Bill > H390

This bill requires hospitals and ambulatory surgical facilities in North Carolina to use smoke evacuation/filtering systems during surgical procedures that are likely to generate surgical smoke, which is defined as the gaseous by-product produced by energy-generating medical devices that can include harmful airborne contaminants like bio-aerosols and lung-damaging dust. The systems must effectively capture and filter the smoke at its point of origin before it can contact the eyes or respiratory tracts of people in the room, and do not need to be connected to the facility's existing ventilation or medical gas systems. Both hospitals and ambulatory surgical facilities must adopt and implement policies mandating these systems, and the Department of Health and Human Services is empowered to take adverse action against facilities that do not comply with these requirements. The bill will take effect on January 1, 2026, giving healthcare facilities time to prepare and implement the necessary equipment and policies to protect healthcare workers and patients from potentially harmful surgical smoke.

Government Affairs, Health and Social Services

https://www.ncleg.gov/BillLookUp/2025/H390