HB 812 — An Act amending Title 35 (Health and Safety) of the Pennsylvania Consolidated Statutes, establishing the Protecting Hospital Workers from Workplace Violence Grant Program and the Protecting Hospital Workers from Workplace Violence Grant Fund; providing for duties of Department of Health; and making a transfer.

PRINTER'S NO.   842

                     THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF PENNSYLVANIA



                         HOUSE BILL
                         No. 812
                                                Session of
                                                  2025

     INTRODUCED BY KHAN, VENKAT, GERGELY, BOROWSKI, KOSIEROWSKI,
        CEPEDA-FREYTIZ, HANBIDGE, DOUGHERTY, PROBST, SANCHEZ, GIRAL,
        DONAHUE, HADDOCK, PIELLI, HOHENSTEIN, HILL-EVANS,
        SCHLOSSBERG, WAXMAN, CIRESI, FREEMAN, FLEMING, O'MARA,
        CERRATO, GREEN, KENYATTA, BOYD AND DALEY, MARCH 5, 2025

     REFERRED TO COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS, MARCH 5, 2025


                                     AN ACT
 1   Amending Title 35 (Health and Safety) of the Pennsylvania
 2      Consolidated Statutes, establishing the Protecting Hospital
 3      Workers from Workplace Violence Grant Program and the
 4      Protecting Hospital Workers from Workplace Violence Grant
 5      Fund; providing for duties of Department of Health; and
 6      making a transfer.
 7      The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
 8   hereby enacts as follows:
 9      Section 1.    Title 35 of the Pennsylvania Consolidated
10   Statutes is amended by adding a chapter to read:
11                                CHAPTER 56A
12                      PROTECTING HOSPITAL WORKERS FROM
13                      WORKPLACE VIOLENCE GRANT PROGRAM
14   Sec.
15   56A01.   Definitions.
16   56A02.   Establishment of program.
17   56A03.   Application and review process.
18   56A04.   Allocation of grant awards.
 1   56A05.   Reports.
 2   56A06.   Protecting Hospital Workers from Workplace Violence
 3                Grant Fund.
 4   56A07.   Expiration.
 5   § 56A01.   Definitions.
 6      The following words and phrases when used in this chapter
 7   shall have the meanings given to them in this section unless the
 8   context clearly indicates otherwise:
 9      "Application."      An application for a grant under the program.
10      "Department."     The Department of Health of the Commonwealth.
11      "Eligible applicant."     A hospital or freestanding emergency
12   medical care facility that submits an application to the
13   department for a grant under the program.
14      "Eligible project."     A security enhancement designed to
15   protect the safety and security of health care workers in a
16   hospital or freestanding emergency medical care facility in this
17   Commonwealth.
18      "Freestanding emergency medical care facility."     A facility,
19   structurally separate and distinct from a hospital, that
20   receives an individual and provides emergency care.
21      "Fund."   The Protecting Hospital Workers from Workplace
22   Violence Grant Fund established under section 56A06 (relating to
23   Protecting Hospital Workers from Workplace Violence Grant Fund).
24      "Health care worker."     An employee, independent contractor,
25   licensee or other individual authorized to provide services in a
26   hospital or a freestanding emergency medical care facility.
27      "Hospital."      An institution having an organized medical staff
28   that is primarily engaged in providing to inpatients, by or
29   under the supervision of physicians, diagnostic and therapeutic
30   services or rehabilitation services for the care or

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 1   rehabilitation of injured, disabled, pregnant, diseased, sick or
 2   mentally ill persons. The term includes a facility for the
 3   diagnosis and treatment of disorders within the scope of
 4   specific medical specialties. The term does not include a
 5   facility caring exclusively for the mentally ill.
 6      "Program."        The Protecting Hospital Workers from Workplace
 7   Violence Grant Program established under section 56A02 (relating
 8   to establishment of program).
 9   § 56A02.    Establishment of program.
10      The Protecting Hospital Workers from Workplace Violence Grant
11   Program is established within the department to award grants to
12   fund innovative approaches aimed at reducing verbal and physical
13   violence against health care workers in hospitals or
14   freestanding emergency medical care facilities. The department
15   shall administer the program.
16   § 56A03.    Application and review process.
17      (a)     Application process.--The department shall establish an
18   application process for the award of grants under the program no
19   later than 90 days after the effective date of this subsection.
20   An eligible applicant shall include all of the following
21   information in an application:
22            (1)   A detailed explanation of the eligible applicant's
23      eligible project, including all of the following information:
24                  (i)     A timeline for development and implementation of
25            the eligible project.
26                  (ii)    A description of the population identified to
27            participate in the eligible project.
28                  (iii)    A detailed budget for the eligible project.
29                  (iv)    Other information regarding the administration
30            and support for the eligible project.

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 1            (2)   Documentation on how the eligible project will
 2      achieve the goals of reducing verbal and physical violence
 3      against health care workers.
 4            (3)   Performance metrics for measuring short-term and
 5      long-term outcomes of the eligible project, including a
 6      measure of the change in the severity and frequency of verbal
 7      and physical violence against health care workers.
 8      (b)   Priority for selection.--The department shall prioritize
 9   the award of grants under the program to applications that
10   demonstrate an innovative approach to reducing verbal and
11   physical violence against health care workers, including any of
12   the following:
13            (1)   Evidence supporting the conceptual foundation of the
14      eligible project.
15            (2)   Evidence of an institutional commitment to reduce
16      workplace violence against health care workers.
17            (3)   Evidence of institutional support for the eligible
18      project, including staff time, access to institutional
19      resources or financial resources.
20            (4)   A description of a plan for the long-term
21      sustainability of the eligible project.
22      (c)   Initial application period.--No later than March 1,
23   2025, the department shall begin accepting applications from
24   eligible applicants for available grants under the program
25   during the fiscal year. The department shall provide notice of
26   the application period on the department's publicly accessible
27   Internet website.
28      (d)   Additional application period.--If money is available in
29   the fund, no later than October 1, 2025, and each October 1
30   thereafter, the department shall accept applications from

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 1   eligible applicants for available grants under the program
 2   during the applicable fiscal year. The department shall provide
 3   notice of a new application period on the department's publicly
 4   accessible Internet website.
 5      (e)     Review process.--The department shall review
 6   applications and award grants under the program on a rolling
 7   basis. No later than 90 days after a completed application is
 8   received from an eligible applicant, the department shall review
 9   and approve or deny the application. An eligible applicant may
10   revise and resubmit a denied application to the department.
11   § 56A04.    Allocation of grant awards.
12      The following shall apply to grant awards under the program:
13            (1)   Subject to paragraphs (2), (3) and (4), as follows:
14                  (i)    The minimum grant amount awarded to a grant
15            recipient in a fiscal year shall be no less than $10,000.
16                  (ii)    The maximum grant amount awarded to a grant
17            recipient in a fiscal year may not exceed $200,000.
18            (2)   The department may not require non-State financial
19      participation from a grant recipient for a requested grant
20      amount that is $25,000 or less.
21            (3)   The department may award a grant between $25,001 and
22      $75,000 if the grant recipient provides non-State financial
23      participation equal to 33% of the requested grant amount.
24            (4)   The department may award a grant between $75,001 and
25      $200,000 if the grant recipient provides non-State financial
26      participation equal to 50% of the requested grant amount.
27   § 56A05.    Reports.
28      No less than annually, the department shall post a report
29   describing the grants awarded under the program, including the
30   amount of the grants, the purpose of the grants and the outcome

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 1   reported by each grant recipient. No less than annually, each
 2   grant recipient shall provide a report to the department with
 3   all of the following information:
 4            (1)   Activities funded through the grant awards.
 5            (2)   The change in the severity and frequency of verbal
 6      and physical violence against health care workers.
 7            (3)   The performance of the eligible projects based on
 8      stated performance metrics.
 9            (4)   Budget expenditures.
10   § 56A06.    Protecting Hospital Workers from Workplace Violence
11                  Grant Fund.
12      (a)     Establishment.--The Protecting Hospital Workers from
13   Workplace Violence Grant Fund is established as a fund in the
14   State Treasury.
15      (b)     Appropriation.--All money deposited in the fund and the
16   interest the money accrues is appropriated to the department on
17   a continuing basis to award grants under the program.
18      (c)     Transfers.--In addition to any money deposited into the
19   fund for the 2025-2026 fiscal year, from money appropriated to
20   the department for general government operations, $5,000,000 is
21   transferred to the fund.
22   § 56A07.    Expiration.
23      The authority of the department to award grants under the
24   program shall expire July 1, 2035.
25      Section 2.     This act shall take effect immediately.




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