Governor Jindal Announces Legislation to Protect and Support Victims of Sexual Assault

Press Release

Today, Governor Jindal announced legislation to protect sexual assault victims and ensure that hospitals do not directly bill these individuals for medical services associated with sexual assault. The legislation will also remove the requirement that victims report the crime to law enforcement within 72 hours of the incident in order to be eligible to apply for reparations from the Crime Victims Reparations Board (CVRB).

Over the past six months, the administration collaborated with health and hospital officials, victims' advocates and law enforcement to produce a detailed plan to address concerns regarding the provision of services following a sexual assault. In October and December of 2014, Governor Jindal issued two executive orders that directed the CVRB to promulgate rules to allow a victim to assign their right to seek reimbursement for medical expenses to hospitals so that hospitals could apply directly to CVRB and not bill the victim for services. It also expanded the notification time for victims to be eligible for reparations and gathered state officials to create regional plans for how sexual assault exams are handled. These teams are continuously working to ensure that victims are receiving the care that they deserve and this new legislation will help build a smooth road to recovery for victims and their families.

Governor Jindal said, "We are fully committed to supporting individuals who have faced the horrendous crimes of sexual assault. This legislation will build on our efforts to support and protect these individuals by providing consistent care to victims in need and by removing unnecessary burdens that have gotten in the way of ensuring that these victims receive the assistance that they deserve."

DHH Secretary Kathy H. Kliebert said, "The manner in which we care for and respond to victims of sexual assault is a direct reflection of the strength of our communities. This critical legislation ensures victims will not be billed for the important forensic medical exams needed following an assault and reduces the barriers for men and women to speak up when a crime against them has been committed. I am proud of the work our regional medical directors have done to advise this legislation and grateful to the legislature for helping us swiftly correct the system."
Stand and Support Survivors (SASS) Bill by Representative Helena Moreno

Today the provision of services to a victim of sexual assault varies across the state and victims may not know the extent of the services available to them in their area. Current law requires that a victim of sexual assault report the crime to law enforcement within 72 hours of the incident in order to be eligible to apply for reparations from the CVRB. Furthermore, current law does not prohibit health care providers from directly billing a victim for services related to sexual assault nor does it provide a rate schedule for costs associated with ancillary medical services that are eligible for reimbursement from the CVRB.

In January, DHH regional medical directors convened regional workgroups to evaluate existing response efforts and make recommendations that maximize these regional resources while streamlining and standardizing care across the state. The workgroups found that there were several models in use regionally, and they worked to combine these effective strategies into a statewide plan that focuses on regional strengths while ensuring consistency for victims across parish lines.

Recommendations include that each region utilize a Sexual Assault Response Team (SART) protocol to engage law enforcement, medical providers, and advocates to ensure that all parties involved in a sexual assault know their respective roles and the roles of others in how to best care for victims of sexual assault. The groups also recommend that the SART team and the government entity to which it is attached enter into cross-parish MOUs to ensure clarity on how local funding flows to pay for Forensic Medical Exams (FMEs). Additionally, the groups recommend that a single hospital or healthcare facility be designated as the primary point of service for victims.

Currently, SART protocols are being used in five of the nine DHH regions, with a sixth region in the process of developing such a protocol. The legislation will require each of the nine regional health service districts to develop an annual sexual assault response plan by October 1 of each year and will also recommend that all regions adopt a SART protocol to address sexual assault care and issues such as who purchases sexual assault collection kits and the standards and procedures for the storage of such kits.

In addition, this legislation empowers victims by:

1. Prohibiting hospitals from directly billing the victim for sexual assault medical services and requiring hospitals to inform the victim of the payment mechanism through the CVRB. Hospitals and healthcare providers will be able to directly bill CVRB for medical expenses according to a schedule of costs developed by CVRB, regardless of whether a victim reports to law enforcement, as a result of this legislation provided that the hospital or healthcare provider certifies that a sexual assault examination was requested and conducted.
2. Giving victims more flexibility to make a decision about reporting the incident after the fact, the bill will ensure that evidence collection kits are maintained for up to one year and protect the confidentiality of victims who choose not to immediately report by clarifying the anonymous barcode system.
3. Ensuring that hospitals utilize standardized billing definitions of a FME, developed by DHH, and that the evidence collection kits used for the FME meet standards that were developed jointly by DHH and LSP.
4. Adding an additional source of funding specifically for the payment of services for sexual assault victims by directing funds from unclaimed after 90 days and expired slot machine tickets, minus the amount paid in taxes by the casinos, into the CVRF. Current law requires courts to assess certain fees for felony convictions and to deposit the collected funds into the Crime Victims Reparations Fund (CVRF).
5. Clarifying that a coroner or his designee is responsible for the sexual assault examinations regardless of whether or not the incident has been reported to police or is under investigation. An examination by the coroner or his designee ensures that an individual who does not immediately report the assault still has the option to report the assault later and will have the same standard of evidence collection as an individual who decides to report right away.

Representative Helena Moreno said, "Over the past several months, we have worked with the administration and victims' advocates to come up with substantial improvements to care and services for victims of sexual assault. This legislation will ensure that the burden of medical expenses will not be placed on the victims and it will make sure those standards and practices are being maintained across the state."

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