New Hampshire Gov. Chris Sununu (R) on July 22, 2022, signed a new law that aims to prevent assaults on health care workers.
New Hampshire SB 459 requires health care facilities to implement and maintain workplace violence prevention programs that encompass violence recognition, response, and reporting. The law also mandates hospital staff training in de-escalation, nonphysical intervention skills, and response to emergency incidents, as well as physical intervention techniques, if germane to staff’s roles and responsibilities. Additionally, the bill will establish a health care workplace safety commission.
This bill was prompted by the death of a hospital security guard after he was assaulted in December 2020.
Contact Director of Policy Rob Nelb, MPH, at rnelb@essentialhospitals.org or 202.585.0127 with questions.
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