HEALTH & SAFETY CODE
CHAPTER 13. HEALTH DEPARTMENT HOSPITALS AND RESPIRATORY FACILITIES
SUBCHAPTER A. CARE AND TREATMENT IN HEALTH DEPARTMENT HOSPITALS
§ 13.002. ADMISSION OF OTHER PATIENTS. (a) The board
may admit to any hospital under its supervision a patient who:
(1) is eligible to receive patient services under a
department program; and
(2) will benefit from hospitalization.
(b) Admission to a hospital as authorized under this section
is subject to the availability of:
(1) appropriate space after the needs of eligible
tuberculosis and chronic respiratory disease patients have been
met; and
(2) trained medical personnel for the necessary
medical care and treatment.
(c) The board may adopt rules and enter into contracts as
necessary to implement this section.
(d) This section does not require the board or department
to:
(1) admit a patient to a particular hospital;
(2) guarantee the availability of space at any
hospital; or
(3) provide treatment for a particular medical need at
any hospital.
Acts 1989, 71st Leg., ch. 678, § 1, eff. Sept. 1, 1989.
§ 13.003. SERVICES AT SOUTH TEXAS HEALTH CARE
SYSTEM. (a) The primary purpose of the South Texas Health Care
System is to provide inpatient and outpatient services, either
directly or by contract with one or more public or private health
care providers or entities, to the residents of the Lower Rio Grande
Valley.
(b) The board may establish at the South Texas Health Care
System:
(1) cancer screening;
(2) diagnostic services;
(3) educational services;
(4) obstetrical services;
(5) gynecological services;
(6) other inpatient health care services; and
(7) outpatient health care services, including
diagnostic, treatment, disease management, and supportive care
services.
Acts 1989, 71st Leg., ch. 678, § 1, eff. Sept. 1, 1989. Amended
by Acts 1999, 76th Leg., ch. 1106, § 9, eff. Aug. 30, 1999; Acts
2001, 77th Leg., ch. 263, § 2, eff. May 22, 2001.
§ 13.004. TREATMENT OF CERTAIN MENTALLY ILL OR MENTALLY
RETARDED PERSONS. (a) The Texas Department of Mental Health and
Mental Retardation may transfer a mentally ill or mentally retarded
person who is infected with tuberculosis to the Texas Center for
Infectious Disease.
(b) The person may be transferred without that person's
consent.
(c) The cost of maintaining and treating the person at the
Texas Center for Infectious Disease shall be paid from
appropriations to that hospital.
Acts 1989, 71st Leg., ch. 678, § 1, eff. Sept. 1, 1989. Amended
by Acts 1995, 74th Leg., ch. 107, § 2, eff. Sept. 1, 1995.
§ 13.005. CARE AND TREATMENT OF CERTAIN
PATIENTS. (a) The board shall fully develop essential services
needed for the control of tuberculosis. To provide those services,
the board may contract for the support, maintenance, care, and
treatment of tuberculosis patients:
(1) admitted to facilities under the board's
jurisdiction; or
(2) otherwise subject to the board's jurisdiction.
(b) The board may contract with:
(1) municipal, county, or state hospitals;
(2) private physicians;
(3) licensed nursing homes and hospitals; and
(4) hospital districts.
(c) The board may contract for diagnostic and other services
available in a community or region as necessary to prevent further
spread of tuberculosis.
(d) A contract may not include the assignment of any lien
accruing to the state.
(e) The board may establish and operate outpatient clinics
as necessary to provide follow-up treatment on discharged patients.
A person who receives treatment as an outpatient is financially
liable in the manner provided for inpatients.
Acts 1989, 71st Leg., ch. 678, § 1, eff. Sept. 1, 1989.
§ 13.006. PURPOSE OF TUBERCULOSIS CONTROL PROGRAM. The
primary objectives of the tuberculosis control program are:
(1) case-finding;
(2) inpatient and outpatient treatment; and
(3) the eventual eradication of tuberculosis.
Acts 1989, 71st Leg., ch. 678, § 1, eff. Sept. 1, 1989.
SUBCHAPTER B. TEXAS TUBERCULOSIS CODE
§ 13.031. SHORT TITLE. This subchapter may be cited as
the Texas Tuberculosis Code.
Acts 1989, 71st Leg., ch. 678, § 1, eff. Sept. 1, 1989.
§ 13.032. PURPOSE. The purpose of this subchapter is
to:
(1) enable persons with tuberculosis to obtain needed
care;
(2) provide care and treatment for those persons; and
(3) facilitate their hospitalization.
Acts 1989, 71st Leg., ch. 678, § 1, eff. Sept. 1, 1989.
§ 13.033. DEFINITIONS. In this subchapter:
(1) "Legally responsible person" means a parent,
guardian, or spouse, or any person whom the laws of this state hold
responsible for debts incurred as a result of the hospitalization
or treatment of a patient.
(2) "Local health authority" means a practicing
physician who acts as:
(A) a municipal or county health authority;
(B) a director of a local health department or
public health district; or
(C) a regional director of a public health
region.
(3) "Physician" means a person licensed by the Texas
State Board of Medical Examiners to practice medicine in this
state.
(4) "Political subdivision" includes a county,
municipality, or hospital district.
(5) "State chest hospital" means the Texas Center for
Infectious Disease and the South Texas Health Care System.
(6) "Tuberculosis patient" means a person who has any
form of tuberculosis in any part of the body.
Acts 1989, 71st Leg., ch. 678, § 1, eff. Sept. 1, 1989. Amended
by Acts 1995, 74th Leg., ch. 107, § 5, eff. Sept. 1, 1995; Acts
2001, 77th Leg., ch. 263, § 3, eff. May 22, 2001.
§ 13.034. BOARD DUTIES. (a) The board shall adopt
rules and bylaws relating to:
(1) the management of state chest hospitals;
(2) the duties of officers and employees of those
hospitals; and
(3) the enforcement of necessary discipline and
restraint of patients.
(b) The board shall supply each hospital with the necessary
personnel for the operation and maintenance of the hospital.
(c) The board may:
(1) prescribe the form and content of applications,
certificates, records, and reports provided for under this
subchapter;
(2) require reports from the administrator of a state
chest hospital relating to the admission, examination, diagnosis,
release, or discharge of a patient;
(3) visit each hospital regularly to review admitting
procedures and the care and treatment of all new patients admitted
since the last visit;
(4) investigate by personal visit a complaint made by
a patient or by another person on behalf of a patient; and
(5) adopt rules as necessary for the proper and
efficient hospitalization of tuberculosis patients.
(d) The board may delegate a power or duty of the board to an
employee. The delegation does not relieve the board from its
responsibility.
Acts 1989, 71st Leg., ch. 678, § 1, eff. Sept. 1, 1989.
§ 13.035. EMPLOYMENT OF HOSPITAL
ADMINISTRATORS. (a) The department shall employ a qualified
hospital administrator for each state chest hospital.
(b) A hospital administrator employed under this section is
not required to be a licensed physician.
(c) The hospital administrator may delegate a power or duty
of the administrator to an employee. The delegation does not
relieve the hospital administrator from the responsibility.
Acts 1989, 71st Leg., ch. 678, § 1, eff. Sept. 1, 1989.
§ 13.036. PATIENT ADMISSION; EXAMINATION
CERTIFICATE. (a) A resident of this state who has tuberculosis
may be admitted to a state chest hospital. A person who is not a
resident of this state and who has tuberculosis may be admitted to a
state chest hospital in accordance with Section 13.046.
(b) The hospital shall review applications for admission
and admit or deny admission to applicants.
(c) An application for admission to a state chest hospital
shall be accompanied by a certificate issued by a physician stating
that the physician has thoroughly examined the applicant and that
the applicant has tuberculosis. In the case of an applicant who is
not a resident of this state, the certificate may be issued by a
physician who holds a license to practice medicine in the state of
residence of the applicant.
(d) In the case of an indigent applicant, the certificate
may be issued by the local health authority.
(e) The department shall prescribe the form and content of
the certificate.
(f) If the applicant has a communicable disease other than
tuberculosis, the hospital administrator may delay the admission
until the other disease is no longer contagious.
Acts 1989, 71st Leg., ch. 678, § 1, eff. Sept. 1, 1989. Amended
by Acts 2003, 78th Leg., ch. 107, § 1, eff. Sept. 1, 2003.
§ 13.037. DETERMINATION OF RESIDENCY. (a) A person is
a resident of this state if the person:
(1) is physically present and living voluntarily in
this state;
(2) intends to make a home in this state; and
(3) is not in this state temporarily.
(b) The intent to make a home in this state may be
demonstrated by proof similar to or including:
(1) the possession of documentation, such as a Texas
driver's license, motor vehicle registration, or voter
registration certificate;
(2) the presence of personal effects at a specific
abode in this state; or
(3) employment in this state.
Acts 1989, 71st Leg., ch. 678, § 1, eff. Sept. 1, 1989.
§ 13.038. CLASSIFICATION OF PATIENTS; LIEN. (a) A
patient admitted to a state chest hospital is a public patient and
classified as indigent, nonindigent, or nonresident.
(b) An indigent public patient is a person who:
(1) does not possess property of any kind;
(2) has no person who is legally responsible for the
patient's support; and
(3) is unable to reimburse the state.
(c) A nonindigent public patient is a person who possesses
property out of which the state may be reimbursed, or who has a
person who is legally responsible for the patient's support.
(d) Except as provided by Section 13.040, the state shall
support and maintain an indigent or nonindigent public patient at
state expense but is entitled to reimbursement for a nonindigent
public patient's support.
(e) The state's claim for nonindigent support and
maintenance constitutes a lien against the property of the patient
or the legally responsible person who is financially able to
contribute.
(f) A nonresident public patient is a person who is admitted
in accordance with an interstate agreement under Section 13.046.
Acts 1989, 71st Leg., ch. 678, § 1, eff. Sept. 1, 1989. Amended
by Acts 2003, 78th Leg., ch. 107, § 2, eff. Sept. 1, 2003.
§ 13.039. COLLECTION OF STATE'S CLAIM. (a) A state
claim for patient support and maintenance may be collected through
an action brought against the patient or the person legally
responsible for the patient. The action shall be brought in the
county from which the patient was sent and shall be brought in the
name of the state by the county or district attorney of that county
or by the attorney general.
(b) The action shall be brought on the written request of
the state chest hospital administrator, accompanied by a
certificate as to the amount owed to the state. In any action, the
certificate is sufficient evidence of the amount owed to the state
for the support of that patient.
(c) On receipt of the request, the attorney shall bring and
conduct the suit and is entitled to a commission of 10 percent of
the amount collected. All money collected under this section, less
the amount of the commission, shall be paid by the attorney to the
hospital administrator, who shall receive the amount and give a
receipt.
Acts 1989, 71st Leg., ch. 678, § 1, eff. Sept. 1, 1989.
§ 13.040. EFFECT OF INDIGENT HEALTH CARE AND TREATMENT
ACT. If an indigent or nonindigent public patient is eligible for
health care assistance from a county hospital or public hospital
under Chapter 61 (Indigent Health Care and Treatment Act), the
state is entitled to reimbursement from that hospital for the
treatment and support of the patient to the extent prescribed by
that chapter.
Acts 1989, 71st Leg., ch. 678, § 1, eff. Sept. 1, 1989.
§ 13.041. RETURN OF CERTAIN NONRESIDENTS; RECIPROCAL
AGREEMENTS. (a) The board may:
(1) return a nonresident patient admitted to a state
chest hospital to the proper agency of the state of the patient's
residence; and
(2) permit the return of a resident of this state who
has been admitted to a tuberculosis hospital in another state.
(b) The state that is returning a patient shall pay the
expenses of the return.
(c) The board may enter into reciprocal agreements with the
proper agencies of other states to facilitate the return to the
states of their residence of nonresident patients admitted to state
chest hospitals in other states.
Acts 1989, 71st Leg., ch. 678, § 1, eff. Sept. 1, 1989.
§ 13.042. DISCRIMINATION PROHIBITED. (a) A state
chest hospital may not discriminate against a patient.
(b) Each patient is entitled to equal facilities,
attention, and treatment. However, a state chest hospital may
provide different care and treatment of patients because of
differences in the condition of the individual patients.
Acts 1989, 71st Leg., ch. 678, § 1, eff. Sept. 1, 1989.
§ 13.043. GRATUITIES PROHIBITED. (a) A patient in a
state chest hospital may not offer an officer, agent, or employee of
the hospital a tip, payment, or reward of any kind.
(b) A patient who violates this section may be expelled from
the hospital. An employee who accepts a tip, payment, or reward of
any kind from a patient may be discharged.
(c) The board shall strictly enforce this section.
Acts 1989, 71st Leg., ch. 678, § 1, eff. Sept. 1, 1989.
§ 13.044. PRIVATE ACCOMMODATIONS. (a) On the request
of any charitable organization in this state, the board may permit
the erection, furnishing, and maintenance by the charitable
organization of accommodations on the grounds of a state chest
hospital for persons who have tuberculosis and who are:
(1) members of the charitable organization;
(2) members of the families of persons who are members
of the charitable organization; or
(3) surviving spouses or minor children of deceased
persons who are members of the charitable organization.
(b) The accommodations shall be reserved for the
preferential use of persons described by Subsection (a).
(c) The state may not incur any expense in the erection,
furnishing, and maintenance of the accommodations. The charitable
organization that enters a patient under this section may be
required to pay the pro rata part of the maintenance costs of that
patient that is found to be just and equitable, pending the next
legislative appropriation for the maintenance of state chest
hospitals. Any part of the accommodations not used by persons
described by Subsection (a) may be used, at the discretion of the
hospital administrator, by other patients in the hospital without
charge to the state.
(d) The officers or a board or committee of the charitable
organization and the board must enter into a written agreement
relating to the location, construction, style, and character, and
terms of existence of buildings, and other questions arising in
connection with the grant of permission to erect and maintain
private accommodations. The written agreement must be recorded in
the minutes of the board.
(e) Except for the preferential right to occupy vacant
accommodations erected by the person's charitable organization, a
person described by Subsection (a) shall be classified in the same
manner as other state chest hospital patients and shall be
admitted, maintained, cared for, and treated in those hospitals in
the same manner and under the same conditions and rules that apply
to other patients.
Acts 1989, 71st Leg., ch. 678, § 1, eff. Sept. 1, 1989.
§ 13.045. DONATION OF LAND BY COUNTY. (a) A county may
donate and convey land to the state in consideration of the
establishment of a state chest hospital by the board.
(b) The commissioners court of the county may determine the
desirability, manner, and form of the donation and conveyance.
(c) This section does not authorize the commissioners court
of a county to convey land donated or granted for educational
purposes to the county in any manner other than that directed by
law.
Acts 1989, 71st Leg., ch. 678, § 1, eff. Sept. 1, 1989.
§ 13.046. ADMISSION OF NONRESIDENT PATIENTS. (a) The
department may enter into an agreement with an agency of another
state responsible for the care of residents of that state who have
tuberculosis under which:
(1) residents of the other state who have tuberculosis
may be admitted to a state chest hospital, subject to the
availability of appropriate space after the needs of eligible
tuberculosis and chronic respiratory disease patients who are
residents of this state have been met; and
(2) the other state is responsible for paying all
costs of the hospitalization and treatment of patients admitted
under the agreement.
(b) Section 13.041 does not apply to the return of a
nonresident patient admitted to a state chest hospital in
accordance with an agreement entered into under this section. The
return of that patient to the state of residence is governed by the
agreement.
Added by Acts 2003, 78th Leg., ch. 107, § 3, eff. Sept. 1, 2003.
