---
type: "Bill"
title: "Relating to health care facilities; to add Section 22-21-437 to the Code of Alabama 1975; to require health care facilities to adopt certain visitation policies; to provide that patients have a right to certain visitation; to allow patients to designate an essential caregiver and to guarantee that caregiver certain visitation rights; to prohibit a health care facility from adopting a visitation policy that is more stringent than certain employee policies; to prohibit a health care facility from requiring visitors to show proof of vaccination or from prohibiting consensual physical contact between visitors and patients; to provide for the circumstances in which patients may not be denied visitors who are not essential caregivers; to require health care facilities to provide visitation policies to the Department of Public Health; to require the Department of Public Health to develop a mechanism for complaints; to provide certain immunity from liability in certain circumstances; to exempt certain psychiatric care facilities from the provisions of this bill; and to repeal Sections 22-21-430 through 22-21-436, Code of Alabama 1975, relating to hospital visitation during a public health emergency."
description: "Health care facilities, patient right to visitors and essential caregiver, provided; adoption of certain visitation standards, required; submission of visitation policies to Department of Public Health, required for licensure; certain immunity from liability, provided"
jurisdiction: "us/states/al"
legislature: "Alabama Legislature"
session: "2023rs"
identifier: "SB 113"
citation: "Alabama SB 113 (2023rs)"
classification: ["bill"]
subjects: ["Health care facilities"]
status: "enacted"
primary_sponsors: ["Garlan Gudger"]
version_count: 7
action_count: 20
vote_count: 6
first_action: "2023-03-21T04:00:00+00:00"
last_action: "2023-04-18T18:50:00+00:00"
source: "openstates"
source_identifier: "ocd-bill/443afda5-17de-4346-abdc-ad6a70bf3b98"
source_url: "https://alison.legislature.state.al.us/bill-search"
source_hash: "9f018bba400fb646f5b9681ff4e4d1e7fb415bad6550c2df5720b661709ed6a4"
vintage: "2026-07-01"
source_snapshot: "https://data.openstates.org/daily/2026-07-01/public.pgdump"
retrieved_at: "2026-07-06"
confidence: "reported"
tags: ["legislation", "bill", "us-al"]
---

# Alabama SB 113 (2023rs) — Relating to health care facilities; to add Section 22-21-437 to the Code of Alabama 1975; to require health care facilities to adopt certain visitation policies; to provide that patients have a right to certain visitation; to allow patients to designate an essential caregiver and to guarantee that caregiver certain visitation rights; to prohibit a health care facility from adopting a visitation policy that is more stringent than certain employee policies; to prohibit a health care facility from requiring visitors to show proof of vaccination or from prohibiting consensual physical contact between visitors and patients; to provide for the circumstances in which patients may not be denied visitors who are not essential caregivers; to require health care facilities to provide visitation policies to the Department of Public Health; to require the Department of Public Health to develop a mechanism for complaints; to provide certain immunity from liability in certain circumstances; to exempt certain psychiatric care facilities from the provisions of this bill; and to repeal Sections 22-21-430 through 22-21-436, Code of Alabama 1975, relating to hospital visitation during a public health emergency.

Health care facilities, patient right to visitors and essential caregiver, provided; adoption of certain visitation standards, required; submission of visitation policies to Department of Public Health, required for licensure; certain immunity from liability, provided

## Version chain

The bill's text revisions, in order — the diff chain from filing to enrollment.

1. **Introduced** (filed) — [source](https://www.legislature.state.al.us/pdf/SearchableInstruments/2023RS/SB113-int.pdf)
2. **Act 2023-24** (committee substitute) — [source](http://arc-sos.state.al.us/ucp/L1237249.AI1.pdf)
3. **Amendment QH2M41-1** (committee substitute) — [source](https://www.legislature.state.al.us/pdf/SearchableInstruments/2023RS/QH2M41-1.pdf)
4. **Amendment SYST57-1** (committee substitute) — [source](https://www.legislature.state.al.us/pdf/SearchableInstruments/2023RS/SYST57-1.pdf)
5. **Amendment XS2MEZ-1** (committee substitute) — [source](https://www.legislature.state.al.us/pdf/SearchableInstruments/2023RS/XS2MEZ-1.pdf)
6. **Engrossed** (committee substitute) — [source](https://www.legislature.state.al.us/pdf/SearchableInstruments/2023RS/SB113-eng.pdf)
7. **Enrolled** (enrolled) — [source](https://www.legislature.state.al.us/pdf/SearchableInstruments/2023RS/SB113-enr.pdf)

## Votes

- Roll of the S for Vote 177 on SB113 (2023 Regular Session) — **31–0** (pass) · upper
- Roll of the H for Vote 79 on SB113 (2023 Regular Session) — **101–0** (pass) · lower
- Roll of the S for Vote 26 on SB113 (2023 Regular Session) — **33–0** (pass) · upper
- Roll of the S for Vote 25 on SB113 (2023 Regular Session) — **31–0** (pass) · upper
- Roll of the S for Vote 24 on SB113 (2023 Regular Session) — **31–0** (pass) · upper
- Roll of the H for Vote 80 on SB113 (2023 Regular Session) — **100–1** (fail) · lower

## Sponsors

- Garlan Gudger — primary (person)

## Timeline

The legislative action history — every referral, reading, and vote.

- **2023-04-11T04:00:00+00:00** Enrolled
- **2023-04-11T04:00:00+00:00** Concur In and Adopt
- **2023-04-06T04:00:00+00:00** Read a Third Time and Pass `passage`
- **2023-04-06T04:00:00+00:00** Adopt
- **2023-04-06T04:00:00+00:00** On Third Reading in Second House
- **2023-04-05T04:00:00+00:00** Read Second Time in Second House
- **2023-04-05T04:00:00+00:00** Reported Out of Committee in Second House
- **2023-04-05T04:00:00+00:00** Reported Favorably (Health) `committee-passage`
- **2023-03-23T04:00:00+00:00** Referred to Committee (Health) `referral-committee`
- **2023-03-23T04:00:00+00:00** Read First Time in Second House `reading-1`
- **2023-03-23T04:00:00+00:00** Read A Third Time And Passed As Amended
- **2023-03-23T04:00:00+00:00** Adopt
- **2023-03-23T04:00:00+00:00** Adopt
- **2023-03-23T04:00:00+00:00** On Third Reading in House of Origin
- **2023-03-22T04:00:00+00:00** Read Second Time in House of Origin
- **2023-03-22T04:00:00+00:00** Reported Out of Committee in House of Origin
- **2023-03-22T04:00:00+00:00** Reported Favorably (Healthcare) `committee-passage`
- **2023-03-21T04:00:00+00:00** Introduced and Referred (Healthcare) `introduction, referral`
- **2023-03-21T04:00:00+00:00** Read First Time in House of Origin `reading-1`
- **2023-04-18T18:50:00+00:00** Enacted as 2023-24 `became-law`

## Source

OpenStates / OpenCivicData bulk snapshot [2026-07-01](https://data.openstates.org/daily/2026-07-01/public.pgdump); origin `ocd-bill/443afda5-17de-4346-abdc-ad6a70bf3b98`. Confidence: reported (aggregated from official Alabama legislature records).