HB 886

Bill Subjects

Abstract

Requires the Board of Health to include in regulations governing hospitals a provision that requires every hospital that provides inpatient psychiatric services to establish a protocol that requires, for every refusal to admit a patient for whom there is a question of medical stability or medical appropriateness for admission due to a situation involving results of a toxicology screening, the on-call physician in the psychiatric unit to which the patient is sought to be transferred to participate in direct verbal communication, either in person or via telephone, with a clinical toxicologist or other person who is a Certified Specialist in Poison Information employed by a poison control center that is accredited by the American Association of Poison Control Centers to review the results of the toxicology screen and determine whether a medical reason for refusing admission to the psychiatric unit related to the results of the toxicology screen exists, if requested to do so by the referring physician.