This Act changes the eligibility for Delaware's Family and Medical Leave Insurance Program ("Program") by removing the requirement that an individual be employed for at least 12 months by an employer with respect to whom leave is requested. This change would make eligible for the Program individuals who meet the hours-of-service requirement in less than 12 months.
This Act is a Substitute for House Bill No. 449. Like House Bill No. 449, this Substitute Act comprehensively amends Chapter 38 of Title 24 of the Delaware Code, the Dietitian/Nutritionist Licensure Act, to modernize the regulation of dietitians and nutritionists in this State by doing all of the following: (1) Replacing the single “licensed dietitian/nutritionist” license with 2 distinct licensure categories—“licensed dietitian” and “licensed nutritionist”—each with its own defined scope of practice, educational pathway, supervised practice requirements, examination standards, and protected professional titles. Licensed dietitians are authorized to provide medical nutrition therapy for complex and non-complex disease states and medical conditions, including in inpatient and high-acuity settings, while licensed nutritionists are authorized to provide medical nutrition therapy for non-complex conditions in low-acuity outpatient settings. (2) Updating the definitions in Chapter 38 of Title 24 to add defined terms, including “medical nutrition therapy”, “complex”, “non-complex”, “practice of dietetics”, “practice of nutrition”, “nutrition care process”, “therapeutic diet”, “qualified supervisor”, “telehealth”, and “registered dietitian”. (3) Raising the minimum educational requirement for licensed dietitian applicants from a baccalaureate degree to a master’s degree with a program accredited by the Accreditation Council for Education in Nutrition and Dietetics, increases the required supervised practice experience from 900 to 1,000 hours, and modernizes examination requirements by tying them to the Commission on Dietetic Registration. This Substitute Act establishes a parallel licensure pathway for licensed nutritionists based on a master’s or doctoral degree in nutrition with a supervised practice experience of at least 1,000 hours and passage of the certified nutrition specialist examination administered by the Board for Certification of Nutrition Specialists. (4) Amending the composition of the State Board of Dietetics/Nutrition to include 2 licensed dietitian members, 1 licensed dietitian or licensed nutritionist member, 1 Delaware-licensed physician, and 1 public member. It updates the licensure renewal section to require that continuing education hours for licensed dietitians meet the standards of the Commission on Dietetic Registration, and that continuing education hours for licensed nutritionists meet the standards of the Board for Certification of Nutrition Specialists. (5) Revising the licensure required section (§ 3810 of Title 24) to establish protected titles for both licensed dietitians and licensed nutritionists, to clarify who may engage in the practice of medical nutrition therapy, and to update the exemptions from licensure requirements. Exemptions are updated or added for students and trainees in supervised practice programs; persons providing general non-medical nutrition information; out-of-state practitioners providing services via telehealth; persons providing wellness, health coaching, and non-medical weight control services; WIC program employees; and others providing non-discretionary support activities under direct supervision. (6) Adding a new § 3814 of Title 24 authorizing the Board to issue provisional licenses to applicants who have completed education and supervised practice requirements but have not yet passed their licensure examination. (7) Providing that existing Delaware licensed dietitian nutritionists who hold the registered dietitian credential will be grandfathered as licensed dietitians and those who do not hold that credential will be grandfathered as licensed nutritionists, without additional requirements. (8) Making conforming amendments throughout Chapter 38 of Title 24 to replace outdated titles, organizational references, and scope of practice language consistent with the dual licensure structure created by this Act. (9) Making technical corrections to conform Chapter 38 of Title 24 to the standards of the Delaware Legislative Drafting Manual. This Substitute Act differs from House Bill No. 449 by making all of the following changes recommended by the Division of Professional Regulation: (1) Removing antiquated language prohibiting an individual appointed to fill a vacancy from serving on the Board for only 1 additional full term. (2) Providing that the actions that require the affirmative vote of 3 members of the Board are related to disciplinary actions under § 3811(b) of Title 24. (3) Removing a requirement that an applicant for licensure as a nutritionist must complete the required supervised practice experience within 5 years of completing the required educational requirements. (4) Clarifying the documentation required related to the supervised practice experience required for an applicant for licensure as a nutritionist. (5) Removing the requirement that an applicant for licensure as a dietitian or nutritionist complete 75 hours of continuing education for each 5-year period post-examination when the applicant passed the required examination more than 5 years before applying for licensure and has not maintained registration or certification and replacing that requirement with a requirement that the applicant complete continuing education as required by the Board, have actively practiced in dietetics, nutrition, or a substantially related healthcare profession within the last 5 years, completed coursework, supervised practice, or training related to dietetics or nutrition in the last 5 years, or provided other evidence demonstrating current competency. (6) Providing, as part of the grandfather provisions, for a pathway for nutritionists who are practicing at the level of a dietitian to continue practicing at that level. (7) Removing the telehealth provision that was in House Bill No. 449 because Chapter 60 of Title 24 applies to the Board. (8) Reverting to the "reasonably equivalent" standard for reciprocity and ensuring reciprocity is available for certified or licensed dietitians or certified or licensed nutritionists from another state whose standards are not reasonably equivalent if the applicant has held the certification or license in good standing for at least 5 years and the Board determines the applicant qualifies for licensure under Chapter 38 of Title 24. (9) Deferring standards related to qualified supervisors to the Board by regulation. (10) Providing for delayed implementation of this Substitute Act for 18 months or the adoption by the Board of regulations to implement this Substitute Act, whichever comes first. This Substitute Act requires a greater than majority vote for passage because § 11 of Article VIII of the Delaware Constitution requires the affirmative vote of three-fifths of the members elected to each house of the General Assembly to impose or levy a tax or license fee.
This Act creates a new Delaware Nursing Advancement Fund (Fund) for purposes of funding a nonprofit that will maintain information and conduct studies about the nursing workforce, advance the profession of nursing, monitor trends in the nursing applicant pool, facilitate partnerships, educate the public about opportunities and careers in nursing, and distribute information about the nursing workforce. Money for the Fund will come from a $10 fee on initial and renewal applications to the Board of Nursing, as well as any disciplinary fines. The Division of Professional Regulation will make a grant award to a nonprofit to accomplish the purposes of the Fund. This Act requires a three-fourths majority vote for passage because of the requirements of Section 4, Article VIII of the Delaware Constitution.
This Act requires enhanced informed consent before administering vaccines to infants under 12 months of age. This Chapter shall be used to promote transparency in informed consent and thorough investigation of Sudden Unexpected Infant Deaths. Nothing in this chapter shall: (1) Create or imply any causal relationship between vaccination and sudden unexpected infant death, (2) Restrict discourage, or interfere with the administration or recommendation of vaccinations, (3) Alter the standard of care of the diagnosis of SUID, or (4) Create any new private right of action or expand existing liability for healthcare providers or medical examiners. Before a vaccine is given, the vaccine administrator must confirm with the parent or guardian that the healthcare provider fully explained the vaccine(s) and answered all questions. If questions remain, the questions must be answered before the vaccine is administered. The form used to verify the lot number of the vaccine must be altered to include a check box verifying discussion was completed and all questions answered. The Act also required documentation history of every SUID investigation and when death occurs within seven days of the vaccination, documentation consideration was given of any potential association consistent with CDC Guidelines, without creating any presumption of causation. These measures respond to the family's request for greater transparency following the loss of healthy infants while preserving access to recommended immunizations, and affirming nothing in this act implies a casual link between vaccination and SUID.
This Joint Resolution directs the Department of Health & Social Services to explore and consider additional solutions for tackling the State's high cost of health care and to submit a report to the General Assembly by January 1, 2027, that explores the feasibility of additional strategies to lower health care costs. The report will explore updating the current Medicaid outlier methodology, ways to ensure further cost savings for 2027, and the feasibility of a statewide adoption of a global budget or 2-sided risk models, and will evaluate options for a public option or other publicly sponsored coverage strategy.
This Concurrent Resolution recognizes September 24, 2026 as Firefighter Suicide Awareness Day, September 25, 2026 as Emergency Medical Services Suicide Awareness Day, September 26, 2026 as Law Enforcement Officer Suicide Awareness Day, and September 27, 2026 as Telecommunications Suicide Awareness Day in Delaware.
Sections 1 and 2 of this Act identify DHIN as the State’s sanctioned provider of Health Data Utility (HDU) services. The HDU concept arises and builds off of services provided by Health Information Exchanges (HIEs) such as DHIN. Including this language will align with DHIN’s development and assist the State in responding to federal and other grant funding opportunities that require or prefer collaboration with a sanctioned HDU. Section 2 of this Act is a clarifying provision that states DHIN’s ability to contract with organizations in furtherance of its mission in business arrangements that facilitate DHIN’s underlying mission, notwithstanding that those organizations may provide services (such as direct provision of treatment to patients) that DHIN does not directly provide under this chapter. It also makes a technical change to align the list of stakeholders identified with lists that appear elsewhere in the statute. Section 3 of this Act aligns DHIN’s use cases more clearly with the requirements of federal law that relate to using health data for analytic and research purposes, including the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA) and the Federal Policy for Protection of Human Subjects (the Common Rule) and makes a technical correction to a description of DHIN processes. This change will also ensure consistency between permitted uses of claims data for research purposes and permitted uses of clinical data. Sections 4 and 5 clarify DHIN’s ability to incorporate clinically relevant information into a patient’s longitudinal record, excluding pricing information, for access as permitted by the laws and regulations governing DHIN’s HIE services. This clarification ensures patients will have access to the clinical information included in claims data for their own uses. Section 5 makes a technical correction to recognize that DHIN’s enabling legislation and applicable federal law do not permit DHIN to “report” data to the public that would be suitable for the public health improvement research and activities purposes designed to be encouraged by that section, and clarifies that the identified agencies will have access to the standardized claims data sets curated by DHIN from the Delaware Health Care Claims Database as otherwise permitted under this statute at no cost.
This bill designates October 2026 as "Depression Awareness Month" throughout the State of Delaware. It serves as a formal proclamation to highlight mental health awareness during that specific time period. The measure does not alter laws or create new programs, but rather establishes an official state recognition for the month.
This Act expands the scope of prohibited extraordinary collection actions to include a large health-care facility levying on tangible personal property of a patient. It also clarifies that any party taking action to collect medical debt must disclose in court pleadings whether the party is a large health-care facility, and makes technical corrections.
This House Substitute for House Bill No. 394 creates a process for which the Division of Public Health creates signage stating that energy drinks and caffeinated dietary supplements are not recommended for children, individuals sensitive to caffeine, pregnant women, or women who are nursing. Dealers of energy drinks and caffeinated dietary supplements are then required to display the sign in a publicly visible location next to the products.
