Bill Text: TX SB401 | 2023-2024 | 88th Legislature | Engrossed
NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft
Bill Title: Relating to prices charged by a medical staffing services agency during certain designated public health disaster periods; providing a civil penalty.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 2-0)
Status: (Passed) 2023-06-18 - Effective on 9/1/23 [SB401 Detail]
Download: Texas-2023-SB401-Engrossed.html
Bill Title: Relating to prices charged by a medical staffing services agency during certain designated public health disaster periods; providing a civil penalty.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 2-0)
Status: (Passed) 2023-06-18 - Effective on 9/1/23 [SB401 Detail]
Download: Texas-2023-SB401-Engrossed.html
By: Kolkhorst | S.B. No. 401 |
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relating to prices charged by a medical staffing services agency | ||
during certain designated public health disaster periods; | ||
providing a civil penalty. | ||
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: | ||
SECTION 1. Subtitle D, Title 2, Health and Safety Code, is | ||
amended by adding Chapter 81B to read as follows: | ||
CHAPTER 81B. PRICE GOUGING OF MEDICAL STAFFING SERVICES DURING | ||
DESIGNATED PUBLIC HEALTH DISASTER PERIOD | ||
Sec. 81B.001. DEFINITIONS. In this chapter: | ||
(1) "Designated public health disaster period" means a | ||
period: | ||
(A) based on a threat to the public health, | ||
including a threat from: | ||
(i) a chemical, biological, explosive, | ||
nuclear, or radiological attack or incident; or | ||
(ii) a communicable disease, epidemic, or | ||
pandemic; | ||
(B) beginning on the earlier of the date: | ||
(i) the governor issues a proclamation or | ||
executive order declaring a state of disaster under Chapter 418, | ||
Government Code, for any area of this state; | ||
(ii) the president of the United States | ||
declares a state of disaster that includes an area of this state as | ||
part of the federally declared disaster area; or | ||
(iii) a disaster described by Subparagraph | ||
(i) or (ii) occurs; and | ||
(C) ending on the 30th day after the date the | ||
disaster declaration expires or is terminated. | ||
(2) "Exorbitant or excessive price" means a price | ||
that: | ||
(A) increases by more than 10 percent over the | ||
price charged for medical staffing services provided immediately | ||
before the designated public health disaster period; | ||
(B) increases by more than 10 percent over the | ||
tax-adjusted price charged for medical staffing services provided | ||
in any area outside the geographic area subject to the designated | ||
public health disaster period; | ||
(C) increases by more than 10 percent over the | ||
sum of: | ||
(i) the higher of acquisition or | ||
replacement cost for medical staffing services; and | ||
(ii) the markup customarily applied by the | ||
medical staffing services agency for medical staffing services in | ||
the usual course of business immediately before the designated | ||
public health disaster period; | ||
(D) is not attributable to fluctuations in | ||
applicable regional or national markets for medical staffing | ||
services; or | ||
(E) is not a contract price or price formula for | ||
medical staffing services agreed to before the designated public | ||
health disaster period. | ||
Sec. 81B.002. APPLICABILITY. This chapter applies only to | ||
a medical staffing services agency that provides the following | ||
health care professionals to fill vacancies or address temporary | ||
staffing needs during a designated public health disaster period: | ||
(1) physician assistants licensed under Chapter 204, | ||
Occupations Code; | ||
(2) surgical assistants licensed under Chapter 206, | ||
Occupations Code; | ||
(3) nurses licensed under Chapter 301, Occupations | ||
Code; or | ||
(4) nurse aides listed in the nurse aide registry | ||
under Chapter 250. | ||
Sec. 81B.003. PROHIBITED PRICE GOUGING DURING DESIGNATED | ||
PUBLIC HEALTH DISASTER PERIOD. During a designated public health | ||
disaster period, a medical staffing services agency to which this | ||
chapter applies may not demand or charge an exorbitant or excessive | ||
price to provide medical staffing services to a health care | ||
organization or other entity in this state in an area subject to a | ||
declared state of disaster. | ||
Sec. 81B.004. CIVIL PENALTY; INJUNCTION. (a) A medical | ||
staffing services agency that violates this chapter is subject to a | ||
civil penalty in an amount not to exceed $10,000 for each violation. | ||
(b) The attorney general may bring an action in the name of | ||
the state to: | ||
(1) recover a civil penalty under this section; or | ||
(2) restrain or enjoin the person from violating this | ||
chapter. | ||
(c) The attorney general may recover reasonable expenses | ||
incurred in obtaining a civil penalty under this section, including | ||
court costs, reasonable attorney's fees, expert witness fees, | ||
deposition expenses, and investigatory costs. | ||
SECTION 2. The changes in law made by this Act apply only to | ||
an act that occurs on or after the effective date of this Act. An | ||
act that occurs before the effective date of this Act is governed by | ||
the law in effect on the date the act occurred, and the former law is | ||
continued in effect for that purpose. | ||
SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 2023. |