« Go Back   « Go Back
Summary of Question 1
This proposed law would limit how many patients could be assigned to each registered nurse in Massachusetts hospitals and certain other health care facilities. The maximum number of patients per registered nurse would vary by type of unit and level of care, as follows: In units with step-down/intermediate care patients: 3 patients per nurse; In units with post-anesthesia care or operating room patients: 1 patient under anesthesia per nurse; 2 patients post-anesthesia per nurse; In the emergency services department: 1 critical or intensive care patient per nurse (or 2 if the nurse has assessed each patient's condition as stable); 2 urgent non-stable patients per nurse; 3 urgent stable patients per nurse; or 5 non-urgent stable patients per nurse; In units with maternity patients: (a) active labor patients: 1 patient per nurse; (b) during birth and for up to two hours immediately postpartum: 1 mother per nurse and 1 baby per nurse; (c) when the condition of the mother and baby are determined to be stable: 1 mother and her baby or babies per nurse; (d) postpartum: 6 patients per nurse; (e) intermediate care or continuing care babies: 2 babies per nurse; (f) well-babies: 6 babies per nurse; In units with pediatric, medical, surgical, telemetry, or observational/outpatient treatment patients, or any other unit: 4 patients per nurse; and In units with psychiatric or rehabilitation patients: 5 patients per nurse. The proposed law would require a covered facility to comply with the patient assignment limits without reducing its level of nursing, service, maintenance, clerical, professional, and other staff. The proposed law would also require every covered facility to develop a written patient acuity tool for each unit to evaluate the condition of each patient. This tool would be used by nurses in deciding whether patient limits should be lower than the limits of the proposed law at any given time. The proposed law would not override any contract in effect on January 1, 2019 that set higher patient limits. The proposed law's limits would take effect after any such contract expired. The state Health Policy Commission would be required to promulgate regulations to implement the proposed law. The Commission could conduct inspections to ensure compliance with the law. Any facility receiving written notice from the Commission of a complaint or a violation would be required to submit a written compliance plan to the Commission. The Commission could report violations to the state Attorney General, who could file suit to obtain a civil penalty of up to $25,000 per violation as well as up to $25,000 for each day a violation continued after the Commission notified the covered facility of the violation. The Health Policy Commission would be required to establish a toll-free telephone number for complaints and a website where complaints, compliance plans, and violations would appear. The proposed law would prohibit discipline or retaliation against any employee for complying with the patient assignment limits of the law. The proposed law would require every covered facility to post within each unit, patient room, and waiting area a notice explaining the patient limits and how to report violations. Each day of a facility's non-compliance with the posting requirement would be punishable by a civil penalty between $250 and $2,500. The proposed law's requirements would be suspended during a state or nationally declared public health emergency. The proposed law states that, if any of its parts were declared invalid, the other parts would stay in effect. The proposed law would take effect on January 1, 2019.""

2018 - Barnstable County - Question 1Do you approve of a law summarized below, on which no vote was taken by the Senate or the House of Representatives on or before May 2, 2018?

View as: # | %

Barnstable County Results
« Return to Aggregate Results

 
City/Town Ward Pct Blanks Total Votes Cast
Barnstable More »
 
6,538
15,338
406
22,282
Bourne More »
 
2,608
6,500
264
9,372
Brewster More »
 
2,109
3,759
135
6,003
Chatham
 
1,092
2,939
83
4,114
Dennis More »
 
2,605
5,599
171
8,375
Eastham
 
1,205
2,024
78
3,307
Falmouth More »
 
5,468
11,647
531
17,646
Harwich More »
 
2,363
5,066
137
7,566
Mashpee More »
 
2,450
5,225
123
7,798
Orleans
 
1,343
2,672
90
4,105
Provincetown
 
957
1,122
61
2,140
Sandwich More »
 
3,277
7,385
369
11,031
Truro
 
603
830
20
1,453
Wellfleet
 
915
1,067
44
2,026
Yarmouth More »
 
3,676
8,306
294
12,276
County Totals
37,209
79,479
2,806 119,494