Bill > HB173

This bill requires healthcare employers, specifically hospitals and freestanding surgical centers in Delaware, to implement smoke evacuation systems during surgical procedures that are likely to generate surgical smoke by April 1, 2026. A smoke evacuation system is defined as equipment that captures and filters surgical smoke at its origin before it can contact the eyes or respiratory tract of room occupants. The bill defines surgical smoke as the gaseous by-product produced by energy-generating devices during surgical procedures, including surgical plume, bio-aerosols, and laser-generated airborne contaminants. The Division of Health Care Quality will be responsible for enforcing these requirements under its existing regulatory authority. The purpose of this legislation is to protect healthcare workers and patients from potentially harmful airborne particles generated during surgical procedures, addressing a workplace health and safety concern by mandating the use of specialized equipment to filter and remove these hazardous smoke emissions.

Government Affairs, Health and Social Services

https://legis.delaware.gov/BillDetail?LegislationId=142338