Health Care Facilities - Rights of Comprehensive and Extended Care Facility Residents - Hospice Comfort Care
Summary
HB828 would amend Maryland’s resident-rights law for comprehensive care facilities and extended care facilities to create a specific exception to the general ban on physical and chemical restraints. Under current law, residents generally have the right to be free from restraints except when a physician authorizes them for a clearly indicated medical need. This bill adds a hospice-specific exception allowing sedatives, anti-anxiety medication, bed rails, and geri chairs when they are ordered or authorized by a prescriber and used in compliance with that order for a patient receiving hospice care.
The bill is framed as a resident-rights measure and does not broadly change facility operations beyond this narrow hospice comfort-care exception. It would amend Section 19-343 of the Health – General Article, effective October 1, 2025, and would apply to facilities defined as comprehensive care facilities and extended care facilities under Maryland regulations.
Impact
HB828 would revise Maryland’s Health – General Article to carve out hospice comfort-care treatments from the existing prohibition on restraints in long-term care facilities. The practical effect is to permit certain medications and devices commonly used to provide comfort and safety at the end of life, so long as they are ordered or authorized by a prescriber and used in accordance with that order. The bill affects residents in nursing-home-type facilities, prescribers, and facility operators by clarifying when hospice-related interventions are allowed under state law.
Sentiment
No committee transcripts or recorded votes were provided, so the bill’s sentiment cannot be measured from debate or roll-call history. Based on the bill text alone, the measure appears narrowly tailored and likely intended to support hospice and palliative care rather than expand restraint use generally. Its framing suggests a policy goal of aligning resident-rights protections with end-of-life comfort care.
Contention
The main point of potential contention is the balance between protecting residents from restraints and allowing hospice patients to receive comfort-oriented care that may involve sedating medication or supportive devices such as bed rails and geri chairs. Supporters would likely emphasize patient comfort, dignity, and practical hospice needs, while opponents or cautious stakeholders may worry about abuse, overuse, or weakening restraint protections in long-term care settings. Because no discussion transcript is available, no specific legislator, agency, or advocacy group positions can be identified.