N.J. Admin. Code § 8:57-5.5

Current through Register Vol. 56, No. 8, April 15, 2024

Section 8:57-5.5 - Hospital discharge

(a) A health care provider managing a patient with suspected or confirmed infectious or potentially infectious TB disease in a hospital may discharge the patient upon meeting one of the following criteria:

1. The patient has an established private residence verified as valid and stable by the public health department and this residence is not shared by any individual in a vulnerable population, unless it is known that this individual has latent TB infection;

2. Tuberculosis is ruled out as a cause of disease;

3. The patient is a resident of a congregate living facility, is homeless or reports a private residence that the public health department has not verified as valid and stable, and had sputum smears initially positive for AFB.

i. The patient must have three consecutive sputum smears negative for AFB collected at least eight hours apart;

ii. The patient must have a nucleic acid amplification test negative for M. tuberculosis;

iii. The patient must have at least one sputum culture negative for M. tuberculosis after initiation of appropriate anti-tuberculosis treatment; or

iv. The Department's TB Program may grant an exception based upon clinical evidence and interview of the patient; or

4. The patient is a resident of a congregate living facility, is homeless or has reported a private residence that the public health department has not verified as valid and stable, and has no sputum smears positive for AFB, and has been on appropriate anti-TB medications for a period of at least two weeks and has no respiratory symptoms.

(b) The Department's Division of Health Facilities Evaluation and Licensing may investigate a hospital's discharge of a patient who does not meet one of the criteria set forth at (a) above.

1. Any hospital that fails to discharge a patient in accordance with (a) above may be subject to penalties for licensure violations as identified by the Department's Division of Health Facilities Evaluation and Licensure.

N.J. Admin. Code § 8:57-5.5

Repeal and New Rule, R.2009 d.107, effective 4/6/2009.
See: 40 N.J.R. 1962(a), 41 N.J.R. 1419(a).
Section was "Diagnostic examinations".

The adopted version of this section 56 N.J.R. 213(a), effective 1/3/2024 is not yet available