Tex. Health & Safety Code § 317.002 · Chapter 317. DESIGNATION OF CAREGIVER FOR RECEIPT OF AFTERCARE INSTRUCTION
DESIGNATION OF CAREGIVER.
Text — Current through the 89th 2nd Called Legislative Session, 2025
(a) On admission to a hospital or before the patient is discharged or transferred to another facility, the hospital shall provide the patient, the patient's legal guardian, or the patient's surrogate decision-maker the opportunity to designate a caregiver.
(b) If a patient, a patient's legal guardian, or a patient's surrogate decision-maker designates a caregiver, a hospital shall:
(1) document in the patient's medical record:
(A) the name, telephone number, and address of the patient's designated caregiver; and
(B) the relationship of the designated caregiver to the patient; and
(2) request written authorization from the patient, the patient's legal guardian, or the patient's surrogate decision-maker to disclose health care information to the patient's designated caregiver.
(c) If a patient, a patient's legal guardian, or a patient's surrogate decision-maker declines to designate a caregiver, the hospital shall promptly record in the patient's medical record that the patient, the patient's legal guardian, or the patient's surrogate decision-maker did not wish to designate a caregiver.
(d) If a patient, a patient's legal guardian, or a patient's surrogate decision-maker declines to give authorization to a hospital to disclose health care information to the designated caregiver, a hospital is not required to comply with Sections 317.003 and 317.004.
(e) A patient, a patient's legal guardian, or a patient's surrogate decision-maker may change the patient's designated caregiver at any time, and the hospital must document the change in the patient's medical record.
(f) The designation of a person as the patient's caregiver does not obligate the person to serve as the patient's designated caregiver or to provide aftercare to the patient.
Notes and commentary — not statutory text
History
Added by Acts 2017, 85th Leg., R.S., Ch. 163 (H.B. 2425), Sec. 1, eff. May 26, 2017.
Source of truth
- Edition
- Current through the 89th 2nd Called Legislative Session, 2025
- Official file
- https://statutes.capitol.texas.gov/Docs/HS/htm/HS.317.htm
- Text hash
- sha256 41a461b01e5d3ae2228a19d33e0a3d2ab300905cb17b1754fa1f5546593fb733
- Composed by
- compose_tx.py 2026-10-05: the Legislative Council's chapter files read in document order; verify_tx.py's independent reading (lxml DOM walk) agrees character for character
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