bill for an outside audit of prison health care

The text as introduced · 325 words

By: Meza
H.B. No. 5349

A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

AN ACT

relating to a quality assurance audit of the provision of health

care to inmates by the Texas Department of Criminal Justice.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:

SECTION 1. Subchapter E, Chapter 501, Government Code, is

amended by adding Section 501.1472 to read as follows:

Sec. 501.1472. QUALITY ASSURANCE AUDIT. (a) The

department shall provide for a quality assurance audit of the

correctional health care system to be performed by an independent

third-party auditor not less than once every five years. The audit

must:

(1) assess the department's:

(A) delivery of medical, behavioral, and mental

health care services; and

(B) compliance with state and federal law

applicable to the provision of health care to inmates;

(2) evaluate:

(A) the performance of any vendors used to

provide a service described by Subdivision (1)(A); and

(B) the extent to which the department's

provision of health care to inmates conforms to industry best

practices and national correctional health care standards; and

(3) provide specific recommendations for the

department to address any identified deficiencies.

(b) The department shall post the report of an audit under

Subsection (a) in a conspicuous location on the department's

publicly accessible Internet website.

(c) The board shall hold a public meeting to consider the

report and may request that the auditor present the results of the

audit to the board at the meeting.

SECTION 2. The Texas Department of Criminal Justice shall

provide for the first audit required by Section 501.1472,

Government Code, as added by this Act, to be completed not later

than December 1, 2026.

SECTION 3. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives

a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as

provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this

Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this

Act takes effect September 1, 2025.