SB 1536 Caregiver

(Crain/Wright)

Effective Nov. 1, 2014, signed by the governor


SB 1536 the Caregiver Designation Act was initiated by the AARP as part of their national movement to address this topic. The introduced bill was opposed by OHA since it was in conflict with the existing discharge practices prescribed by Medicare Conditions of Participation. A House floor amendment that addressed the concerns of OHA was accepted by the bill’s author. 

SB 1536, as enacted, “requires that hospitals shall provide each patient or the patient’s legal guardian with an opportunity to designate one lay caregiver following the patient’s admission into a hospital and prior to the patient’s discharge to the patient’s residence.”  SB 1536 also outlines the following related to discharge planning for inpatient admissions to the hospital:
  1. Requires the hospital to record the name and contact information of the lay caregiver in the patient’s medical record. The patient may only designate one “lay” caregiver while in the hospital, unless the “lay” caregiver becomes incapacitated, then another may be designated. Notification to the designated “lay” caregiver of a patient’s discharge to the patient’s residence or another facility must occur prior to discharge.
  2. “Aftercare training” of the lay caregiver is required prior to discharge. However, aftercare training is limited to the patient’s condition at the time of discharge to the patient’s residence. The aftercare training is not required for discharge to another facility. A patient must be admitted as inpatient to a hospital in order to receive aftercare training. Emergency Department visits are excluded from the lay caregiver designation requirements. 
  3. For the purposes of SB 1536, a caregiver is a “lay” caregiver, not trained medical personnel.
There are no provisions in the Act that require the Oklahoma State Department of Health to promulgate rules or enforce the Act.  For information about additional resources, click here. 

Before Nov. 1, 2014, all hospitals must provide each patient or the patient’s legal guardian with an opportunity to designate one lay caregiver following the patient’s admission into a hospital and prior to the patient’s discharge to the patient’s residence. Review discharge planning processes to measure compliance.