Bill Text: NJ SCR142 | 2016-2017 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Urges DOH to adopt rules permitting additional facilities to perform elective angioplasty procedures.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 2-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2017-01-30 - Introduced in the Senate, Referred to Senate Health, Human Services and Senior Citizens Committee [SCR142 Detail]
Download: New_Jersey-2016-SCR142-Introduced.html
SENATE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION No. 142
STATE OF NEW JERSEY
217th LEGISLATURE
INTRODUCED JANUARY 30, 2017
Sponsored by:
Senator MICHAEL J. DOHERTY
District 23 (Hunterdon, Somerset and Warren)
Senator STEVEN V. OROHO
District 24 (Morris, Sussex and Warren)
SYNOPSIS
Urges DOH to adopt rules permitting additional facilities to perform elective angioplasty procedures.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
As introduced.
A Concurrent Resolution urging DOH to promulgate rules to permit additional facilities to perform elective angioplasty procedures.
Whereas, Angioplasty is a procedure used to treat clogged heart arteries, and involves temporarily inserting a tiny balloon that widens the artery and pushes away the plaque causing the blockage. Angioplasty may be accompanied by the insertion of a permanent stent that helps prop the artery open to prevent it from narrowing again; and
Whereas, Angioplasties may be performed to restore blood flow in the heart in emergency situations, such as during a heart attack, or on an elective basis to remove blockages that may be causing pain or could present future health problems for the patient; and
Whereas, In 2006, a cardiologist at Johns Hopkins University began the Cardiovascular Patient Outcomes Research Team Elective Angioplasty Study (C-PORT-E), to assess whether there is an increased risk of complications from elective angioplasties performed at hospitals without on-site cardiac surgery capabilities as compared with licensed cardiac surgery facilities; and
Whereas, The C-PORT-E study tracked patient outcomes from elective angioplasties performed on more than 18,000 patients in 10 states; New Jersey authorized 11 non-cardiac surgery facilities to perform elective angioplasties under the study; and
Whereas, In 2012, the results of the C-PORT-E study were published in the New England Journal of Medicine and presented at the annual meeting of the American College of Cardiology; the study concluded that there is no greater risk of death or complications when elective angioplasties are performed at non-cardiac surgery facilities as compared with licensed cardiac surgery facilities; and
Whereas, Following the end of the C-PORT-E study, the New Jersey Department of Health (DOH) promulgated rules establishing a continuing demonstration project to be operated along the same parameters as applied to the C-PORT-E study, including allowing the 11 non-cardiac surgery facilities authorized to perform elective angioplasties under the C-PORT-E study to continue performing the procedures; and
Whereas, Revisions to the demonstration project rules adopted in August 2015 indicate that the demonstration project will continue until DOH adopts new rules revising N.J.A.C.8:33E, concerning licensure requirements for cardiac treatment facilities, to permit licensure of additional elective angioplasty facilities; DOH has declined to permit additional non-cardiac surgery facilities to perform elective angioplasties until that time; and
Whereas, As of October 2016, DOH has not published any proposed revisions to N.J.A.C.8:33E in the New Jersey Register or otherwise indicated that revisions to the rule, including proposals to expand the number of facilities authorized to perform elective angioplasties, are imminent; and
Whereas, There are currently 29 facilities authorized to perform elective angioplasties in the State, including the 11 demonstration project facilities and 18 licensed cardiac surgery centers. However, these 29 facilities are located in just 14 of the State's 21 counties, and out of those 14, six counties, including Atlantic, Burlington, Mercer, Morris, Ocean, and Somerset Counties, have only one elective angioplasty facility. Seven counties, including Cape May, Cumberland, Gloucester, Hunterdon, Salem, Sussex, and Warren Counties, do not contain any elective angioplasty facilities; and
Whereas, Residents of counties that have either no elective angioplasty facilities or only one facility may be required to drive a long distance or travel to a neighboring state to undergo an elective angioplasty; and
Whereas, Permitting the licensure of additional elective angioplasty facilities, particularly in the regions of the State that have reduced or limited access to facilities licensed to perform the procedure, is essential to promoting good cardiac health for the citizens of New Jersey; now, therefore,
Be It Resolved by the Senate of the State of New Jersey (the General Assembly concurring):
1. The Department of Health is respectfully urged to promulgate rules permitting the licensure of additional elective angioplasty facilities, particularly in counties and communities with limited access to a currently-licensed elective angioplasty facility.
2. Copies of this resolution, as filed with the Secretary of State, shall be transmitted by the Clerk of the General Assembly or the Secretary of the Senate to the Governor and to the Commissioner of Health.
STATEMENT
This resolution respectfully urges the Department of Health (DOH) to adopt rules permitting the licensure of additional elective angioplasty facilities. Angioplasty is a procedure used to widen clogged arteries and help remove blockages, restoring blood flow and potentially reducing the risk of an adverse cardiac event.
In 2012, the Cardiovascular Patient Outcomes Research Team Elective Angioplasty Study (C-PORT-E) concluded that there is no increased risk of death or complications from an elective angioplasty conducted at a facility that does not have cardiac surgery capabilities as compared with a licensed cardiac surgery facility. Following the end of the C-PORT-E study, DOH established a continuing demonstration program permitting the 11 State facilities that participated in the C-PORT-E study to continue performing elective angioplasties; additionally, elective angioplasties may currently be performed at any of the State's 18 licensed cardiac surgery centers. However, DOH has declined to permit the licensure of additional elective angioplasty facilities until it revises the current rules concerning licensure requirements for cardiac treatment facilities and, as of October 2016, no proposed revisions to these rules have been published in the New Jersey Register.
Out of the 21 counties in the State, six counties currently have only one facility licensed to perform elective angioplasties and seven counties have no licensed elective angioplasty facilities. Residents in these counties, which are primarily located in the southern and northwestern regions of the State, may consequently be required to travel a long distance or out of the State to receive an elective angioplasty, reducing access to a key tool in treating the risks and symptoms of cardiac disease. It is the sponsor's belief that promulgating rules permitting licensure of additional facilities will help improve access to quality cardiac health care for the citizens of New Jersey.
