Bill > SB284

This bill, titled the "Patient Safe Staffing Act," mandates that hospitals establish nursing staffing committees composed of eleven members, including seven nurses who provide direct patient care and four other qualified individuals, to develop and review staffing plans for each hospital unit. These plans must specify the minimum number of nurses and ancillary staff (defined as personnel like certified nurse assistants and unit secretaries who assist in patient care) needed per shift based on patient needs and hospital conditions, and ensure nurses have adequate orientation. The committees will also select outcome indicators to monitor patient care quality and determine staffing levels by majority vote, with hospitals required to adopt an algorithm for maintaining these levels without mandating overtime. Nurses are granted the right to refuse assignments if they lack the necessary qualifications or if the assignment is outside their scope of practice. Hospitals must post daily reports in each unit detailing patient census and actual staffing levels, and submit quarterly reports to the Department of Health (DOH) for public disclosure on its website. The DOH is tasked with prescribing reporting formats, auditing reports, enforcing compliance through penalties, and promulgating necessary rules. The act also includes whistleblower protection for employees who raise concerns about staffing or report violations, and appropriates $100,000 to the DOH for fiscal year 2016 to carry out its duties under the act.