Bill Text: NJ A4452 | 2020-2021 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Requires DHS, DOH, and DCF, in consultation with each other and various other interested parties, to develop public emergency response plan for licensed providers of services to individuals with disabilities.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 2-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2020-07-23 - Introduced, Referred to Assembly Human Services Committee [A4452 Detail]
Download: New_Jersey-2020-A4452-Introduced.html
Sponsored by:
Assemblywoman JOANN DOWNEY
District 11 (Monmouth)
SYNOPSIS
Requires DHS, in consultation with various interested parties, to develop public emergency response plan for licensed providers of services to individuals with developmental disabilities.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
As introduced.
An Act concerning the development of a public emergency response plan for providers of services to individuals with physical, mental, or developmental disabilities and supplementing Title 30 of the Revised Statutes.
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. a. As used in this section:
"Client" means a person with a disability who receives services from the Department of Human Services, the Department of Health, the Department of Children and Families, or any licensed service provider.
"Licensed service provider" means a person or entity that is licensed, certified, or otherwise authorized by the Department of Human Services, the Department of Health, or the Department of Children and Families to provide services in the State to persons with a disability.
"Person with a disability" means an individual who has a physical disability, infirmity, malformation, or disfigurement caused by a bodily injury, birth defect, or illness, including, but not be limited to, epilepsy, any degree of paralysis, amputation, lack of physical coordination, blindness or visual impairment, deafness or hearing impairment, deaf-blindness, inability to speak or speech impairment, or physical reliance on a service animal, wheelchair, or other remedial appliance or device, or who has any mental, psychological, or developmental disability that results from an anatomical, psychological, physiological, or neurological condition preventing the normal exercise of any bodily or mental function or is demonstrable, medically or psychologically, by accepted clinical or laboratory diagnostic techniques.
"Public emergency" means an environmental, public health, or public safety emergency that is occurring in New Jersey or in one or more counties, regions, or other parts of the State, and which is officially recognized and declared as an emergency by the Governor of New Jersey or by the President of the United States.
b. The Department of Human Services, the Department of Health, and the Department of Children and Families, working in consultation with each other and with the Ombudsman for Individuals with Intellectual or Developmental Disabilities and Their Families, the State Office of Emergency Management in the Department of Law and Public Safety, licensed service providers, managed care organizations, and representatives of at least two disability rights or advocacy organizations, shall develop and oversee the implementation of a public emergency response plan for licensed service providers in the State. At a minimum, the public emergency response plan shall:
(1) establish guidelines and best practices for the general and specific operations, activities, and procedures that are to be undertaken or implemented during a public emergency by licensed service providers under each department's respective jurisdiction;
(2) to the extent feasible, identify the means, methods, and channels through which licensed service providers under each department's respective jurisdiction may obtain personal protective equipment (PPE) and other equipment or services that are critical to the maintenance of ongoing operations during the course of a public emergency;
(3) address various possible public emergency scenarios and provide for the application of differing standards and best practices under paragraph (1) of this subsection and the use of differing sourcing methods pursuant to paragraph (2) of this subsection for different types of public emergency, as appropriate, while highlighting the standards, best practices, and resource sourcing methods that are applicable for the purposes of any currently declared public emergency; and
(4) be consistent with, and incorporate, any relevant guidance that is published by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and any other federal agencies that are involved in the remediation of public emergencies.
c. The Departments of Human Services, Health, and Children and Families, working in collaboration with each other and other interested parties, as provided by subsection b. of this section, shall:
(1) prepare the public emergency response plan required by this section within 60 days after the enactment of this act; and
(2) review and revise the plan: (a) on at least a biennial basis after the plan's initial preparation under paragraph (1) of this subsection; and (b) as soon as is possible following the declaration of any new public emergency in the State.
d. The initial emergency response plan and any revised emergency response plan developed under this section shall be posted at a publicly accessible location on the Internet websites of the Department of Human Services, the Department of Health, and the Department of Children and Families.
2. This act shall take effect immediately.
STATEMENT
This bill would require the Department of Human Services (DHS), the Department of Health (DOH), and the Department of Children and Families (DCF) to work cooperatively with each other to develop and oversee the implementation of a public emergency response plan for persons and entities that are licensed by the departments to provide services to individuals with physical, mental, or developmental disabilities ("licensed service providers"). The departments will be required to develop the emergency response plan in consultation with the Ombudsman for Individuals with Intellectual or Developmental Disabilities and Their Families, the State Office of Emergency Management in the Department of Law and Public Safety, licensed service providers, managed care organizations, and representatives of at least two disability rights or advocacy organizations.
At a minimum, the public emergency response plan is to:
1) establish guidelines and best practices for the general and specific operations, activities, and procedures that are to be undertaken or implemented during a public emergency by licensed service providers under each department's respective jurisdiction;
2) to the extent feasible, identify the means, methods, and channels through which licensed service providers under each department's respective jurisdiction will be able to obtain personal protective equipment (PPE) and other equipment or services that are critical to the maintenance of ongoing operations during the course of a public emergency;
3) address various possible public emergency scenarios and provide for the application of differing standards and best practices and the use of differing resource sourcing methods, as appropriate, for different types of public emergency, while highlighting the standards, best practices, and sourcing methods that are applicable for the purposes of any currently declared public emergency; and
4) be consistent with, and incorporate, any relevant guidance published by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and any other federal agencies that are involved in the remediation of public emergencies.
The bill provides for the DHS, DOH, and DCF to develop the public emergency response plan, as provided by the bill, within 60 days after the date of the bill's enactment and to review and revise the plan, thereafter, on at least a biennial basis and as soon as is possible following the declaration of any new public emergency in the State. The initial plan and any revised plans are to be made publicly available on the DHS, DOH, and DCF websites.
