05 LC 9
1670ER
House
Bill 680
By:
Representatives Smith of the
168th,
Day of the
163rd,
Burmeister of the
119th,
Benfield of the
85th,
Epps of the
128th,
and others
A
BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
AN ACT
To
enact the "State Planning for Increased Community Access Act"; to amend Title 50
of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to state government, so as
to provide for legislative findings; to provide for state planning for improved
community access to culturally sensitive services; to provide for community
economic development through the removal of culturally biased obstacles to
access to culturally sensitive services; to provide that unlicensed
practitioners providing complementary and alternative health care services shall
not be in violation of state laws when providing services in compliance with
this Act; to provide for client and practitioner rights and responsibilities; to
provide for disclosures, notices, and informed consent; to provide for the
establishment of the Georgia Advisory Council for Culturally Based Business
Development; to provide for prohibited conduct and prohibited practice; to
provide for applicability; to repeal conflicting laws; and for other
purposes.
WHEREAS,
the Georgia Department of Community Affairs provides incentives to local areas
to assist in the development of service delivery systems and leads the state in
the development and implementation of strategies that improve the quality of
life through local and regional planning and community and economic development
programs; and
WHEREAS,
the General Assembly acknowledges that access to adequate health care is an
important local and regional planning component that is critical to meeting the
needs and providing for the general welfare of the people of Georgia;
and
WHEREAS,
there is a clear need for the State of Georgia to provide unimpeded access to
safe health services as its citizens may choose under the law and to encourage
the development of both traditional and alternative medicine to citizens in all
areas of this state, provided such practices result in no imminent risk of harm
to patients; and
WHEREAS,
many members of
Georgiás
growing immigrant population, who are enhancing the culture and society of this
state, use alternative forms of medicine brought from their native lands and
wish to continue to use such complementary and nontraditional health care as
residents of this state; and
WHEREAS,
the state should encourage various cultural expressions in the arts and
humanities in pursuit of its mission to serve all its citizens regardless of
national origin; and
WHEREAS,
the state should encourage traditional as well as alternative forms of health
care in pursuit of its mission to ensure the good health of all of its citizens;
and
WHEREAS,
in 2002, the Georgia House of Representatives resolved that "the citizens of the
State of Georgia have a protected freedom to choose and receive those healing
treatments that they desire and deem to correspond with their own view of health
and disease, which they deem to be effective in securing their own wellness and
delivered by their own choice of practitioner"; and
WHEREAS,
citizens of this state should not be denied access to information that would
allow them to make informed choices on key quality of life issues;
and
WHEREAS,
some existing state laws may discourage individuals from obtaining training to
become practitioners of alternative health care and may slow the lawful
development of such alternative health care practices; and
WHEREAS,
the enactment of the State Planning for Increased Community Access Act will
allow for the planning and development of alternative health care service
delivery systems.
NOW,
THEREFORE, BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF GEORGIA:
SECTION
1.
Title
50 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to state government, is
amended by adding after Chapter 35, relating to the Georgia Environmental
Training and Education Authority, a new Chapter 36 to read as
follows:
"CHAPTER
36
50-36-1.
This
chapter shall be known and may be cited as the 'State Planning for Increased
Community Access Act.'
50-36-2.
The
General Assembly finds and declares the following:
(1)
Based upon a comprehensive report by the National Institute of Health, a study
published by the New
England Journal of Medicine, and other
research data, it is evident that hundreds of thousands of Georgians are
currently receiving a substantial volume of health care services from
complementary and alternative health care practitioners. Those studies further
indicate that individuals utilizing complementary and alternative health care
services include persons in a wide variety of age, ethnic, socioeconomic, and
other demographic categories;
(2)
Notwithstanding the widespread utilization of complementary and alternative
health care services by Georgians, the provision of many of these services may
be in technical violation of the practice acts governing the licensed health
care professions delineated in Georgia law. Unlicensed complementary and
alternative health care practitioners could therefore be subject to fines,
penalties, and the restriction of their practices under Georgia law, although
there is no demonstration that their practice results in an imminent risk of
significant harm to clients;
(3)
Every citizen of this state has a protected right to choose and receive the
healing treatment that he or she desires and deems to correspond with his or her
own view of health and disease, which he or she deems to be effective in
securing his or her own wellness, and delivered by his or her own choice of
practitioner;
(4)
The General Assembly finds that the practice of unlicensed complementary and
alternative health care services does not pose an imminent risk of significant
harm to the public. It is, therefore, the intent of the General Assembly to
protect public access to practitioners who offer complementary and alternative
health care services that do not require the training and credentials of a
licensed health care practitioner.
50-36-3.
(a)
Notwithstanding any other provision of law, a person who is not a licensed
health care practitioner and who provides complementary and alternative health
care services in accordance with this Code section shall not be in violation of
Georgia law or any of the health care profession practice acts unless that
person does any of the following:
(1)
Conducts surgery or any other procedure on another person that harmfully invades
the body;
(2)
Administers or prescribes X-ray radiation to another person;
(3)
Prescribes, orders, dispenses, administers, or supplies legend drugs or
controlled substances to another person;
(4)
Recommends the discontinuance of legend drugs or controlled substances
prescribed by a licensed health care practitioner;
(5)
Diagnoses or treats a physical or mental health condition of any person which
causes an imminent risk of significant bodily injury, significant physical or
mental illness, or death;
(6)
Sets fractures;
(7)
Manipulates or adjusts articulations of joints or of the spine; or
(8)
Holds out, states, indicates, advertises, or implies that he or she is a
licensed health care practitioner under the laws of this state.
(b)
Any unlicensed person providing complementary and alternative health care
services in violation of this Code section shall be subject to the
administrative, civil, and criminal remedies and penalties specified under
Georgia law, including but not limited to court costs, reasonable
attorneyś
fees, and the reasonable costs of investigation and prosecution.
50-36-4.
(a)
Any unlicensed person providing complementary and alternative health care
services shall, prior to providing those services, disclose to the client in a
plainly worded written statement:
(1)
That he or she is not a licensed health care practitioner under the laws of this
state;
(2)
The nature of the services to be provided and the theory upon which the
complementary and alternative health care services are based; and
(3)
The degrees, training, experience, credentials, or other qualifications of the
practitioner, or the absence thereof, regarding the complementary and
alternative health care services being provided.
(b)
An unlicensed person providing complementary and alternative health care
services shall obtain a written acknowledgment from the client stating that he
or she has been provided with the information described in this Code section,
which shall be retained by the person providing such services for three years.
The client shall be provided with a copy of such written
acknowledgment.
(c)
An unlicensed practitioner providing complementary and alternative health care
services who fails to comply with this Code section shall be subject to the
administrative and civil remedies and penalties specified in this chapter and
under Georgia law, including but not limited to court costs, reasonable
attorneyś
fees, and the reasonable costs of investigation and prosecution.
(d)
Nothing in this Code section shall be construed to do the
following:
(1)
Affect the scope of practice or the standard of care applicable to health care
professionals licensed in this state in the performance of complementary and
alternative health care services; or
(2)
Limit the right of any person to seek relief for negligence or any other civil
remedy otherwise provided by law against a person providing complementary and
alternative health care services under this chapter.
(e)
A health care practitioner licensed in this state who provides complementary and
alternative health care services while practicing under his or her license shall
be regulated by and be under the jurisdiction of the board of his or her
applicable health care profession with regard to such services.
(f)
This chapter shall not restrict the practice, service, or activity of lawful
marketing or distributing of food products, including dietary supplements as
defined in the federal Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act of 1994, P.L.
103-417, but authorizes the education of customers about such products or
explains the uses of such products.
50-6-5.
No
provision of this chapter shall be construed to prohibit the practice of
complementary and alternative health care services that are in compliance with
this chapter by persons not licensed to practice a health care profession
specified under Georgia law.
50-36-6.
There
is created and established the Georgia Advisory Council for Culturally Based
Business Development.
50-36-7.
The
purposes for which the council is established shall include:
(1)
To promote, stimulate, develop, and advance economic growth in culturally based
businesses and thereby promote, stimulate, develop, and advance the business,
prosperity, and economic welfare of the entire state;
(2)
To encourage, assist, and facilitate the development and creation of culturally
based business and industry in this state, including community based small
businesses, and to strengthen and assist existing business and
industry;
(3)
To stimulate and assist in the expansion of community culturally based business
activity which will tend to promote small business development and maintain the
economic stability of the state; and
(4)
To advise the House State Planning and Community Affairs Committee on the status
of culturally based businesses in the state.
50-36-8.
(a)
Members of the council shall not be entitled to compensation for the duties they
perform as members of the council.
(b)
The council shall be under the direction and supervision of a board of directors
to be composed of seven members appointed by the House State Planning and
Community Affairs Committee. There shall be a director of the council who shall
be appointed and removed by the board of directors upon recommendation of the
Governor."
SECTION
2.
All
laws and parts of laws in conflict with this Act are repealed.