Iowa Nurses Association | Legislative Connection, Volume 3, Number 22 February 10, 2000

LEGISLATIVE CONNECTION

a communication of the Iowa Nurses Association

Volume 3, Number 22 February 10, 2000

Interstate Compact Passes House

The Iowa House of Representatives passed the Interstate Compact on February 7 with a vote of 91-4. Rep. Clyde Bradley (R-Camanche) handled the bill. Speaking in favor of the legislation were Reps Marcie Frevert (D-Emmetsburg), Rebecca Reynolds (D-Bonaparte), Michael O’Brien (D-Boone) and Michael Cataldo (D- Des Moines). Please thank your legislators for passing the bill with a phone call, letter, email or when you attend your local legislative meeting.

Speaking against the bill was Rep. Keith Kreiman (D-Bloomfield). Three other legislators voted against the bill: Rep. Bill Dotzler (D-Waterloo), Steve Falck (D-Stanley) and Danny Carroll (R-Grinnell).

The bill has gone to the Senate State Government Committee and assigned to the subcommittee of Mary Lundby, Elaine Szymoniak and Jeff Lamberti.

Mental Health Parity Bill Moving

HF 2080 COVERAGE FOR MENTAL ILLNESS was voted out of House Commerce Committee on Thursday, February 3. It requires that group health benefit policies include payment for biologically-based mental illness for employers with more than fifty employees, or who meet the guidelines for small employers or for certain public employees. Definitions: Adopts a definition of biologically-based illness which includes schizophrenia, depression, autism, developmental disorders and other illnesses. AMENDED: Prohibit yearly or lifetime mental illness payments limits unless policy imposes other similar limits on other medical costs. Effective date January 1, 2001

School Health Accreditation Standards

Rep. Bev Nelson-Forbes introduced House File 2189 this week. This bill requires the State Board of Education to adopt administrative rules incorporating a health services component in the general accreditation standards applicable to school districts. These administrative rules had been in place and were just removed during the summer of 1999 since the Department of Education stated they had no Iowa Code authority for the rules. This bill is a top priority of the Iowa School Nurses Association.

Vilsack asks to create a better long-term care system for Iowa's seniors

Governor Vilsack said that Iowa has an unprecedented opportunity to use $65 million in federal government to create a trust fund to improve long-term care alternatives. Vilsack said that Iowa devotes only 36% of its resources towards community and home based care systems compared to a 64% level nation-wide.

He said that waiver services for community-based care averages about $444 per month compared to nursing home costs that average $1600 per month and skilled nursing home care costs that average $2,460 per month.

Vilsack said his office has worked with long-term care providers on the issue. Republican leaders agree that work needs to be done on this issue.

Tobacco Settlement Spending next Week

Republican leaders said that they will work out decisions on how to spend the tobacco settlement next week and then put out budget targets the following week. Rep. Rants said that improving access for Iowans covered by Medicaid is more important than expanding the eligibility standards. He said that Iowans often do not have access to necessary services and that the tobacco settlement should be used to improve Medicaid reimbursements.

Democratic Proposals for the Tobacco Settlement

The Senate Democrats said that money from the tobacco settlement should be used to fund a number of health care issues, including:

Offering prescription drug coverage to low-income seniors if the federal government doesn’t do so
Expanding eligibility for HAWK-I to 200% of the poverty level and making it easier for children to get Medicaid coverage
Expanding home and community-based services for older Iowans
Requiring coverage for mental health (See HF 2080 COVERAGE FOR MENTAL ILLNESS voted out by the House Commerce Committee) and substance abuse

STATUS OF INA AGENDA

Support adoption of an Interstate Compact to facilitate a system of licensure in which a single license allows a nurse to practice in multiple states with a "multistate licensure privilege". House File 2105 passed the House, goes to the Senate.

Appropriate the tobacco settlement dollars for health care purposes with attention to: 1) school programs to reduce tobacco use and improve health, 2) assuring health services provided by school nurses are included in state school accreditation standards, and 3) programs to reduce school violence. No bill, lots of discussion. INA participation in Iowans United for a Healthy Future (IUHF) activities, including meetings with legislative leadership to ask that all funds go to health care purposes. School Health Accreditation Standards bill, HF 2189, introduced.

Support parity in health insurance policies for mental health and substance abuse coverage and appropriate housing. House File 2080 was recommended for passage. On House calendar for debate. Debate expected week of February 14.

Assure nursing supervision of emergency medical services personnel when they work in the non-emergency, non-lifesaving acute care settings. INA desired language was agreed to by legislators, EMS Association and the Medical Society. Awaiting consideration in House State Government committee week of February 14.

Increase funding for public health nursing/core public health functions. Director of Public Health and Governor recommended $1.5 million, recommendations to Health and Human Rights Appropriations Subcommittee. No appropriations bill yet.

No support for legal recognition of direct-entry midwives. Scope of Practice Review Commission recommends legal recognition by registration. Recommendation to the Legislature. Bill would have to be drafted.

APPOINTMENTS

SENATE HUMAN RESOURCES Assigned to Subcommittee:

Susan Poulton, HAWK-I Board - Harper (C), Miller, Tinsman

Joan Koenings, Health Facilities Council - Shearer (C), Schuerer, Tinsman

Donald Wright, Council on Human Service, Harper (C), Veenstra, Miller

SENATE STATE GOVERNMENT Assigned to Subcommittee:

Robert Campbell, Board of Nursing Examiners - Lundby (C), Connolly, Drake

Pauline Taylor, Board of Nursing Examiners - Lundby (C), Connolly, Maddox

BILL SUMMARY

HSB 644 BACKGROUND CHECKS (Human Resources) Makes technical changes to the code regarding background checks of state employees. Allows background checks of employees and volunteers who have direct contact with clients in county cluster offices. Allows Department to consider the type of criminal background of a person in determining if that person should continue service. (DHS)
Martin (C), Boddicker, Foege

SSB 3092 CHILD DEATH REVIEW (Human Resources) Authorizes the child death review team to review the deaths of all children. Miller (C), Harper, Veenstra

HSB 622 DEPENDENT ADULT ABUSE (Human Resources) Establishes the criminal offense of Dependent Adult Abuse whether willful, reckless, or negligent. Defines "Misuse of Physical Inventions" as an action taken by a caretaker that is intended to modify or control the dependent adult’s behavior and is not part of an approved plan of care prescribed by a physician. (DIA) Martin (C), Grundberg, Mertz

HSB 624 DEPENDENT ADULT ABUSE (Human Resources) Imposes penalties for misuse of child or dependent adult abuse criminal records check. (DIA) Martin (C), Grundberg, Kreiman

HSB 601 DOMESTIC ABUSE REVIEW /SSB 3091(Judiciary) Establishes the Iowa Domestic Abuse Review Team to make recommendation to various state agencies for reducing domestic abuse deaths. Allows the Team to obtain confidential information from any person regarding such a death and releases from liability the person providing the information. (Attorney General)House: Davis (C), Baudler, Doderer; Senate: Miller (C), Harper, Veenstra

HSB 610 HAWK-I Clarifications (Commerce) Abolishes the sliding fee scale for family cost sharing. Requires Department of Human Service to perform spot checks of enrollees to in compliance with the HAWK-I program. (Department of Human Services) Hansen (C), Osterhaus, Raecker

SSB 3062 HEALTH FACILITIES DIVISION (State Government) Creates a Division of Health Facilities within the Department of Inspections and Appeals to oversee and license hospitals, health care facilities, hospices, and birth centers and to oversee foster care and dependent care facilities for children. (Inspections & Appeals) Deluhery (C), Schuerer, Lundby

HSB 619 & HSB 620 HEALTH CARE FACILITY INSPECTIONS (Human Resources) Requires unannounced inspections of health to at least once every 30 months. Does not require that a complaint-based inspection be limited to the complaint. Establishes a quality-based complaint system which requires the DIA to report to the budget subcommittees. (Governor & DIA) Martin (C), Blodgett, Reynolds

SSB 3076 HEALTH CARE FACILITY INSPECTIONS (State Government) (See HSB 619 & 620) Requires unannounced inspections of health care facilities to at least once every 30 months. Does not require that a complaint-based inspection be limited to the complaint. Establishes a quality-based complaint system which requires the DIA to report to the budget subcommittees. (DIA) Szymoniak (C), Fink, Lamberti

HSB 617 INFECTIOUS DISEASES (Human Resources) Cleans up various code sections by placing them in one code section. Makes minor definition changes. (DPH) Blodgett (C), Hahn, Murphy

HF 2144 INSURANCE PAYMENTS (Murphy) Requires HMOs and group insurance policies to pay for services by optometrists, chiropractor, nursing, podiatric physicians at the same level that doctors are paid for such services and to pay for the services of podiatric physicians, including the prescription of drugs, that are within the scope of practice for podiatry, if the policy pays for the services, including the prescription of drugs, of doctors. (Commerce) (See SSB 3027)

HSB 643 LONG-TERM CARE PROGRAM (Human Resources) Creates the Iowa Long-Term Care Program along with the Trust Fund under the direction of the Department of Human Services. Appropriates from the Fund up to $65 million over five years for conversion of nursing facility space; (Governor)
Martin (C), Blodgett, Foege

SF 2105 LONG-TERM CARE OMBUDSMAN (Judge, et al) Appropriates $70,000 to the Department of Elder Affairs hire a third long-term care ombudsman.

HSB 616 MEDICAL ASSISTANCE /SSB 3095 (Human Resources) Expands eligibility to children in the guardianship program and added two categories of Medicare beneficiaries to coverage eligibility. Considers disclaimers of inheritance and failure to elect against a will as a transfer of assets in determining eligibility. (Department of Human Services) House: Boal (C), Davis, Kreiman; Senate: Miller (C), Hammond, Tinsman

SF 2108 ORGAN DONOR REGISTRY (Johnson) Establishes the statewide organ donor registry in the DPH and appropriates $75,000 to implement the program.

HF 2162 PMIC STUDY (Larson) Requires the Department of Public Health to study the methodology used in reimbursing Psychiatric Medical Institutions for Children. Requires the Department to report findings to the Legislature. (Human Resources)

HSB 618 PUBLIC HEALTH FEES/ SSB 3102 PUBLIC HEALTH FEES (Human Resources) Requires Substance Abuse Commission to specifically review initial requests for a substance abuse facility. Broadens inspection authority of substance abuse facilities by the Department. Legalizes breast feeding in public. Make technical corrections. Increases the time before birth records van be viewed to 95 years and the person must have an interest in the requested record. Removes time restrictions on marriage, divorce, or death records. (Department of Public Health) House: Blodgett (C), Hahn, Greimann; Senate: Redwine (C), Boettger, Shearer

HSB 621 PUBLIC HEALTH PROGRAMS DELETED (Human Resources) Makes various changes to the duties of the Department of Public Health. Drops requirement that miscarriages be reported, that health care licensing boards maintain a handwritten register, and the Department of Agriculture and Pharmacy Examiners deliver samples of venereal disease prophylactics to the Department of Public Health. (Department of Public Health) Blodgett (C), Hahn, Murphy

HSB 623 RECORDS CHECK (Human Resources) Provides that requests to correct or expunge child abuse information shall not be made public until the conclusion of the proceedings. Allows providers of adult home care, health care or placement facilities to check employment records of future employees. (DHS) Carroll (C), Foege, Lord

HF 2189 SCHOOL HEALTH ACCREDITATION STANDARDS (Nelson-Forbes) Requires state Board of Education to adopt rules incorporating a health service component into the general accreditation standards for school districts. (Education)

HSB 625 UNDERAGED DRINKING & DRIVING (Judiciary) (See HF 2092) Requires the notification of parents and school authorities whenever a minor is charged with OWI or has a BAC level of 0.02 or above. Thomson (C), Baudler, Ford

1999-2000 Bill List By Subject

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