HB 2789
Unconscious patients in the ICU
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Sign in to take action- Introduced
- Passed House of Delegates
- Passed Senate
- To Governor
- Became Law
Bill overview
This bill, the Michael Brandon Cochran Act, aims to improve the care of unconscious patients in West Virginia’s intensive care units (ICUs). It requires hospitals to administer a C-peptide test to patients presenting as unconscious or with low blood sugar, and also mandates a post-mortem test in cases of suspected brain damage and prolonged unconsciousness. The bill establishes a monetary penalty for hospitals that fail to comply and creates a grant program to help cover the costs of these tests and related training.
Key provisions
- Requires hospitals to administer a C-peptide test to unconscious ICU patients with low blood sugar (49 mg/dl or less).
- Mandates a post-mortem C-peptide test in cases of suspected brain damage after ICU treatment.
- Establishes a monetary penalty of $10,000 per violation for hospitals that do not administer the required tests.
- Creates the Michael Brandon Cochran Grant Program to assist hospitals with the costs of testing and training.
- Creates the Michael Brandon Cochran Fund to provide grants for the program.
- Defines key terms such as ‘hospital,’ ‘C-peptide test,’ ‘hypoglycemia,’ and ‘intensive care unit.’
- Specifies that the Department of Health Facilities will administer the grant program.
- Allows the fund to be supported by private donations and grants.
Who is affected
- Hospitals
- Intensive Care Unit (ICU) patients
- Healthcare providers
- Patients with hypoglycemia
- Families of deceased patients
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