Aspirus Health and other health systems throughout the state are urging the State Senate to pass legislation aimed at relieving hospital capacity concerns before the quickly approaching end of this legislative session. According to data from the Wisconsin Hospital Association (WHA), one of the leading causes of emergency department backlogs is the delay in transferring patients from acute-care hospital beds to post-acute care facilities.
“An all-too-common reason for this delay is current law that doesn’t allow the loved ones of incapacitated patients to authorize a transfer to a skilled nursing facility when it is medically appropriate,” said Connie Bradley, SVP - Acute Care Services, Aspirus Health. “As a result, patients may be unable to receive care in the most appropriate setting for their recovery.”
At the same time, hospital beds they occupy are unavailable for the next patient with an urgent medical need. That patient may be forced to remain in the emergency department until a bed opens up or be transferred to another hospital, potentially far from home.
“On any given day, we have at least a dozen patients just within our hospitals who would benefit from transferring to post-acute care but are forced to delay that move,” Bradley said. “And they aren’t delayed by just a day or two, but by weeks or even months.”
The state legislature could immediately help to address these patient care and hospital capacity concerns by passing Assembly Bill 598 in the Senate. The bill would make it easier for incapacitated patients to receive appropriate post-acute care. Many families, including spouses, are not aware that – without a medical power of attorney in place – they cannot authorize such transfers.
Assembly Bill 598, often referred to as “next of kin” legislation, would allow family members, including spouses, to have limited authority to make necessary patient care decisions. This would save weeks or months of time and thousands of dollars currently needed for a court to determine guardianship.
“Very few pieces of legislation have an immediate impact on access to care in a Wisconsin hospital. Passing Assembly Bill 598 is one of those opportunities,” said Wisconsin Hospital Association President/CEO Kyle O’Brien. “WHA has been proud to work with both Republicans and Democrats in the state legislature, in addition to Governor Evers, to find bipartisan agreement on this legislation – but we still need the Senate to act.”
The Wisconsin State Senate is expected to hold its final floor period in the next two weeks, before the legislature adjourns. The Assembly passed Assembly Bill 598 with overwhelming bipartisan support in mid-February, and the Governor has committed to sign the legislation into law, if passed.
“We are grateful to the Assembly members for passing this bill, and we urge our state senators to ensure this “next of kin” legislation passes for the benefit of patients and their loved ones throughout our state,” said Bradley.
To learn more about this critical legislation, please visit WHA’s website at: https://www.wha.org/advocacy/key-issues/n/next-of-kin-legislation