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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 - Bristol 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?

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Bristol County Results
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City/Town Ward Pct Blanks Total Votes Cast
Totals
58,131
126,890
8,088 193,109
Acushnet More »
 
1,240
2,849
208
4,297
Attleboro More »
 
4,256
10,982
695
15,933
Berkley More »
 
827
1,993
70
2,890
Dartmouth More »
 
3,837
8,453
676
12,966
Dighton More »
 
938
2,184
148
3,270
Easton More »
 
3,034
7,416
199
10,649
Fairhaven More »
 
2,417
4,470
230
7,117
Fall River More »
 
5,965
12,562
1,821
20,348
Freetown More »
 
1,054
2,736
163
3,953
Mansfield More »
 
2,961
7,765
191
10,917
New Bedford More »
 
8,730
14,148
863
23,741
N. Attleborough More »
 
3,304
8,402
325
12,031
Norton More »
 
2,282
5,348
243
7,873
Raynham More »
 
1,738
4,282
197
6,217
Rehoboth More »
 
1,447
3,640
186
5,273
Seekonk More »
 
1,906
3,859
342
6,107
Somerset More »
 
2,165
5,165
228
7,558
Swansea More »
 
1,802
4,572
284
6,658
Taunton More »
 
6,194
11,164
692
18,050
Westport More »
 
2,034
4,900
327
7,261
County Totals
58,131
126,890
8,088 193,109