A5271

An Act concerning the rights of individuals during a pandemic and supplementing Title 26 of the Revised Statutes.

Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:

1. This act shall be known and may be cited as the “New Jersey Pandemic Bill of Rights for the Welfare of Individuals.”

2. The Legislature finds and declares that:

a. The State of New Jersey has a fundamental duty to implement measures to rectify mistakes that were made during the coronavirus 2019 (COVID-19) lockdown and pandemic.

b. The citizens of the State of New Jersey should have certain rights to ensure their welfare and dignity, and to prevent the human suffering endured by individuals during the COVID-19 lockdown and pandemic.

c. The residents of nursing homes and other long-term care facilities, among the most vulnerable of our population, bore up to 30 percent of all COVID-19 deaths that occurred in this State.

d. Crucial concerns for individuals and the most vulnerable among our population during the COVID-19 lockdown and pandemic included: overcrowded hospitals, insufficient assisted living support, barring family members from helping loved ones, misguided government actions and policies that resulted in the placement of COVID-19 patients in nursing homes, problematic isolation and other restrictions for COVID-19 patients and, the inability to access legal help due to the government designating attorneys as nonessential workers and the resulting closures of such offices.

e. Therefore, it is in the best interest of the State to establish a pandemic bill of rights to ensure the welfare of New Jersey’s citizenry during a pandemic, a widespread outbreak of an infectious disease, or a declared public health emergency.

3. The citizens of the State of New Jersey shall have the following rights during a pandemic, a widespread outbreak of an infectious disease, or a declared public health emergency:

a. To have effective safeguards in place to protect a resident of a nursing home or long-term care facility or a person with a preexisting condition against an infectious disease that is the basis of the pandemic or declared public health emergency;

b. To be fully evaluated and treated in a health care facility, and not to be released from that facility without knowing whether one has tested positive for an infectious disease that is the basis of the pandemic or declared public health emergency, thereby depriving one of care and risking further spread of disease;

c. To receive adequate nourishment, medical care, and other necessities from a properly staffed health care facility, as a patient of that facility;

d. To be provided appropriate physical and occupational therapies and to be periodically moved to prevent debilitating wounds if a patient is confined to a bed;

e. To be permitted visitation as a patient or resident of a health care facility in accordance with the need for proper support by family or loved ones;

f. To have safeguards implemented by a health care facility to protect against the infectious disease that is the basis of the pandemic or declared public health emergency;

g. To have the needs and wishes stated in a legal or medical directive met without government interference or mandates that prohibit health care professionals from carrying out such directives, including, but not limited to, do not resuscitate orders;

h. To have attorneys designated as essential workers and to have attorney offices remain open during a pandemic, a widespread outbreak of an infectious disease, or a declared public health emergency; and

i. To have full access to legal services and have the ability to visit an attorney’s office during a pandemic, a widespread outbreak of an infectious disease, or a declared public health emergency.

4. The Commissioner of Health shall publish a notice of the rights enumerated in the “New Jersey Pandemic Bill of Rights for the Welfare of Individuals” pursuant to section 3 of this act, and shall make this notice available to the public on the Department of Health’s Internet website. All health care facilities, including nursing homes and long-term care facilities, shall post a copy of this notice in a conspicuous location that is available to the public.

5. This act shall take effect immediately.

STATEMENT

This bill establishes the “New Jersey Pandemic Bill of Rights for the Welfare of Individuals.”

The bill accords the citizens of the State of New Jersey with the following rights during a pandemic, a widespread outbreak of an infectious disease, or a declared public health emergency: (1) to have effective safeguards in place to protect a resident of a nursing home or long-term care facility or a person with a preexisting condition against an infectious disease that is the basis of the pandemic or declared public health emergency; (2) to be fully evaluated and treated in a health care facility, and not to be released from that facility without knowing whether one has tested positive for an infectious disease that is the basis of the pandemic or declared public health emergency, thereby depriving one of care and further spread of disease; (3) to receive adequate nourishment, medical care, and other necessities from a properly staffed health care facility, as a patient of that facility; (4) to be provided appropriate physical and occupational therapies and to be periodically moved to prevent debilitating wounds if a patient is confined to a bed; (5) to be permitted visitation as a patient or resident of a health care facility in accordance with the need for proper support by family or loved ones; (6) to have safeguards implemented by a health care facility to protect against the infectious disease that is the basis of the pandemic or declared public health emergency; (7) to have the needs and wishes stated in a legal or medical directive met without government interference or mandates that prohibit health care professionals from carrying out such directive, including, but not limited to, do not resuscitate orders; (8) to have attorneys designated as essential workers and to have attorney offices remain open during a pandemic, a widespread outbreak of an infectious disease, or a declared public health emergency; and (9) to have full access to legal services and have the ability to visit an attorney’s office during a pandemic, a widespread outbreak of an infectious disease, or a declared public health emergency.

The bill requires the Commissioner of Health to publish a notice of the rights enumerated in the bill, and to make the notice available to the public on the Department of Health’s Internet website. All health care facilities, including nursing homes and long-term care facilities, are to post a copy of the notice in a conspicuous location that is available to the public.