wa-law.org > bill > 2025-26 > HB 1162 > Substitute Bill

HB 1162 - Health care work violence

Source

Section 1

  1. (a) Each health care setting shall develop and implement a workplace violence prevention plan for the purposes of preventing violence and protecting employees from violence in the setting.

    1. In a health care setting with a safety committee established pursuant to RCW 49.17.050 and related rules, or workplace violence committee that is comprised of employee-elected and employer-selected members where the number of employee-elected members equal or exceed the number of employer-selected members, the committee shall develop, implement, and monitor progress on the workplace violence prevention plan.

  2. The workplace violence prevention plan must outline strategies aimed at addressing security considerations and factors that may contribute to or prevent the risk of violence, including but not limited to the following:

    1. The physical attributes of the health care setting, including security systems, alarms, emergency response, and security personnel available;

    2. Staffing, including staffing patterns, patient classifications, and procedures to mitigate employees time spent alone working in areas at high risk for workplace violence;

    3. Job design, equipment, and facilities;

    4. First aid and emergency procedures;

    5. The reporting of violent acts;

    6. Employee education and training requirements and implementation strategy;

    7. Security risks associated with specific units, areas of the facility with uncontrolled access, late night or early morning shifts, and employee security in areas surrounding the facility such as employee parking areas; and

    8. Processes and expected interventions to provide assistance to an employee directly affected by a violent act.

  3. In developing and updating the workplace violence prevention plan, the health care setting shall consider :

    1. Any guidelines on violence in the workplace or in health care settings issued by the department of health, the department of social and health services, the department of labor and industries, the federal occupational safety and health administration, medicare, and health care setting accrediting organizations; and

    2. The findings and recommendations in the reports required by section 2(2) of this act.

  4. The health care setting or, if applicable, the committee under subsection (1) of this section must conduct a comprehensive review and update of the workplace violence prevention plan at least once per calendar year.

Section 2

  1. Every health care setting must conduct a timely investigation of every workplace violence incident.

  2. In each investigation required by this section, the health care setting must review the incident for purposes of identifying factors contributing to or causing workplace violence, including but not limited to an assessment of:

    1. The details of the incident, such as the date, time, location, and nature of the conduct and harm;

    2. The details of any response and related remediation to prevent future incidents; and

    3. If applicable, a comparison of the actual staffing levels to the planned staffing levels at the time of incident.

  3. [Empty]

    1. The health care setting must submit to the committee identified under RCW 49.19.020(1)(b) a summary of the following:

      1. The data required by RCW 49.19.040 and the findings of investigations required by this section during the relevant time period, with any personal information deidentified in compliance with the federal and state law;

      2. An analysis of any systemic and common causes of the workplace violence incidents; and

      3. Any relevant recommendations for modifying the plan under RCW 49.19.020 and other practices in order to prevent future incidents of workplace violence.

    2. [Empty]

      1. The summary must be submitted at least twice per year for any of the following health care settings:

(A) A critical access hospital under 42 U.S.C. Sec. 1395i-4;

(B) A hospital with fewer than 25 acute care beds in operation;

(C) A hospital certified by the centers for medicare and medicaid services as a sole community hospital that is not owned or operated by a health system that owns or operates more than one acute hospital licensed under chapter 70.41 RCW; or

(D) A hospital located on an island operating within a public hospital district in Skagit county.

    ii. The summary must be submitted at least quarterly for all other health care settings.
  1. This section does not affect or supersede any other state or federal law that prohibits or limits the disclosure of personally identifiable information.

Section 3

This act takes effect January 1, 2026.

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