HB3 Alabama 2023 Session

Summary

Primary Sponsor

Debbie Wood

Republican

Session

First Special Session 2023

Title

Relating to health care facilities; to add Section 22-21-437 to the Code of Alabama 1975; to require health care facilities to adopt certain visitation policies; to provide that patients have a right to certain visitation; to allow patients to designate an essential caregiver and to guarantee that caregiver certain visitation rights; to prohibit a health care facility from adopting a visitation policy that is more stringent than certain employee policies; to prohibit a health care facility from requiring visitors to show proof of vaccination or from prohibiting consensual physical contact between visitors and patients; to provide for the circumstances in which patients may not be denied visitors; to require health care facilities to provide visitation policies to the Department of Public Health; to require the Department of Public Health to develop a mechanism for complaints; to prohibit any suspension or modification by emergency rule or order; and to repeal Sections 22-21-430 through 22-21-436, Code of Alabama 1975, relating to hospital visitation during a public health emergency.

Summary

HB3 would overhaul Alabama's hospital visitation rules by requiring standard policies, guaranteed visitor rights, and a designated essential caregiver with daily visitation time.

What This Bill Does

It repeals the old hospital visitation rules used during public health emergencies and replaces them with mandatory visitation policies for health care facilities. Facilities must develop these policies within 30 days, covering infection control, visitor screening, permissible visit lengths, and a staff lead to enforce the rules. The bill guarantees patients' rights to visit, allows designation of an essential caregiver with at least two hours of daily in-person visitation, and prevents vaccination proof from being required or restricting consensual physical contact. It also requires visitation in certain situations (end-of-life, childbirth, pediatric care, and various emotional or medical contexts) and directs facilities to provide policies to the Department of Public Health, which must host a complaints page; emergency-rule suspensions are barred.

Who It Affects

• Residents, clients, and patients of health care facilities (and their visitors) gain expanded visitation rights, including the ability to designate an essential caregiver and receive at least two hours of daily visitation from that caregiver.
• Health care facilities and the Alabama Department of Public Health must implement, review, and enforce the new visitation policies; facilities must share policies with the Department, and the Department must provide a public explanation page and a mechanism for filing complaints.

Key Provisions

• Repeals Sections 22-21-430 through 22-21-436, replacing them with new visitation standards in Section 22-21-437.
• Defines covered health care facilities to include general acute hospitals, long-term care facilities, skilled nursing facilities, intermediate care facilities, assisted living facilities, and specialty care assisted living facilities.
• Guarantees residents/patients the right to visit any individual of their choosing during visiting hours; designates an essential caregiver who may visit for at least two hours daily in addition to other visits.
• Prohibits requiring visitors to show proof of vaccination and prohibits denying consensual physical contact between visitors and patients; safety policies cannot be more stringent than those for staff.
• Requires facilities to allow in-person visitation in specified circumstances (end-of-life, childbirth, pediatric care, major medical decisions, emotional distress, adjustment issues, and other listed scenarios).
• Facilities must develop visitation policies within 30 days, provide them to the Department of Public Health, and make them accessible on their website; the Department must maintain a standalone page explaining visitation requirements and a complaints mechanism; no emergency-rule suspension of these requirements.

AI-generated summary using openai/gpt-5-nano on Feb 22, 2026. May contain errors — refer to the official bill text for accuracy.