Text of CT HB 5424 (2024)

LCO No. 2327 1 of 4 General Assembly Raised Bill No. 5424 February Session, 2024 LCO No. 2327 *02327_______PH_* Referred to Committee on PUBLIC HEALTH Introduced by: (PH) AN ACT PROHIBITING ADVERSE ACTIONS AGAINST HEALTH CARE PROVIDERS FOR PROVIDING CERTAIN HEALTH CARE SERVICES. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Assembly convened: Section 1. (NEW) (Effective July 1, 2024) As used in this section and 1 sections 2 and 3 of this act: 2 (1) "Gender-affirming health care services" means all medical care 3 relating to the treatment of (A) gender dysphoria as set forth in the most 4 recent edition of the American Psychiatric Association's "Diagnostic and 5 Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders", and (B) gender incongruence, 6 as defined in the most recent revision of the "International Statistical 7 Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems"; 8 (2) "Health care entity" means an entity that supervises, controls, 9 grants privileges to, directs the practice of or directly, or indirectly, 10 restricts the practice of a health care provider; 11 (3) "Health care provider" means a person who (A) provides health 12 care services, (B) is licensed, certified or registered pursuant to title 20 13 of the general statutes, and (C) is employed by or acting on behalf of a 14 Raised Bill No. 5424 LCO No. 2327 2 of 4 health care entity; 15 (4) "Medically accurate and appropriate information and counseling" 16 means information and counseling that is (A) supported by the weight 17 of current scientific evidence, (B) derived from research using accepted 18 scientific methods, (C) consistent with generally recognized scientific 19 theory, (D) published in peer-reviewed journals, as appropriate, and (E) 20 recognized as accurate, complete, objective and in accordance with the 21 accepted standard of care by professional organizations and agencies 22 with expertise in the relevant field; and 23 (5) "Reproductive health care services" means all medical, surgical, 24 counseling or referral services relating to the human reproductive 25 system, including, but not limited to, services relating to sexual health, 26 pregnancy, contraception or the termination of a pregnancy. 27 Sec. 2. (NEW) (Effective July 1, 2024) (a) Except as provided in 28 subsection (b) of this section, if a health care provider is acting in good 29 faith, within the health care provider's scope of practice, education, 30 training and experience, including the health care provider's specialty 31 areas of practice and board certification, and within the accepted 32 standard of care, a health care entity shall not limit the health care 33 provider's provision of the following with regard to reproductive health 34 care services and gender-affirming health care services: 35 (1) Comprehensive medically accurate and appropriate information 36 and counseling that conforms to the accepted standard of care to an 37 individual patient regarding that patient's health status, including, but 38 not limited to, diagnosis, prognosis, recommended treatment, treatment 39 alternatives and any potential risks to the patient's health or life; and 40 (2) Comprehensive medically accurate and appropriate information 41 and counseling about available and relevant services and resources in 42 the community and how to access such services and resources to obtain 43 health care of the patient's choosing. 44 (b) Nothing in subsection (a) of this section shall be construed to 45 Raised Bill No. 5424 LCO No. 2327 3 of 4 prohibit a health care entity that employs a health care provider from 46 performing relevant peer review of the health care provider, or from 47 requiring such health care provider to: 48 (1) Comply with preferred provider network or utilization review 49 requirements of any program or entity authorized by state or federal 50 law to provide insurance coverage for health care services to an enrollee; 51 or 52 (2) Meet established health care quality and patient safety guidelines 53 or rules. 54 (c) A health care entity shall not discharge, demote, suspend, 55 discipline or otherwise discriminate against a health care provider 56 solely for providing information or counseling as described in 57 subsection (a) of this section. 58 Sec. 3. (NEW) (Effective July 1, 2024) (a) Except as provided in 59 subsection (b) of this section, if a health care provider is acting in good 60 faith, within the health care provider's scope of practice, education, 61 training and experience and within the accepted standard of care, a 62 health care entity with an emergency department may not prohibit the 63 health care provider from providing any reproductive health care 64 service related to complications of pregnancy, including, but not limited 65 to, services related to miscarriage management and treatment for 66 ectopic pregnancies, (1) if the failure to provide such service would 67 violate the accepted standard of care, or (2) in cases in which there is a 68 serious risk to a patient's life or health. 69 (b) Nothing in subsection (a) of this section shall be construed to 70 prohibit a health care entity from limiting a health care provider's 71 practice for purposes of: 72 (1) Complying with preferred provider network or utilization review 73 requirements of any program or entity authorized by state or federal 74 law to provide insurance coverage for health care services to an enrollee; 75 or 76 Raised Bill No. 5424 LCO No. 2327 4 of 4 (2) Ensuring quality of care and patient safety, including, but not 77 limited to, when quality control or patient safety issues are identified 78 pursuant to peer review. 79 (c) A health care entity may not discharge, demote, suspend, or 80 otherwise discriminate against a health care provider for providing a 81 reproductive health care service pursuant to the provisions of this 82 section. 83 (d) Nothing in this section shall be construed to alter a health care 84 entity's obligations under applicable federal laws and regulations, 85 including, 42 USC 1395dd, as amended from time to time. 86 This act shall take effect as follows and shall amend the following sections: Section 1 July 1, 2024 New section Sec. 2 July 1, 2024 New section Sec. 3 July 1, 2024 New section Statement of Purpose: To prohibit adverse actions against health care providers for providing certain health care services. [Proposed deletions are enclosed in brackets. Proposed additions are indicated by underline, except that when the entire text of a bill or resolution or a section of a bill or resolution is new, it is not underlined.]