State lawmakers want to require hospitals to adopt protocols to address sepsis, which kills roughly 2,000 adults here annually. (Photo by Anne-Marie Caruso/New Jersey Monitor)
Lawmakers advanced a bipartisan bill that would require New Jersey hospitals to adopt protocols to reduce sepsis, a condition that experts say is hard to diagnose and kills roughly 2,000 adults here each year.
The Assembly health committee voted unanimously Monday in favor of the bill following testimony from families who lost children to sepsis, a systemic reaction to an infection that can quickly spiral into multiple organ failure and death. The vast majority of cases stem from a minor bacterial, viral, or other type of infection, according to experts.
Sherwin Tsai and his wife, Sally, lost their son Clemson to sepsis within weeks of the boy’s birth in 2024.
“You have the power to save children’s lives. Please do the right thing in Clemson’s memory,” Sherwin Tsai testified Monday. “Sally and I have to spend the rest of our lives without our son. But your vote can make sure that others don’t.”
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New Jersey approved regulations that required hospitals to adopt sepsis protocols in 2018, and hospital officials say their staff members undergo regular training on diagnosing and treating the condition. Sepsis, which can appear like severe flu, can be hard to recognize and can rapidly escalate.
The New Jersey Hospital Association’s Christine Stearns told lawmakers the existing measures are working, noting that the sepsis mortality rate in emergency rooms has declined from 11% to 5%.
“We do have a strong regulatory framework that has been adopted,” Stearns said, “those are in place and are working.”
Stearns said the bill would extend work hospitals are now doing and thanked sponsors for including language intended to ensure sepsis treatment is fully covered by insurance carriers, but she did not take a position for or against the legislation.
While New Jersey’s sepsis death rate has declined, it still exceeds the national average, according to state health data. The state reported 16 sepsis deaths out of 100,000 people in 2023, the most recent year available, while the national average is 10 out of 100,000.
Dr. Cindy Hou, an infectious disease expert who works with the Sepsis Alliance, an advocacy group, said that regulatory protocols have made a difference, but the improvement is small, statistically.
“While a lot of good work has already been done, we can certainly do better,” she said.
Nationwide, sepsis occurs in some 1.7 million annually, resulting in roughly 350,000 adult deaths, according to the Sepsis Alliance. About half of those who survive face lingering health issues, including limb amputations and post-traumatic stress.
Lucia Perpina described her own experience with the condition, which led her to be hospitalized in 2015 after she developed sepsis from a urinary tract blockage.
“I am one of the lucky ones who survived sepsis,” Perpina said.
Perpina said she struggles today with memory lapses, cognitive damage, and the loss of internal organs.
“Sepsis is survivable, but the status quo must change so that sepsis deaths are diminished,” she said.
The Senate health committee passed an identical version of the bill in March. It faces additional votes before it can be sent to Gov. Mikie Sherrill for her signature or veto.
The bill would require hospitals to develop and train staff on sepsis protocols for specific patient groups — including adults, children, the elderly, and pregnant women — to encourage early recognition of the condition and prompt treatment. Hospitals would also need to collect and report data on their work to the state Department of Health.
Assemblywoman Maureen Rowan (D-Atlantic) told witnesses Monday that her brother almost died from sepsis that developed after an infection.
“Your efforts today are personal to me and I can’t thank you enough for your advocacy,” she said.
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