Bill Text: TX SB1491 | 2019-2020 | 86th Legislature | Comm Sub
Bill Title: Relating to civil liability of a nursing facility resident's responsible payor for misappropriation of the resident's funds.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 2-0)
Status: (Engrossed - Dead) 2019-05-15 - Committee report sent to Calendars [SB1491 Detail]
Download: Texas-2019-SB1491-Comm_Sub.html
By: Perry | S.B. No. 1491 | |
(Parker) | ||
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relating to civil liability of a nursing facility resident's | ||
responsible payor for misappropriation of the resident's funds. | ||
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: | ||
SECTION 1. Subchapter A, Chapter 242, Health and Safety | ||
Code, is amended by adding Section 242.020 to read as follows: | ||
Sec. 242.020. CIVIL LIABILITY RELATED TO MISAPPROPRIATION | ||
OF RESIDENT'S FUNDS. (a) In this section: | ||
(1) "Misappropriate" means the taking, secretion, | ||
misapplication, deprivation, transfer, or attempted transfer to | ||
any person not entitled to receive any real or personal property or | ||
anything of value belonging or under the legal control of a resident | ||
without the effective consent of the resident or other appropriate | ||
legal authority. | ||
(2) "Responsible payor" means a person who: | ||
(A) has legal access to the resident's income or | ||
resources available to pay for nursing facility care; and | ||
(B) has signed an admission agreement or other | ||
contract with the facility in which the person agrees to provide | ||
payment for the resident's facility care from the resident's income | ||
or resources. | ||
(b) A nursing facility may file an action against a | ||
resident's responsible payor for an amount owed by the resident to | ||
the facility if: | ||
(1) before admission of the resident, the facility | ||
obtains financial information from the resident or responsible | ||
payor demonstrating the amount of financial resources that the | ||
resident has available to pay for nursing facility care; and | ||
(2) after the resident begins to reside at the | ||
facility, the responsible payor misappropriates the resident's | ||
resources to a degree that the resident is unable to afford to pay | ||
for the resident's care. | ||
(c) Subject to Subsection (d), the prevailing party in an | ||
action filed under this section may recover attorney's fees. | ||
(d) In an action filed under this section, a nursing | ||
facility may not recover a total amount, including damages and | ||
attorney's fees, that exceeds the amount the responsible payor has | ||
misappropriated from the resident. | ||
SECTION 2. Section 242.020, Health and Safety Code, as | ||
added by this Act, applies only to a cause of action that accrues on | ||
or after the effective date of this Act. | ||
SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 2019. |