Provides relative to inpatient licensed facilities. (8/1/26) (OR INCREASE GF EX See Note)

Senate Bill 273 enacts new Louisiana Revised Statutes Section 40:2009.26, which establishes patient protections and facility requirements for hospice care provided in non-hospice inpatient licensed facilities such as nursing homes, assisted living facilities, and licensed residential care settings. The legislation creates enforceable standards governing the coordination of care between facilities and hospice providers, requiring facilities to implement written care plans that identify the hospice provider, the provider controlling medical orders, the provider responsible for daily hydration and nutrition, and a designated family contact point. The statute mandates that facilities maintain detailed patient logs documenting offers of food and fluids, patient acceptance or refusal, and the clinical justification for any provider orders withholding hydration or nutrition. When hospice patients are transferred between facilities, the transferring facility must immediately notify the hospice provider and patient's family or authorized representative with the current care plan and notice that a new care plan will be developed within six hours at the receiving facility.

Nursing facilities, assisted living facilities, licensed residential care settings, their staff, hospice providers, patients, and families are directly affected by these requirements. Facilities must implement new administrative procedures to create and maintain written care plans and patient logs for each hospice patient, designate points of contact for family communication, and ensure immediate notification upon patient transfers. Families and authorized representatives gain enforceable rights to receive care plans and patient logs upon request and cannot be retaliated against or have their access restricted for raising concerns about patient care. Any facility restriction on visitation must be ordered by an identified provider, clinically justified, documented in writing, and communicated to family before implementation. Facilities and their staff face potential corrective action orders and administrative penalties for violations, while patients gain clearer accountability regarding which provider controls specific medical decisions.

This statute operates within Louisiana's existing hospice regulatory framework established in R.S. 40:2181 et seq., which governs licensed hospice agencies. The new Section 40:2009.26 addresses a regulatory gap by establishing specific protections when hospice care occurs outside dedicated inpatient hospice facilities, where care coordination between the facility and external hospice provider creates potential confusion regarding responsibility and accountability. The Louisiana Department of Health retains enforcement authority through complaint surveys, care plan reviews, corrective action plans, and administrative penalties. The legislation implements patient rights related to comfort-focused care, respectful communication, and clear explanation of decisions affecting hydration, nutrition, and visitation, which align with broader patient protection principles in Louisiana's health care licensing statutes.