A 1950 — "Stop Sepsis Act"; requires hospitals to establish sepsis recognition and treatment protocols, train staff, and establish quality measures.*

A1950 1R [First Reprint] ASSEMBLY, No.

Assemblywomen Kane, Speight, Donlon, Haider, Assemblymen DePhillips, Verrelli, Angelozzi, Assemblywoman SweeneySweeney, andAssemblymen AssemblymanKearney, KearneyVenezia,  Karabinchak,  Sampson,  Assemblywomen  Brennan, SYNOPSISMorales,     Assemblymen RequiresTully hospitalsand toFreiman establish  sepsis  recognition  and  treatmentSYNOPSIS protocols.     “Stop Sepsis Act”;

 requires CURRENThospitals VERSIONto OFestablish TEXTsepsis     recognition Introducedand Pendingtreatment Technicalprotocols, Reviewtrain bystaff, Legislativeand Counsel.establish quality measures.

    AnCURRENT ActVERSION concerningOF sepsisTEXT protocols     inAs hospitalsreported andby supplementingthe chapterAssembly 2HHealth ofCommittee Titleon 26May of11, the2026, Revisedwith Statutes.amendments.

   An Act concerning sepsis protocols in hospitals 1, amending P.L.2007, c.196,1 and supplementing chapter 2H of Title 26 of the Revised Statutes.

       1.   11.   (New section)  This act shall be known and may be cited as the “Stop Sepsis Act.”1         1[1.] 2.1     a.  Each general or special hospital licensed pursuant to P.L.1971, c.136 (C.26:2H-1 et seq.) shall adopt, implement, 1and1 periodically update,update 1[, and submit to the Department of HealthHealth]1 evidence-based protocols 1based on best practices1 for the early recognition and treatment of patients with sepsis, severe sepsis, and septic shock, which shall:shall 1include, but not be limited to1:

     (1)   be1[be based on generally accepted standards of care;

     (2)   includeinclude]1 components specific to the identification, care, and treatment of both1[both]1 adult 1, geriatric, obstetric,1 and pediatric patients;

and      (3)  1[(3)] (2)1  clearly identify1[identify] identifying1  where and when the components differ with regard to adult 1, geriatric, obstetric,1 and pediatric patients.

     (2)   a process that shall be used to identify and document individuals appropriate for treatment in accordance with sepsis, severe sepsis, and septic shock protocols, and which shall include explicit criteria to determine those patients who should be excluded from the protocols, such as patients who have certain clinical conditions or have elected to undergo palliative1[palliative] hospice1 care;

     (3)   specific guidelines for treatment appropriate to the patient’s condition, including treatment goals, treatment methodologies, criteria for invasive1[invasive and non-invasivenon-invasive] treatment,evidence-based1 treatment and management1 , and timeframe goals;

     c.     Each hospital shall ensure that all professional1[professional] clinical1 staff with1[with direct patient care responsibilities, and appropriate professional staff with indirect patient care responsibilities including, but not limited to, laboratory and pharmacy staff,staff,] involved in the recognition, treatment, or prevention of sepsis1 are periodically trained to implement the sepsis protocols established pursuant to this section.

The hospital shall ensure updated staff training upon adoption of substantive changes to the protocols.protocols.  1Subject to the availability of funds, the department shall offer continuing education credits and other educational opportunities related to sepsis, such as health care provider briefings on the early recognition and treatment of patients with sepsis.1      d.    1[Each hospital shall submit proposed sepsis protocols to the department for review no later than 120 days after the effective date of this act, and shall implement the protocols upon receipt of approval of the protocols from the department.  A hospital may revise and update its protocols as necessary and consistent with evidence-based standards.  Protocols shall be resubmitted to the department for review no more than once every two years, unless the department identifies hospital-specific performance concerns.

     d.   e.]1 Each hospital shall submitbe proposedresponsible sepsisfor protocols to the departmentcollection forand reviewuse noof laterquality thanmeasures 120related daysto after the effectiverecognition date of this act, and shalltreatment implementof thesepsis, protocolssevere uponsepsis, receiptand ofseptic approvalshock offor the protocolspurpose fromof theinternal department. quality Aimprovement.  hospitalThe mayquality revisemeasures andshall updateinclude, itsbut protocolsnot asbe necessarylimited andto, consistentdata withsufficient evidence-basedto standards. evaluate Protocolsthe shallhospital’s beadherence resubmittedrate to theits departmentown forsepsis reviewprotocols, noincluding moreadherence thanto oncetimeframes everyand twoimplementation years,of unlessall theprotocol departmentcomponents identifiesfor hospital-specificadult performanceand concerns.pediatric patients.

     e.    1[f. Each hospital shall be responsible for the collection and use of quality measures related to the recognition and treatment of sepsis, severe sepsis, and septic shock for the purpose of internal quality improvement.  The quality measures shall include, but not be limited to, data sufficient to evaluate the hospital’s adherence rate to its own sepsis protocols, including adherence to timeframes and implementation of all protocol components for adult and pediatric patients.

     f.     Each hospital shall annually report to the department such data as the department may require for the purposes of developing risk-adjusted sepsis, severe sepsis, and septic shock mortality rates, as well as any other data as may be required by the department.  Each hospital shall be subject to audit at the department’s discretion.discretion.]  e.

 (1)      2.    The Commissioner of Health shall,shall pursuantcompile information necessary to develop and expand the "Administrativereporting Procedureof Act,"appropriately P.L.1968,risk-adjusted c.410sepsis-related (C.52:14B-1 et seq.),quality promulgatemeasures suchin rulesa report card, which shall be updated annually and regulationsmade asavailable mayon the Internet website of the Department of Health.  The report card shall be necessarydesigned to effectuateprovide information about hospital quality measures related to the purposesrecognition and treatment of thissepsis, act.severe sepsis, and septic shock.

       3.   (2) ThisIn actdeveloping shalland takeexpanding effect the firstrisk-adjusted daysepsis-related ofmeasures theincluded fourthin monththe nextreport followingcard, the datecommissioner ofshall enactment,consult exceptwith thathospitals, theclinical Commissionerexperts, ofand Healththe mayQuality takeImprovement anyAdvisory anticipatoryCommittee.  administrativeThe actiondepartment inshall advanceutilize asdata maysubmitted bepursuant necessaryto forP.L.1971, thec.136 implementation(C.26:2H-1 ofet thisal.). act.

    STATEMENT        This(3) billFor requireseach generalhospital, and special hospitals licensed in the Statereport tocard establishshall protocolsinclude: for the early recognition and treatment of patients with sepsis.

     Sepsis(a) isthe anumber seriousof, average length of stay for, and potentiallyrisk-adjusted life-threateningmortality conditionrate causedfor bysurgical theinpatient body’scases overwhelmingof immunesepsis, responsesevere tosepsis, infection.and septic shock;

Sometimes     known(b) as “blood poisoning,” sepsis results when the immunenumber chemicalsof, releasedaverage intolength the bloodstream cause widespread inflammation, leading to blood clots, impaired blood flow, and oxygen and nutrient deprivation in the organs.  Sepsis can result in permanent organ damage, cognitive impairment, physical disability, or death.  It is estimated that over one million Americans suffer from sepsis every year, and that the condition is fatal in 28 to 50 percent of thosestay cases. for, Sepsis is the eighth-leading cause of death in New Jersey, and onerisk-adjusted ofmortality therate leadingfor causesnon-surgical ofinpatient deathcases in infants under one year of agesepsis, insevere thesepsis, State after congenital defect, birth injury, and unintentionalseptic injury.shock;

     The(c) protocols required under the billnumber wouldof incorporatepresent distincton componentsadmission forcases adult and pediatric patients, and would include processes for screening, early recognition, and treatment of sepsis, severe sepsis, and septic shock,shock; including specific treatment guidelines for various circumstances and procedures for screening out patients for whom treatment would be inappropriate.  Hospitals will be required to ensure that appropriate staff members are periodically trained to implement the sepsis protocols.

and      Hospitals(d) will be required to submit proposed sepsis protocols to the Departmentnumber of Healthpatients forwith reviewsepsis, nosevere latersepsis, than 120 days after the effective date of the bill and implementseptic theshock protocolsdischarged upon receipt of department approval.  Hospitals will be permitted to revisehospice. and update the protocols based on newly emerging evidence-based standards, and resubmit the protocols to the department for review no more than once every two years, unless the department identifies hospital-specific performance concerns.

     Hospitalsf.  willFor bethe responsiblepurposes forof collectingthe early identification and usingtreatment qualityof measuressepsis, relateda tothird-party payor, managed care organization, or health benefits plan with which the recognitionDivision of Medical Assistance and treatmentHealth ofServices sepsis,in severethe sepsis,Department andof septicHuman shockServices contracts for the purposedelivery of internalMedicaid qualityservices, improvement and evaluatingany thehealth implementationbenefits andplan, adherenceas defined pursuant to thesection protocols. 2     of HospitalsP.L.2003, willc.193 be(C.17B:27D-2), requiredshall tonot submitsubstitute toits own clinical judgment for that of the departmenttreating suchlicensed datahealth ascare mayprovider bewith necessaryrespect forto the departmentdiagnosis toand developtreatment risk-adjustedof suspected sepsis, sepsis, severe sepsis, andor septic shockshock.  mortalityDiagnosis rates,and alongtreatment withshall anyinclude, otherbut datanot be limited to, denial, downcoding, retrospective review, or payment reduction based on the departmentapplication mayof require. alternative Hospitalsclinical willdefinitions, beproprietary subjectalgorithms, topayer-developed auditmedical atnecessity policies, or retrospective clinical validation reviews when the department’sdiagnosis discretion.has been documented and coded in accordance with ICD-10-CM official guidelines or any successor guidelines.

     g.    As used in this section, “hospital” means a general or special hospital licensed pursuant to P.L.1971, c.136 (C.26:2H-1 et seq.).1         13.  Section 3 of P.L.2007, c.196 (C.26:2H-12.41) is amended to read as follows:

     3.    A general hospital licensed pursuant to P.L.1971, c.136 (C.26:2H-1 et al.) shall be required to report quarterly to the Department of Health, in a form and manner prescribed by the Commissioner of Health:

     a.     process quality indicators of hospital infection control that have been identified by the federal Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, as selected by the commissioner in consultation with the Quality Improvement Advisory Committee within the department;

and      b.    beginning 30 days after the adoption of regulations pursuant to this act, data on infection rates for the major site categories that define health care facility-associated infection locations, multiple infections, and device-related and non-device related infections, identified by the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, as selected by the commissioner in consultation with the Quality Improvement Advisory Committee within the department which is appropriately risk adjusted provided that any infection rate data required under this subsection shall be reported and publicly displayed only in a transparent, clinically valid format that accounts for relevant patient, facility, and case-mix factors.  Submission of the reports required pursuant to this section shall be made through the National Healthcare Safety Network as the internet-based surveillance system to which each general hospital shall report federal Centers for Disease Control healthcare associated infection data, or any successor system selected by the federal government.1 (cf:

P.L.2012, c.17, s.202)        1[2.] 4.1  The Commissioner of Health shall, pursuant to the "Administrative Procedure Act," P.L.1968, c.410 (C.52:14B-1 et seq.), promulgate such rules and regulations as may be necessary to effectuate the purposes of this act.

       1[3.] 5.1     This act shall take effect the first day of the 1[fourth] twelfth1 month next following the date of 1[enactment] the adoption of rules and regulations pursuant to section 4 of P.L.    , c.     (C.         ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill)1 , except that the Commissioner of Health may take any anticipatory administrative action in advance as may be necessary for the implementation of this act.