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Arkansas committee reviews implementation of 'No Patient Left Alone' law; DHS, Health spell out complaint and enforcement process
Summary
The Senate Public Health, Welfare and Labor Committee heard Department of Human Services and Department of Health reports on Act 311 (No Patient Left Alone Act), effective March 10. DHS and DoH described complaint procedures, enforcement limits tied to federal rules, and reported low numbers of visitation complaints to date.
The Senate Public Health, Welfare and Labor Committee on May 20 reviewed how state agencies are implementing Act 311 of 2021, the No Patient Left Alone Act, and what residents should do if facilities restrict visitation.
Mark White of the Department of Human Services told the committee the law, which contained an emergency clause, became effective March 10 and covers visitation rights in long-term care facilities while enforcement is shared between DHS and the Department of Health. "Patients in those facilities have rights to visitation under federal law and those are laws that we're charged with enforcing on long term care facilities," White said.
Melody Jones Blackwell, who spoke for DHS about complaint handling, gave the committee the most concrete data. "As of March the first of 20 21 to May, we've had 14…
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