HOUSE DOCKET, NO. 2433        FILED ON: 1/19/2017

HOUSE  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  No. 2460

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts

_________________

PRESENTED BY:

Denise C. Garlick

_________________

To the Honorable Senate and House of Representatives of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts in General
Court assembled:

The undersigned legislators and/or citizens respectfully petition for the adoption of the accompanying bill:

An Act ensuring safe urgent and retail care.

_______________

PETITION OF:

HOUSE DOCKET, NO. 2433        FILED ON: 1/19/2017

HOUSE  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  No. 2460

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts

_______________

In the One Hundred and Ninetieth General Court
(2017-2018)

_______________

An Act ensuring safe urgent and retail care.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court assembled, and by the authority of the same, as follows:
 

SECTION 1.  The second paragraph of section 51 of said chapter 111 of the General Laws, as appearing in the 2014 Official Edition, is hereby amended by inserting after the words “twenty-five B,” the following words:- "or an urgent care clinic as defined by section 52 that is not otherwise owned by, a joint venture with, or affiliated with an existing acute care hospital in said hospital’s primary service area; or a limited services clinic as defined by section 52 that is not otherwise owned by, a joint venture with, or affiliated with an existing acute care hospital in said hospital’s primary service area"

SECTION 2.  The definition of “Clinic” in section 52 of said chapter 111, as so appearing, is hereby amended by inserting after the word “rehabilitation,” in both instances in which it appears, the following words:-

"urgent care, limited services,"

SECTION 3. Said definition of “Clinic” in said section 52, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by striking out the words:-

"a medical office building, or one or more practitioners engaged in a solo or group practice, whether conducted for profit or not for profit, and however organized, so long as such practice is wholly owned and controlled by one or more of the practitioners so associated, or, in the case of a not for profit organization, its only members are one or more of the practitioners so associated or

SECTION 4.  Said section 52, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by adding the following two definitions:-

“Urgent care”, a model of episodic care delivery that is primarily the immediate diagnosis, treatment, management or monitoring of acute and chronic disease, generally provided on a walk-in basis, and not intended as the patient’s primary care provider.

“Urgent care clinic”, a clinic that provides urgent care as defined by this section.