Bill > HB905

This bill requires hospitals in Maryland to establish and maintain clinical staffing committees with equal representation from management and employees, designed to develop and implement comprehensive clinical staffing plans that ensure adequate patient care. The committees must include diverse representatives such as nursing assistants, emergency room nurses, environmental service workers, and a staff physician, and may optionally include a patient advocate. When developing the staffing plan, the committee must consider existing staffing levels, methods to secure coverage, staffing gaps, evidence-based standards, and create a schedule for periodic review. Each year by July 1, hospitals must review their clinical staffing plan to evaluate its effectiveness, update it as needed, and develop a process for addressing complaints. The bill mandates that by January 1, 2027, hospitals must implement their staffing plans and assign personnel accordingly, and they must post the current staffing plan and daily staffing levels in a publicly accessible area of each patient unit. Additionally, starting in 2029, the Maryland Hospital Association will be required to compile and submit annual reports about hospitals' clinical staffing efforts to legislative committees, with the overall goal of ensuring safe and appropriate hospital staffing levels.