Palliative Care: PHL Section 2997-d

* §  2997-d. Hospital, nursing home, home care, special needs assisted
  living residences and enhanced  assisted  living  residences  palliative
  care  support.  1.  (a)  "Palliative  care" means health care treatment,
  including interdisciplinary  end-of-life  care,  and  consultation  with
  patients  and  family  members, to prevent or relieve pain and suffering
  and to enhance the patient's quality of  life,  including  hospice  care
  under article forty of this chapter.
    (b) "Appropriate" has the same meaning as paragraph (a) of subdivision
  one of section twenty-nine hundred ninety-seven-c of this title.
    2.   General  hospitals,  nursing  homes,  organizations  licensed  or
  certified  pursuant  to  article  thirty-six  of   this   chapter,   and
  organizations  licensed  as  special needs assisted living residences or
  enhanced assisted living residences pursuant to article  forty-six-B  of
  this chapter shall establish policies and procedures to provide patients
  with  advanced  life limiting conditions and illnesses who might benefit
  from palliative care, including  associated  pain  management,  services
  with  access  to  information  and  counseling  regarding  such  options
  appropriate to the patient. Policies must include provision for patients
  who lack capacity to make medical decisions,  so  that  access  to  such
  information  and  counseling  shall  be  provided to the persons who are
  legally authorized to make medical decisions on behalf of such patients.
    3.  General  hospitals,  nursing  homes,  organizations  licensed   or
  certified   pursuant   to   article  thirty-six  of  this  chapter,  and
  organizations licensed as special needs assisted  living  residences  or
  enhanced  assisted  living residences pursuant to article forty-six-B of
  this chapter shall facilitate  access  to  appropriate  palliative  care
  consultations   and   services,  including  associated  pain  management
  consultations and services,  including  but  not  limited  to  referrals
  consistent with patient needs and preferences. The department shall take
  into account access and proximity of palliative care services, including
  the   availability  of  hospice  and  palliative  care  board  certified
  practitioners and other related workforce staff, geographic factors, and
  facility size that may impact development of palliative care services.
    * NB Effective September 27, 2011