HEALTH & SAFETY CODE
CHAPTER 89. SCREENING AND TREATMENT FOR TUBERCULOSIS IN JAILS AND
OTHER CORRECTIONAL FACILITIES
SUBCHAPTER A. GENERAL PROVISIONS
§ 89.001. DEFINITIONS. In this chapter:
(1) "Community corrections facility" means a facility
established under Chapter 509, Government Code.
(2) "County jail" means a facility operated by or for a
county for the confinement of persons accused or convicted of an
offense and includes:
(A) a facility operated by or for a county for the
confinement of persons accused or convicted of an offense;
(B) a county jail or a correctional facility
authorized by Subchapter F, Chapter 351, Local Government Code;
and
(C) a county correctional center authorized by
Subchapter H, Chapter 351, Local Government Code.
(3) "Governing body" means:
(A) the commissioners court of a county, for a
county jail;
(B) the district judges governing a community
corrections facility, for a community corrections facility;
(C) the governing body of a municipality, for a
jail operated by or under contract to a municipality; or
(D) the community supervision and corrections
department, for a jail operated under contract to a community
supervision and corrections department.
(4) "Health authority" has the meaning assigned by
Section 121.021.
(5) "Jail" means:
(A) a county jail; or
(B) a facility for the confinement of persons
accused of an offense that is:
(i) operated by a municipality or a vendor
under contract with a municipality under Subchapter E, Chapter 351,
Local Government Code; or
(ii) operated by a vendor under contract
with a community supervision and corrections department under
Chapter 76, Government Code.
(6) "Local health department" means a health
department created under Subchapter D, Chapter 121.
(7) "Physician" means a person licensed to practice
medicine in a state of the United States.
(8) "Public health district" means a health district
established under Subchapter E, Chapter 121.
(9) "Screening test" means a rapid analytical
laboratory or other procedure to determine the need for further
diagnostic evaluation.
(10) "Tuberculosis" means a disease caused by
Mycobacterium tuberculosis or other members of the Mycobacterium
tuberculosis complex.
Added by Acts 1993, 73rd Leg., ch. 786, § 1, eff. Sept. 1, 1993.
Amended by Acts 1995, 74th Leg., ch. 76, § 7.07, eff. Sept. 1,
1995; Acts 1997, 75th Leg., ch. 348, § 1, eff. Sept. 1, 1997.
§ 89.002. SCOPE OF CHAPTER. Except as provided by
Subchapter E, this chapter applies only to a jail that:
(1) has a capacity of at least 100 beds; or
(2) houses inmates:
(A) transferred from a county that has a jail
that has a capacity of at least 100 beds; or
(B) from another state.
Added by Acts 1997, 75th Leg., ch. 348, § 2, eff. Sept. 1, 1997.
SUBCHAPTER B. SCREENING OF JAIL EMPLOYEES AND VOLUNTEERS
§ 89.011. SCREENING OF JAIL EMPLOYEES AND
VOLUNTEERS. (a) The governing body of a jail or community
corrections facility, through the community supervision and
corrections department, shall require that each employee or
volunteer working or providing services in a jail or a community
corrections facility, who meets the screening guidelines
prescribed by board rule, present to the governing body a
certificate signed by a physician that states that:
(1) the employee or volunteer has been tested for
tuberculosis infection in accordance with board rules; and
(2) the results of the test indicate that the person
does not have tuberculosis.
(b) In lieu of a screening test, an employee or volunteer
with a history of a positive screening test may provide:
(1) documentation of that positive test result and of
any diagnostic and therapeutic follow-up; and
(2) a certificate signed by a physician that states
that the person does not have tuberculosis.
(c) The health authority may require an employee or
volunteer to have an additional screening test or medical
examination if the department determines that an additional test or
examination is necessary and appropriate to protect the public
health.
(d) An employee or volunteer is exempt from the screening
test required by this section if:
(1) the screening test conflicts with the tenets of an
organized religion to which the individual belongs; or
(2) the screening test is medically contraindicated
based on an examination by a physician.
Added by Acts 1993, 73rd Leg., ch. 786, § 1, eff. Sept. 1, 1993.
Amended by Acts 1997, 75th Leg., ch. 348, § 3, eff. Sept. 1,
1997.
§ 89.012. FOLLOW-UP EVALUATIONS AND TREATMENT. (a) An
employee or a volunteer with a positive screening test result must
obtain a diagnostic evaluation from the person's own physician to
determine if the person has tuberculosis.
(b) If the employee or volunteer has tuberculosis, the
governing body may not permit the person to begin or continue the
person's employment duties or volunteer services unless the person
is under treatment for the disease by a physician and the person
provides to the governing body a certificate signed by the
attending physician stating that the patient is noninfectious.
Added by Acts 1993, 73rd Leg., ch. 786, § 1, eff. Sept. 1, 1993.
Amended by Acts 1997, 75th Leg., ch. 348, § 4, eff. Sept. 1,
1997.
§ 89.013. CERTIFICATE REQUIRED. (a) The governing
body or a designee of the governing body shall confirm that each
employee or volunteer required to be screened under this subchapter
has the required certificate.
(b) The governing body may not permit an employee or
volunteer to carry out the person's duties if the person does not
have the required certificate.
Added by Acts 1993, 73rd Leg., ch. 786, § 1, eff. Sept. 1, 1993.
Amended by Acts 1997, 75th Leg., ch. 348, § 5, eff. Sept. 1,
1997.
§ 89.014. COST OF TESTS, FOLLOW-UP, AND TREATMENT. The
employee or volunteer shall pay the expense of a screening test,
diagnostic evaluation, or other professional medical service
required under this subchapter unless the commissioners court, the
governing body of a municipality, or a local health department or
public health district elects to provide the service.
Added by Acts 1993, 73rd Leg., ch. 786, § 1, eff. Sept. 1, 1993.
Amended by Acts 1997, 75th Leg., ch. 348, § 5, eff. Sept. 1,
1997.
SUBCHAPTER C. INMATE SCREENING AND TREATMENT
§ 89.051. INMATE SCREENING REQUIRED. (a) Each inmate
in a jail or community corrections facility shall undergo a
screening test for tuberculosis infection approved by the board if:
(1) the inmate will probably be confined in jail or a
community corrections facility for more than seven days; and
(2) the inmate meets the screening guidelines
prescribed by board rules.
(b) The inmate must be tested on or before the seventh day
after the day the inmate is first confined.
(c) An inmate listed by Subsection (a) is not required to be
retested at each rebooking if the inmate is booked into a jail or a
community corrections facility more than once during a 12-month
period unless the inmate shows symptoms of tuberculosis or is known
to have been exposed to tuberculosis.
(d) An inmate is exempt from the screening test required by
this section if:
(1) the screening test conflicts with the tenets of an
organized religion to which the individual belongs; or
(2) the screening test is medically contraindicated
based on an examination by a physician.
Added by Acts 1993, 73rd Leg., ch. 786, § 1, eff. Sept. 1, 1993.
Amended by Acts 1997, 75th Leg., ch. 348, § 6, eff. Sept. 1,
1997.
§ 89.052. RESCREENING; DIAGNOSTIC EVALUATIONS. The
department or a health authority may require a governing body to
provide an additional screening test or a diagnostic evaluation if
the department or health authority determines that an additional
screening test or a diagnostic evaluation is necessary and
appropriate to protect the health of the jail inmates, employees,
volunteers, or the public.
Added by Acts 1993, 73rd Leg., ch. 786, § 1, eff. Sept. 1, 1993.
Amended by Acts 1997, 75th Leg., ch. 348, § 7, eff. Sept. 1,
1997.
§ 89.053. FOLLOW-UP EVALUATIONS. (a) If an inmate has
a confirmed positive screening test result, the governing body
shall provide a diagnostic evaluation to determine whether the
inmate has tuberculosis.
(b) The sheriff, jail administrator, or director of the
community corrections facility shall provide appropriate
accommodations to an inmate who has tuberculosis or is suspected of
having tuberculosis, including respiratory isolation, if
necessary, and adequate medical care and treatment that meet the
accepted standards of medical practice.
(c) The jail or community corrections facility shall
provide preventive therapy to an infected inmate if the preventive
therapy is prescribed by the attending physician and the inmate
consents to the treatment.
Added by Acts 1993, 73rd Leg., ch. 786, § 1, eff. Sept. 1, 1993.
Amended by Acts 1997, 75th Leg., ch. 348, § 8, eff. Sept. 1,
1997.
§ 89.054. INMATE TRANSFER AND RELEASE. A copy of an
inmate's medical records or documentation of screenings or
treatment received during confinement must accompany an inmate
transferred from one jail or community corrections facility to
another or the Texas Department of Criminal Justice and be
available for medical review on arrival of the inmate.
Added by Acts 1993, 73rd Leg., ch. 786, § 1, eff. Sept. 1, 1993.
SUBCHAPTER D. REPORTING; RULEMAKING; MINIMUM STANDARDS
§ 89.071. REPORTING. (a) A case of tuberculosis shall
be reported to the appropriate health authority or to the
department not later than the third day after the day on which the
diagnosis is suspected.
(b) The results of a screening test shall be reported to the
department monthly in a manner approved by the department.
Added by Acts 1993, 73rd Leg., ch. 786, § 1, eff. Sept. 1, 1993.
§ 89.072. RULEMAKING. The department shall recommend
to the Commission on Jail Standards and the Texas Department of
Criminal Justice rules to carry out this chapter, including rules
describing:
(1) the types of screening tests and diagnostic
evaluations and the scope of the professional examinations that may
be used to meet the requirements of this chapter;
(2) the categories of employees, volunteers, or
inmates who must have a screening test under this chapter;
(3) the form and content of the certificate required
under Subchapter B for employees and volunteers;
(4) the deadlines for filing a certificate;
(5) the transfer of employee or volunteer certificates
and inmate records between facilities;
(6) the frequency of screening tests for employees,
volunteers, and inmates;
(7) the criteria for requiring an additional screening
test or a diagnostic evaluation or examination; and
(8) the reporting of a screening test or an evaluation
or examination result to the appropriate health authority or to the
department.
Added by Acts 1993, 73rd Leg., ch. 786, § 1, eff. Sept. 1, 1993.
Amended by Acts 1997, 75th Leg., ch. 348, § 9, eff. Sept. 1,
1997.
§ 89.073. ADOPTION OF LOCAL STANDARDS. (a) The
standards prescribed by this chapter and the rules adopted by the
board relating to screening tests or examinations for tuberculosis
required for certain employees and volunteers are minimum
standards.
(b) With the prior approval of the department:
(1) a governing body may adopt and enforce standards
for carrying out this chapter if the standards are compatible with
and equal to or more stringent than the standards prescribed by this
chapter and the board's rules; and
(2) a private facility may adopt and enforce standards
for carrying out this chapter if the standards are compatible with
and equal to or more stringent than the standards prescribed by this
chapter and the board's rules.
(c) The board shall adopt substantive and procedural rules
to govern the submission of standards adopted under Subsection (b).
At a minimum these rules must contain:
(1) a procedure for the submission of standards for
departmental review; and
(2) an internal departmental appeal process by which a
governing body or private entity may seek a review of the
department's decision to reject proposed standards.
Added by Acts 1993, 73rd Leg., ch. 786, § 1, eff. Sept. 1, 1993.
Amended by Acts 1997, 75th Leg., ch. 348, § 10, eff. Sept. 1,
1997.
SUBCHAPTER E. CONTINUITY OF CARE
§ 89.101. DEFINITIONS. In this subchapter:
(1) "Corrections facility" means:
(A) a jail or community corrections facility,
without regard to whether the jail or facility satisfies the
requirements of Section 89.002;
(B) any correctional facility operated by or
under contract with a division of the Texas Department of Criminal
Justice; or
(C) a detention facility operated by the Texas
Youth Commission.
(2) "Offender" means a juvenile or adult who is
arrested or charged with a criminal offense.
Added by Acts 1997, 75th Leg., ch. 348, § 11, eff. Sept. 1, 1997.
§ 89.102. REPORT OF RELEASE. A corrections facility
shall report to the department the release of an offender who is
receiving treatment for tuberculosis. The department shall arrange
for continuity of care for the offender.
Added by Acts 1997, 75th Leg., ch. 348, § 11, eff. Sept. 1, 1997.
