SB 45 Louisiana Senate · 2026 Regular Session

HEALTH SERVICES: Provides relative to hospice care. (gov sig) (EN SEE FISC NOTE GF EX See Note)

This bill exempts certain nonprofit hospices providing free end-of-life care from standard hospice licensure requirements. It directly affects nonprofit organizations that offer no-cost, home-like care to terminally ill patients, provided they meet three criteria: charging no fees to patients/families, receiving no insurance payments (including Medicare/Medicaid), and limiting accommodations to three private bedrooms. The bill treats these exempt organizations as the patient’s residence for care purposes, requiring medications to be handled like home care, and allows designated caregivers (even without licenses) to perform tasks under a hospice provider’s plan. These changes aim to expand access to low-cost hospice options while clarifying care delivery standards.

Issues: ✓ Healthcare

Bill status signed all 5 stages cleared

Introduction

Feb 2026

Committee Review

May 2026

Senate Passage

May 2026

House Passage

May 2026

Signed into Law

May 2026

Introduced Feb 12, 2026 Signed May 29, 2026

Maddy AI version diff · 3 comparisons

What changed between versions

SB45 Original → SB45 Act 453 · 3 edits

MINOR

This bill exempts nonprofit organizations from licensure requirements if they provide free end-of-life care in a home-like setting. The key change is adding specific criteria these organizations must meet, such as charging no cost to patients and providing private bedrooms for no more than three patients at a single location. This creates a new legal pathway for small, volunteer-run hospice groups to operate without state licensing while still being recognized as the patient's home.

Scope change

The bill's scope expanded to include a specific exemption for nonprofit organizations that meet defined criteria, whereas previously all hospice providers required licensure.

ELIGIBILITY

Added specific criteria for nonprofit organizations to qualify for a licensure exemption, including providing free care and limiting bedroom occupancy to three patients per location.

DEFINITION

Established that qualifying exempt organizations are legally treated as the patient's place of residence for hospice care purposes.

REQUIREMENT

Reorganized the structure of the law to clearly separate the new exemption criteria from the general rules regarding medication administration and caregiver delegation.

Floor votes · Senate Mar 17, 2026 · House May 13, 2026

How they voted

39–0

Passed

Total votes 39

Mar 17, 2026

D Democratic11

11 Yea

100% Yea

R Republican28

28 Yea

100% Yea

Vote distribution

All Yea All Nay Mixed No data

Full legislative history

Actions timeline

Total actions

Key actions

Committee

Amendments

May 19, 2026

Upper · Passed

Amendments proposed by the House read and concurred in by a vote of 35 yeas and 0 nays.

upper

May 13, 2026

Lower · Passed

Read third time by title, roll called on final passage, yeas 94, nays 0. Finally passed, ordered to the Senate.

lower

May 7, 2026

Introduced

Reported without Legislative Bureau amendments.

lower

May 6, 2026

Lower · Passed

Reported with amendments (9-0). Referred to the Legislative Bureau.

lower

Mar 23, 2026

Committee

Read by title, under the rules, referred to the Committee on Health and Welfare.

lower

Mar 17, 2026

Upper · Passed

Read by title, passed by a vote of 37 yeas and 0 nays, and sent to the House. Motion to reconsider tabled.

upper

Mar 11, 2026

Upper · Passed

Reported with amendments.

upper

Mar 9, 2026

Committee

Introduced in the Senate; read by title. Rules suspended. Read second time and referred to the Committee on Health and Welfare.

upper

1 primary · 0 co-sponsors