ACTION ALERT FOLLOW UP: Please Ask Legislators to OPPOSE HB983, Which Places Severe Restrictions on Visitors to Nursing Homes – PLEASE NOTE: This bill has advanced to a hearing before the Finance Committee
TEXT OF HB983 – Nursing Homes – Covid-19 and Other Catastrophic Health Emergencies – Visitation (The Floria Daytz Lewis Act)
Requiring the Maryland Department of Health to develop certain guidelines relating to the restrictions on personal and compassionate care visitation that a nursing home may impose to reduce the spread of COVID-19 or another disease that constitutes a catastrophic health emergency; declaring that it is the intent of the General Assembly that during a catastrophic health emergency visitation in nursing homes be prioritized to balance the physical needs of the residents with the mental and spiritual needs of the residents; etc.
why icm OPPOSES HB983
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HB983 dictates that “compassionate care visitors” to nursing home residents may only visit their loved ones when they comply with specific requirements defined by the state, which may include testing for Covid-19, checking for body temperature, health screenings, the use of personal protective equipment, social distancing, and any other safety protocol that the Maryland Department of Health deems necessary to mitigate the spread of Covid-19 in nursing homes. This language allows a state agency to dictate compliance with any yet-undefined protocol in the future, including Covid-19 vaccination or other medical interventions authorized for emergency use only.
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In particular, there is mounting evidence that PCR testing is a wholly unreliable tool for identifying active, contagious cases of Covid-19; the test could have up to 70-90% false positive rates. The premise that use of standard cloth surgical masks prevents transmission is similarly dubious. And there is no compelling evidence that the Covid-19 vaccines currently authorized for use prevent transmission of the virus. Most importantly, nursing homes and assisted living facilities are not prisons; residents have the fundamental human right to convene with other human beings and assume responsibility for the risk of contracting any contagious illness. All residents are free to engage in the protective measures and level of isolation they personally feel is appropriate to the degree of risk they choose to tolerate – whether to assume the risk of human contact, especially with loved ones, is a personal decision which should not be transferred to state institutions or bureaucrats.
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There is mounting evidence that extreme containment measures such as those imposed by this bill don’t lead to better outcomes. Increasingly, data reflect that states with stricter lock-down measures have not had improved outcomes over states with more flexible and/or targeted guidelines.
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The bill allows healthcare professionals to determine whether visitation with any family member or other individual is “necessary for the resident’s mental, physical or social well-being.” This would grossly violate the human rights of assisted living facility residents to determine whom they may contact and the level of risk they choose to maintain their own physical, mental, and social well-being. Nursing care facilities are not prisons, and their residents are not criminals.
- The bill allows nursing care facilities to limit each resident to one designated visitor only, as well as restricted frequency and length of visits. This is grossly inappropriate, cruel, and unnecessary in controlling the spread of Covid-19.
Who to contact about HB983
There will be a hearing for HB983 before the Senate Finance Committee on Tuesday, 3/23/21 at 1:00 PM.
URGENT: We’re asking all members to contact bill sponsor Delegate Lehman, and call and email the members of Senate Finance Committee, to let them know, in your own words, why you oppose HB983!
Please contact bill sponsor Delegate Mary Lehman to express your opposition, and post respectful messages on her Facebook page:
Delegate Mary Lehman
Phone 410-841-3114 | 301-858-3114 Toll-free in MD 1-800-492-7122 ext. 3114
e-mail: Mary.Lehman@house.state.md.us
If you’re a constituent of hers – in District 21 – let her know!
Please copy and paste the following email addresses of the Senate Finance Committee members into the BCC section of your email in opposition to HB983:
delores.kelley@senate.state.md.us, brian.feldman@senate.state.md.us, malcolm.augustine@senate.state.md.us, pamela.beidle@senate.state.md.us, joanne.benson@senate.state.md.us, antonio.hayes@senate.state.md.us, steve.hershey@senate.state.md.us, jb.jennings@senate.state.md.us, katherine.klausmeier@senate.state.md.us, Ben.Kramer@senate.state.md.us, justin.ready@senate.state.md.us
Please call the offices of the Senate Finance Committee members in opposition to HB983:
Phone 410-841-3606 | 301-858-3606
Toll-free in MD 1-800-492-7122 ext. 3606
Phone 410-841-3169 | 301-858-3169
Fax 410-841-3607 | 301-858-3607
Phone 410-841-3745 | 301-858-3745
Toll-free in MD 1-800-492-7122 ext. 3745
Phone 410-841-3593 | 301-970-3593
Toll-free in MD 1-800-492-7122 ext. 3593
Phone 410-841-3148 | 301-858-3148
Toll-free in MD 1-800-492-7122 ext. 3148
Phone 410-841-3656 | 301-858-3656
Toll-free in MD 1-800-492-7122 ext. 3656
Phone 410-841-3639 | 301-858-3639
Toll-free in MD 1-800-492-7122 ext. 3639
Phone 410-841-3706 | 301-858-3706
Toll-free in MD 1-800-492-7122 ext. 3706
Phone 410-841-3620 | 301-858-3620
Toll-free in MD 1-800-492-7122 ext. 3620
Phone 410-841-3151 | 301-858-3151
Toll-free in MD 1-800-492-7122 ext. 3151
Phone 410-841-3683 | 301-858-3683
Toll-free in MD 1-800-492-7122 ext. 3683
Please note: Rules for submitting written and oral testimony have changed this year due to Covid-19 restrictions, and can be viewed here. We’re asking members for phone calls, emails, and written testimony only at this time.
Please spread the word! Let’s flood the offices of Delegate Lehman and the Senate Finance committee members with polite, respectful, forceful emails and phone calls. They need to hear our voices!
Please consider joining ICM’s free Telegram group where you’ll find like minds instead of arguments, as well as helpful resources for navigating vaccine data, mandates, exemptions and more.
Do you know the out come of this vote?