Outraged Tennesseans Denied Opportunity To Testify Regarding Patient’s Rights Bill By Paula Gomes for The Tennessee Conservative
Even though the capitol.tn.gov website does not reflect this, our sources have told us that Warner’s HB2486 is dead in the House of Representatives and that the Senate sponsor of the bill, Senator Mark Pody, is taking the bill off notice in the Senate.***
Tennesseans were outraged when a patients rights caption bill failed on Tuesday before they had a chance to speak. Doctors and citizens from all over Tennessee traveled to the Nashville Capitol, packing the Health Subcommittee room and hallways, to testify on behalf of the bill sponsored by Representative Todd Warner (R-Lewisburg-D92).
The Healthcare Recipient Rights Act would ensure that patients are allowed visitation by family members and advocates in the case of inability to make one’s own medical decisions. In addition, it requires informed consent for treatments that are authorized for emergency use only.
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Warner was promised by Health Subcommittee Chair Bob Ramsey (R-Maryville-D20) that advocates of HB2486 would be allowed to share their testimony in support of the bill. One of the people waiting to speak was Alysha Rodriguez who took her 36 year old, active, fit husband to the emergency room last year because he was having trouble breathing. Despite having medical power of attorney, she was not allowed in to be with him or advocate for him and he died after a 9 day stay.
When the subcommittee reached the bill on the agenda, Ramsey announced that no action would be taken on the bill because they had run out of time. He agreed to give Warner 10 minutes for 3 speakers, but before allowing them to speak he asked for a motion and a second on the bill. After a motion was made, but no second, he announced that the bill had failed and therefore no testimony would be allowed.
