AN ACT CONCERNING EMERGENCY DEPARTMENT BOARDING AND CROWDING.

SB 1538 requires hospitals with emergency departments to annually analyze and report specific data on patient volumes, admission wait times, and "boarding" (holding admitted patients in the emergency department while awaiting inpatient beds). It also directs the Probate Court Administrator and Social Services Commissioner to evaluate an expedited process for appointing conservators for patients lacking capacity to consent to care, aiming to ensure timely treatment and reduce boarding. Hospitals must submit reports by March 1 each year (through 2029) to the Public Health Committee and health officials, while the state agencies must report their feasibility study findings by January 1, 2026. These measures target reducing emergency department crowding by improving admission efficiency and addressing delays for vulnerable patients.