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| To enact section 4731.228 of the Revised Code | 1 |
| regarding responsibility for notifying patients | 2 |
| that a physician's employment by a health care | 3 |
| entity has been terminated. | 4 |
| Section 1. That section 4731.228 of the Revised Code be | 5 |
| enacted to read as follows: | 6 |
| Sec. 4731.228. (A) As used in this section: | 7 |
| (1) "Federally qualified health center" has the same meaning | 8 |
| as in section 3701.047 of the Revised Code. | 9 |
| (2) "Federally qualified health center look-alike" has the | 10 |
| same meaning as in section 3701.047 of the Revised Code. | 11 |
| (3) "Health care entity" means any of the following that | 12 |
| employs a physician to provide physician services: | 13 |
| (a) A hospital registered with the department of health under | 14 |
| section 3701.07 of the Revised Code; | 15 |
| (b) A corporation formed under division (B) of section | 16 |
| 1701.03 of the Revised Code; | 17 |
| (c) A corporation formed under Chapter 1702. of the Revised | 18 |
| Code; | 19 |
| (d) A limited liability company formed under Chapter 1705. of | 20 |
| the Revised Code; | 21 |
| (e) A health insuring corporation holding a certificate of | 22 |
| authority under Chapter 1751. of the Revised Code; | 23 |
| (f) A partnership; | 24 |
| (g) A professional association formed under Chapter 1785. of | 25 |
| the Revised Code. | 26 |
| (4) "Physician" means an individual authorized under this | 27 |
| chapter to practice medicine and surgery, osteopathic medicine and | 28 |
| surgery, or podiatric medicine and surgery. | 29 |
| (5) "Physician services" means direct patient care services | 30 |
| provided by a physician pursuant to a certificate issued to the | 31 |
| physician by the state medical board. | 32 |
| (6) "Termination" means the end of a physician's employment | 33 |
| with a health care entity for any reason. | 34 |
| (B) This section applies when a physician's employment with a | 35 |
| health care entity to provide physician services is terminated for | 36 |
| any reason, unless the physician continues to provide medical | 37 |
| services for patients of the health care entity on an independent | 38 |
| contractor basis. | 39 |
| (C)(1) Except as provided in division (C)(2) of this section, | 40 |
| a health care entity shall send notice of the termination of a | 41 |
| physician's employment to each patient who received physician | 42 |
| services from the physician in the two-year period immediately | 43 |
| preceding the date of employment termination. Only patients of the | 44 |
| health care entity who received services from the physician are to | 45 |
| receive the notice. | 46 |
| (2) If the health care entity provides to the physician a | 47 |
| list of patients treated and patient contact information, the | 48 |
| health care entity may require the physician to send the notice | 49 |
| required by this section. | 50 |
| (D) The notice provided under division (C) of this section | 51 |
| shall be provided not later than the date of termination or thirty | 52 |
| days after the health care entity has actual knowledge of | 53 |
| termination or resignation of the physician, whichever is later. | 54 |
| The notice shall be provided in accordance with rules adopted by | 55 |
| the state medical board under section 4731.05 of the Revised Code. | 56 |
| The notice shall include at least all of the following: | 57 |
| (1) A notice to the patient that the physician will no longer | 58 |
| be practicing medicine as an employee of the health care entity; | 59 |
| (2) Except in situations in which the health care entity has | 60 |
| a good faith concern that the physician's conduct or the medical | 61 |
| care provided by the physician would jeopardize the health and | 62 |
| safety of patients, the physician's name and, if known by the | 63 |
| health care entity, information provided by the physician that the | 64 |
| patient may use to contact the physician; | 65 |
| (3) The date on which the physician ceased or will cease to | 66 |
| practice as an employee of the health care entity; | 67 |
| (4) Contact information for an alternative physician or | 68 |
| physicians employed by the health care entity or contact | 69 |
| information for a group practice that can provide care for the | 70 |
| patient; | 71 |
| (5) Contact information that enables the patient to obtain | 72 |
| information on the patient's medical records. | 73 |
| (E) The requirements of this section do not apply to any of | 74 |
| the following: | 75 |
| (1) A physician rendering services to a patient on an | 76 |
| episodic basis or in an emergency department or urgent care | 77 |
| center, when it should not be reasonably expected that related | 78 |
| medical services will be rendered by the physician to the patient | 79 |
| in the future; | 80 |
| (2) A medical director or other physician providing services | 81 |
| in a similar capacity to a medical director to patients through a | 82 |
| hospice care program licensed pursuant to section 3712.04 of the | 83 |
| Revised Code. | 84 |
| (3) Medical residents, interns, and fellows who work in | 85 |
| hospitals, health systems, federally qualified health centers, and | 86 |
| federally qualified health center look-alikes as part of their | 87 |
| medical education and training. | 88 |
| (4) A physician providing services to a patient through a | 89 |
| community mental health agency certified by the director of mental | 90 |
| health under section 5119.611 of the Revised Code or an alcohol | 91 |
| and drug addiction program certified by the department of alcohol | 92 |
| and drug addiction services under section 3793.06 of the Revised | 93 |
| Code. | 94 |
| (5) A physician providing services to a patient through a | 95 |
| federally qualified health center or a federally qualified health | 96 |
| center look-alike. | 97 |
| Section 2. Not later than six months after the effective date | 98 |
| of this section, the State Medical Board shall revise rule | 99 |
| 4731-27-01 of the Administrative Code in accordance with section | 100 |
| 4731.228 of the Revised Code. | 101 |