Senate Bill 730 Summary

• Establishes patient visitation rights allowing hospitals to permit at least one support person of the patient's choice during hospitalization, unless presence infringes on others' rights, safety, or is medically contraindicated.

• Requires hospitals to develop written policies on visitation rights, inform patients of their rights and any clinical restrictions, and ensure visitors receive full and equal visitation privileges.

• Appropriates $5,000 from the General Fund for the Department of Health and Human Services to develop and disseminate free informational materials to hospitals explaining patient visitation rights.

• Allocates $10,000,000 from the Coronavirus Relief Fund to the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill's Policy Collaboratory for a statewide COVID-19 testing, tracking, and tracing initiative to support business reopening and economic activity.

• Allocates $100,000,000 from the Coronavirus Relief Fund to the Department of Commerce to provide one-time grants up to $50,000 per business to qualifying North Carolina businesses that closed due to COVID-19, prioritizing small businesses with 100 or fewer employees that did not receive other federal assistance.