PART 9. TEXAS COMMISSION ON JAIL STANDARDS
The Texas Commission on Jail Standards adopts amendments to §273.7 concerning Tuberculosis Screening with changes to the proposed text as published in the November 28, 2008, issue of the Texas Register (33 TexReg 9658). The agency name in subsection (b) was changed from Texas Department of Health to the Department of State Health Services.
This amendment is being adopted to standardize language utilized and clarify when the screening is to be conducted.
This rule provides requirements for the screening of inmates for tuberculosis.
No comments were received regarding the proposal.
The amendment is adopted under Government Code, Chapter 511 which provides the Texas Commission on Jail Standards with the authority to adopt reasonable rules and procedures establishing standards for the construction, equipment, maintenance and operation of county jails.
§273.7.Tuberculosis Screening Plan.
(a) Each facility having a capacity of 100 or more beds, or housing inmates transferred from a facility with a capacity of at least 100 beds or housing inmates from another state, shall develop and implement a plan for tuberculosis screening tests of employees, volunteers, and inmates. Inmates confined in the jail for more than 7 days shall be tested on or before the 7th day after the day of confinement. Inmates may be exempt from the screening test when the test conflicts with the tenets of an organized religion to which the individual belongs or when the test is contraindicated based on an examination by a physician. An inmate is not required to be retested at each rebooking if the inmate is booked into the facility more than once during a 12-month period, unless the inmate shows symptoms of or is known to have been exposed to tuberculosis.
(b) The tuberculosis screening plan shall be developed and implemented in accordance with 25 TAC §§97.171 - 97.180 (relating to Communicable Diseases) and the Texas Health and Safety Code, §§89.001 - 89.102 and shall be approved by the Tuberculosis Elimination Division, Department of State Health Services prior to use. The plan shall be made available to the Commission upon request. A copy of an inmate's medical records or documentation of screenings or treatment received during confinement shall accompany an inmate transferred from one correctional facility to another or to TDCJ-ID and be available for medical review upon arrival of the inmate.
This agency hereby certifies that the adoption has been reviewed by legal counsel and found to be a valid exercise of the agency's legal authority.
Filed with the Office of the Secretary of State on April 13, 2009.
TRD-200901421
Brandon Wood
Assistant Director
Texas Commission on Jail Standards
Effective date: May 3, 2009
Proposal publication date: November 28, 2008
For further information, please call: (512) 463-8236