SB 1451, An Act Concerning The Recommendations Of The Working Group To Study Staff Safety Issues Affecting Home Health Care And Home Health Aide Agencies

TESTIMONY OF THE CONNECTICUT HOSPITAL ASSOCIATION
SUBMITTED TO THE PUBLIC HEALTH COMMITTEE

Monday, March 10, 2025

The Connecticut Hospital Association (CHA) appreciates this opportunity to submit testimony concerning SB 1451, An Act Concerning The Recommendations Of The Working Group To Study Staff Safety Issues Affecting Home Health Care And Home Health Aide Agencies. CHA seeks an amendment to the language to ensure that the provision of information does not create a barrier to patient transfer and care.

Connecticut hospitals and health systems care for patients, strengthen the state’s economy, and support vulnerable communities across the state. Every day, they work to improve healthcare access, affordability, and health equity. Even as they face ongoing challenges, hospitals provide world-class care to everyone who walks through their doors, regardless of their ability to pay. Hospitals also support an exemplary workforce as the largest collective employer in the state, contribute significantly to the state’s economy, and invest in their communities addressing social drivers of health.

We appreciate the ongoing work by the legislature to ensure the safety of healthcare workers, in this case home health and hospice caregivers. Healthcare workers are uniquely and disproportionately at risk of workplace violence and efforts must be continuous in order to best ensure their safety.

We understand the amendments proposed to Section 19a-491f of the General Statutes are intended to ensure home health and hospice agencies have additional information about patients that could be useful in ensuring worker safety. We are concerned, however, that the provision of this information could influence an agency’s decision on whether to accept a patient referral. Refusal to accept a patient referral based on the information required in the bill could result in patients not receiving appropriate care and, in the case of hospitals, stays longer than required or appropriate.

Connecticut hospitals face the daily challenge of finding appropriate post-acute care placements. For example, patients with behavioral health issues who need post-acute care, but do not meet the typical criteria for existing placements within skilled nursing facilities or residential care homes, often remain stuck in the hospital. For some patients, time in the
hospital is measured in weeks, months, or even years, as no appropriate post-acute care is available. The lack of placement availability outside the hospital creates consequences for patients inside the hospital, backlogging the emergency departments (EDs), reducing capacity at the hospital for other patients, and draining resources unnecessarily.

In order to ensure that the new proposed requirement (d) in Section 19a-491f does not further exacerbate hospital throughput issues, we request that the following language be added to the end of the newly proposed (d):

No such agency shall deny the provision of services to a client solely based on the documentation or information provided by such referring health care provider relating to the topics described in subdivision (1) of subsection (a) of this section.

Thank you for your consideration of our position. For additional information, contact CHA Government Relations at (203) 294-7301.