[{"_1":2,"_100":-5,"_101":-5},"loaderData",{"_3":4,"_26":27},"root",{"_5":6,"_17":10,"_18":19,"_20":21,"_22":10,"_23":-5,"_24":-5,"_25":10},"user",{"_7":8,"_9":10,"_11":10,"_12":-5,"_13":-5,"_14":15,"_16":-5},"roles",[],"isAuthenticated",false,"isPremium","planName","subscriptionStatus","featureFlags",{},"insightsBudget","isDevelopmentHost","userPreferences",{},"recaptchaSiteKey","6LcvOJcUAAAAAHsB-gPGfGktcRlKpH7OTIU_dMTD","isImpersonating","impersonation","affiliateStatus","isFreedomPortal","routes/v2/article/layout",{"_28":29,"_30":31},"notFound",true,"relatedArticles",[32,76,88],{"_33":34,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":40,"_41":42,"_43":44,"_45":46,"_47":48,"_49":50,"_51":52,"_53":54,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":60,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":66,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},"mediaId",6329756,"mediaKeyId","2315656-6504dcd17d77d48e86fc04dcdf74d972","parentId",2315656,"title","Committee advances eight bills on child, health and background-check policy; three kept for further public comment","audioSeconds",1610,"startMs",950000,"endMs",2560000,"viewUrl","/Search/View?dp=1&key=2315656-6504dcd17d77d48e86fc04dcdf74d972&start=950&end=2560","thumbnailUrl","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2315656-6504dcd17d77d48e86fc04dcdf74d972/thumbnail_950000.jpg","articleUrl","/articles/6329756/Washington/Committee-advances-eight-bills-on-child-health-and-background-check-policy-three-kept-for-further-public-comment","mediaUrl","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6329756-2b0c004601ecbe7507a4547d16504fc2/orig.mp4?Expires=1770803716&Signature=NIIyTWVM6SQHr5dOqtpjfpThre7rxKO1HvmOM4~nwQ0XOgzU3hE6GsIxILxLhvmP9YJ6L5PfFQXz4JyYxff~5WkNcUvDNdUbkmCBaqyPGK~ncpYCsIuLBfi2lJcOrqAOZx2ysDbWqRnrhI3KbNQ7TimPkgIFFPRvLOQTZnSJW~KjqytvsrryxMK9ksPgwVjntbQuLrq8~1wGyiPkWPDEYnYOaw-6te0XZgozeOsEHwjX~WDtQgf0mkdCAvYGYIJdKwrqYLgT1zdsCVpCryWKPA0RBds8CaZfk1K7OSt7-9WdJIIKUkevV1aI7M8VOgmQznstdmILryBcsp7ugeSjfA__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","author","House Early Learning & Human Services","date","2025-02-14T00:00:00Z","article","The Early Learning and Human Services Committee on Friday reported eight House bills out of committee with \"do pass\" recommendations and kept separate public hearings open on two measures that drew extended testimony.

The committee advanced substitute or amended versions of House Bill 1171 (attorney reporting exception), HB 1200 (payments to parents for extraordinary care services), HB 1344 (respite care in certain waivers), HB 1385 (National Crime Prevention and Privacy Compact adoption and related background-check clarifications), HB 1490 (fingerprint-based background checks and related definitions), HB 1582 (childcare occupancy calculation in mixed-use buildings), HB 1724 (POLST registry and signature alternatives), and HB 1385's proposed substitute. Reported bills were accompanied by adopted technical and scope-limiting amendments in committee.

Why it matters: Several of the bills affect health- and human-services program eligibility and administration, background-check rules for caregivers, and end-of-life and advance-directive recordkeeping — areas that intersect with patient protections, state compliance with federal background-check frameworks, and caregiver workforce policy.

Key outcomes (committee action):
- Substitute House Bill 1171: Reported out of committee with a due-pass recommendation after adoption of amendment Wickham 672, which narrowed the exemption language to \"information related to the representation of a client\" and extended the exemption to employees supervised by attorneys. Committee tally: 10 aye, 1 excused.

- Substitute House Bill 1200: Reported out with adopted amendment HARO 681 that removed a scheduled expansion (07/01/2031) and limited payments to parents providing extraordinary personal care to children assessed in the E or B-high classification. Committee tally: 9 aye, 1 nay without recommendation, 1 excused.

- Substitute House Bill 1344: Reported out with adopted amendment HARO 682 that limited the bill to the Basic Plus waiver and capped respite-care use of the aggregate service budget at 30 percent. Committee tally: 10 aye, 1 excused.

- Proposed substitute House Bill 1385 (background-check compact): Reported out with a due-pass recommendation; the substitute adds definitions aligning with existing law (including \"elderly\" and \"persons with disabilities\") and clarifies the compact's purpose to facilitate interstate exchange of criminal-history records for National Child Protection Act checks. Committee tally: 10 aye, 1 excused.

- Substitute House Bill 1490: Reported out with technical changes and a proposed substitute that narrows when a national background check is mandatory (applicant must have lived in state less than three years for specified categories). Committee tally: 10 aye, 1 excused.

- House Bill 1582: Reported out; the bill requires occupancy calculations for childcare centers housed in mixed-use existing buildings to be based on the childcare areas only. Committee tally: 9 aye, 2 excused.

- Substitute House Bill 1724: Reported out; the proposed substitute requires providers to submit completed POLST (portable orders for life-sustaining treatment) forms to a statewide registry unless an individual opts out, requires Department of Health registry protections, and adjusts terminology for advanced practice clinicians. Committee tally: 9 aye, 2 excused.

What the committee did not finalize: The committee separately held extended public testimony on House Bill 1876 (which would create exemptions to the seven-day waiting period under the Washington Death With Dignity Act in narrow circumstances) and on House Bill 1848 (which would raise the traffic-infraction fee deposited into the Traumatic Brain Injury Account and set minimum allocations for in-person peer supports and community-integration programs). After testimony, both hearings were left open earlier in the day and later closed without a committee vote during this session.

Process notes and next steps: Reported bills will be placed on the House calendar according to the chamber's scheduling rules. Several bills were reported as amended or substituted; the committee record includes adopted amendment names and brief summaries of the amendments' effects.

Ending: Committee roll-call tallies and the language of adopted amendments will be available in the committee's formal report and the bill files on the legislative website; the public hearings on HB 1876 and HB 1848 drew extensive testimony and are likely to shape future floor debate or amendment requests.
","mediaType","Video","parentTitle","House Early Learning & Human Services - 2/14/2025 8:00 AM","oneSentenceSummary","The Early Learning and Human Services Committee on Friday moved eight bills forward with \"do pass\" recommendations, approving amended or substituted versions of measures that affect background checks, parental caregiver pay, respite services and a POLST registry, while leaving detailed public testimony open on separate bills about medical aid in dying and traumatic brain injury supports.","taxTitle","Human Services, Youth, & Early Learning, House of Representatives, Legislative Sessions, Washington","taxId",20264,"location","Washington","headline","","shortSummary",{"_33":77,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":78,"_41":79,"_43":80,"_45":81,"_47":82,"_49":83,"_51":84,"_53":85,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":86,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":87,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},6329751,"Public testimony divides committee over narrow exemption to 7-day waiting period in Death With Dignity law",2562,172000,2734000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=2315656-6504dcd17d77d48e86fc04dcdf74d972&start=172&end=2734","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2315656-6504dcd17d77d48e86fc04dcdf74d972/thumbnail_172000.jpg","/articles/6329751/Washington/Public-testimony-divides-committee-over-narrow-exemption-to-7-day-waiting-period-in-Death-With-Dignity-law","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6329751-b5a58153774c244c4bfb2c1e9db9bd27/orig.mp4?Expires=1770803716&Signature=BsJr-Pg~PdW2UipDX-NSYaJ2brSVShAsddDCBZ3bZoXaouEtpYYNSIvaulFvDYDNCW3ON~bDv5vIvqhjrPg9MaekMopr97YqMHmt84YVozuYFnY5~5cJPtI~Fb-5mSeLteN1LGKI05om-TgIet2UxlhH-4g5sCLQA4Pxdm54YwGQ5K~SeBCE3plbE2QqSpC~ie7JbSIi6yiXrqkqE29KfIWcRv48roXG7m5iq1gd~uwBUMj8nLGnQvQalAalTZEjWWnPumwW9xcWdUdkI~cafWNgbeUpdODYT75goF~d6~Tzk-qfV80~HMzfudyFjd75NhZ0ydpZSGMuUjpOEu7ypQ__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","House Bill 1876, which would create a narrow exemption to the seven‑day waiting period in the Washington Death With Dignity Act, drew sharply divided testimony at a public hearing of the Early Learning and Human Services Committee.

The bill, as briefed to the committee by staff counsel O'Meara Harrington, would allow an attending qualified medical provider to waive the seven-day waiting period between the first and second oral requests for life‑ending medication if the attending provider determines that: the patient is not expected to live for seven days; the patient is not expected to retain the ability to self‑administer medication for seven days; or the patient is experiencing \"irremediable pain,\" defined in the bill as pain or other physical symptoms related to the terminal disease that cannot be reasonably managed or significantly alleviated by available treatment. The bill also clarifies certain provider‑selection rules and other technical definitions in the statute.

Supporters said the measure would prevent unnecessary suffering for a small subset of terminally ill patients whose conditions deteriorate rapidly. \"Even the best palliative and hospice care cannot alleviate all suffering,\" Cassandra Sutherland, co‑executive director of End of Life Washington, told the committee. \"The exemption of the waiting period could grant a small group of qualified patients who don't have seven days access to a compassionate death of their choosing.\" Dr. Jess Khan, medical director for End of Life Washington, testified from clinical experience in Oregon and said the exemption provides relief to patients who otherwise would be unable to self‑administer the medication because of rapid decline.

Several witnesses described personal experiences. Janice Woodcox recounted a friend with an inoperable cancer who was lucid for the first request but was unable to make the second request seven days later because of pain and confusion and subsequently died in distress. Gretchen Deroche described her husband’s sudden decline and said he died before the statutory waiting period allowed access to the law.

Opponents — including disability‑rights advocates, palliative and hospice clinicians, and physicians — urged caution. Conrad Reynoldson, an attorney with Washington Civil and Disability Advocates, warned that \"removing necessary safeguards from these laws presents a greater danger to vulnerable populations who can easily be forced or pressured into making this permanent decision.\" Jean Welchill of the Washington State Catholic Conference and Dr. Sharon Quick of Physicians for Compassionate Care Education Foundation said pain is often remediable by specialty care, and that reducing the waiting period heightens the risk of an irreversible decision made while capacity or treatable mental‑health distress are present.

Several clinicians urged additional guardrails. Dr. Hope Wetchkin, medical director of Evergreen Health Hospice, told the committee the bill was drafted in response to a single constituent experience and had not been subject to broad stakeholder consultation; she urged the committee to pause and allow more expert review. Tracy Stearns Church, a hospice nurse practitioner, raised logistical concerns about rapid pharmacy access, transfer‑of‑care language and ensuring families have time to be involved.

Committee procedure: The hearing included an initial briefing and multiple public commenters both in person and online. Committee members kept the public hearing record open earlier in the day and later closed the hearing without a committee vote during the session.

What’s next: No committee vote was taken on HB 1876 during this session; the bill will remain available for future action or amendment. Supporters and opponents both asked for additional stakeholder engagement and for careful drafting of any narrow exemption to preserve safeguards for vulnerable patients.
","House Bill 1876, which would allow an attending provider to waive the seven‑day waiting period in Washington’s Death With Dignity law under narrow criteria, drew dueling testimony from patient‑advocates and clinicians at a committee hearing Friday.",{"_33":89,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":90,"_41":91,"_43":92,"_45":93,"_47":94,"_49":95,"_51":96,"_53":97,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":98,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":99,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},6329746,"Committee hears demand for restored in-person peer supports as bill would double TBI traffic‑infraction fee to $10",559,3483000,4042000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=2315656-6504dcd17d77d48e86fc04dcdf74d972&start=3483&end=4042","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2315656-6504dcd17d77d48e86fc04dcdf74d972/thumbnail_3483000.jpg","/articles/6329746/Washington/Committee-hears-demand-for-restored-in-person-peer-supports-as-bill-would-double-TBI-trafficinfraction-fee-to-10","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6329746-100651f7f1f38d4d39b7ad6a795cc97b/orig.mp4?Expires=1770803716&Signature=ld8njG2~6c~DnsI86RBFHh-jywLV7rcqZBJjNxyFw9RyhQs7lZANtPUwObLxLBEdyKqRkcdyRZAm3UbwQh6V7W6EKyLJmQdzuDU6AETR-f-VT2zELQfojb7kfe1CtU3kx~NbwfRTpp-rAb6uBgtJMVENaxOhEPknKSNixoh35AEdyHuaf27gxTO5hmgRgShgzs031DjkrkXRIfAryM-R5FkSJHeLt~EMicRGvGuJAmbhRBhz2dVTZej1w5-ltLjgTR-QuIkGv2RoiIVJiEOAXuhnq4t4Zhqxjjtz7K5jJhVXPvbD5pctFL1BKKrqdYtf~OqNGYrPP5DcyFE4VTliBw__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","House Bill 1848 would increase the traffic‑infraction fee deposited into Washington’s Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) account from $5 to $10 and require that at least 30 percent of annual expenditures from the account be devoted to in‑person support groups, structured skill‑building programs, peer‑to‑peer mentoring and community integration programs, the committee was told.

Staff described the TBI account and the Washington State Traumatic Brain Injury Strategic Partnership Advisory Council’s role in coordinating a statewide plan and recommending programs eligible for account funding. The account is funded by a fee imposed on traffic infractions; funds may only be used for activities listed in the statewide TBI plan.

Representative Beth Dolio, the bill's prime sponsor, told the committee the increase would restore services lost after the pandemic and compensate for inflation and falling ticket revenue. \"We fund that work...through a $5 fee on speeding tickets. In that bill we raised the fee from $2 to $5 and today I ask you to consider raising it again from 5 to 10,\" she said, noting DSHS had requested additional funding in a decision package that was not funded in the enacted budget.

Multiple survivors, family members, clinicians and program volunteers testified in support and described the impact of lost funding. Laura Damer White, a neuropsychologist and longtime support‑group facilitator, described in‑person meetings as essential and said many groups ceased operations after pandemic funding cuts. \"Support groups need funds to reestablish groups throughout the state, to hold their meetings in safe and disability‑accessible spaces, and to purchase assistive technology equipment so that people can communicate and interact with ease,\" she said. Desiree Douglas, whose son sustained a severe brain injury at age 12, described the role of organized activities and programs in helping children relearn social and life skills.

The bill also requires the Department of Social and Health Services to allocate a portion of account funds to sponsor an annual statewide TBI conference and to prioritize in‑person peer engagement — explicitly directing that fund allocations should not be disproportionately allocated to virtual‑only supports. Staff told the committee that the bill would also require DSHS to pursue federal funding opportunities to supplement the account.

Committee procedure: The committee kept the bill's hearing open and heard multiple pro‑testimonies in person; committee staff said the proposed change responds to long‑running concerns that in‑person supports and conferences have been underfunded since the pandemic.

What’s next: The committee kept HB 1848 open for further testimony earlier in the day and then later indicated the hearing would remain part of the record for future consideration. No committee vote was recorded during this session.
","Supporters of House Bill 1848 told the Early Learning and Human Services Committee that pandemic cuts and administrative changes decimated in‑person traumatic brain injury (TBI) supports statewide; the bill would raise the fee deposited into the TBI account from $5 to $10 per traffic infraction, require a minimum 30% allocation for in‑person peer","actionData","errors"]

Article not found

Committee advances eight bills on child, health and background-check policy; three kept for further public comment

Public testimony divides committee over narrow exemption to 7-day waiting period in Death With Dignity law

Committee hears demand for restored in-person peer supports as bill would double TBI traffic‑infraction fee to $10