By Bob Katzen

This bill requires all health care facilities to conduct annual risk assessments to determine all factors that may put any employees at risk of workplace assaults and homicide. Based on the findings, each facility would be required to develop and implement a program to minimize the danger of workplace violence to employees, including appropriate employee training and a system for the ongoing reporting and monitoring of incidents and situations involving violence or the risk of violence.

Supporters say that violence in hospitals and other health care facilities is on the rise across the nation. They argue these facilities are no longer automatically safe and said that it is time to ensure hospitals are more prepared to deal with any violence.