with other states that allow certain workers to cross state lines with their licenses and practice in those states and in our state. Lawmakers passed a law that adds physician assistants to these already existing compacts by enacting the Physician Assistant (PA) Licensure Compact.

Dietitian Licensure Compact - A new law creates the Dietitian Licensure Compact. The compact aims to facilitate the interstate practice of dietetics to improve public access to dietetics services without the dietitian having to obtain state licensure.

Licensed sleep technicians - A new law passed that addresses the shortage of licensed sleep technicians in Tennessee where lack of sleep is a significant issue. The law allows a student to present A-STEP training as a satisfactory requirement for licensure as a polysomnographic technologist.

Ben Kredich Act - Under a new law, first responders who administer an opioid antagonist such as Narcan to an individual experiencing a drug overdose may provide information on the risk of driving within a 24-hour period. The law is named after Ben Kredich who tragically lost his life after being struck by a driver who fell asleep at the wheel after being administered Narcan in a hospital earlier that day. The driver was unaware that the drugs causing the overdose would remain in his system for at least 24 hours, even after the Narcan was administered. The law aims to clarify that patients who have been treated for a drug overdose with Narcan could still be impaired and charged with driving under the influence, as drugs would still be present in their system.

Preventing DUI homicide recidivism - Ledford’s Law was passed this year to reduce the chances that offenders in DUI homicide cases will reoffend and jeopardize the lives of others on the road. The law is named after Dustin Ledford who was killed by an intoxicated driver in 2011. The offender was paroled and subsequently reoffended, almost taking another life. Under the new law, offenders on parole are now required to undergo substance abuse treatment or behavioral counseling.

DUI enhancements - Lawmakers passed legislation that increases penalties for intoxicated drivers. The law increases the jail time requirement for drunk drivers from two days to seven days if their blood alcohol content (BCA) is equal to or higher than .15.

TennCare Equal coverage for non-opioid medications - This year lawmakers passed a new law ensuring that individuals have equal access to non-opioid pain medications for effective pain treatment and management. The law makes sure that non-opioid, FDA approved drugs for pain are not at a disadvantage compared to opioid or narcotic drugs in terms of coverage for pain treatment or management on the Prescription Drug List (PDL). Equal coverage for non-opioid pain medications facilitates access to a broader range of treatment options for individuals experiencing pain. The legislation also encourages the use of non-opioid pain medications as safer alternatives to opioids for pain management.

Medication-assisted treatment - A new law increases the number of patients a mid-level physician can treat with Buprenorphine from 50 to 100 patients. Buprenorphine is used in medication-assisted treatment for opioid addiction.