History of INA | Join The Team | News | Calendar
Nursing Issues | Nursing Education | Awards | Job Seeking
Licensure/Regulations | Professional Connections
|
|
LEGISLATIVE CONNECTION a communication of the Iowa Nurses Association Volume 4, Number 16
TOP STORIES OF THE WEEK Pronouncement of Death Bill Passes Senate; To Governor Wednesday, April 25, the Senate took up HF 354. Both parties called caucuses to discuss their position on the bill. After a 45-minute caucus, the bill was brought up for consideration. The amendment to add chiropractors into the bill was questioned about its "germaneness" to the bill by the bill’s floor manager, Sen. Redwine of Sioux City. Senate President Mary Kramer was in the chair and ruled that "the point was well-taken. The bill authorizes pronouncement of death in four settings and chiropractors do not practice in any of those four settings." There was no challenge to the ruling of the chair. The bill passed 47-0 and goes to the Governor. Thanks to all members who contacted their legislators about the bill. The New Targets are Out Republican leaders raised the budget targets by $48 million
with $30 million in interest from the RIIF and $18 million from the Underground
Storage Tank fund. Rep. Rants said that the Legislature will not be able to
make any further cuts and that the Governor’s proposal to use money from the
Economic Emergency Fund will jeopardize the state’s ability to make allowable
growth payments next year on-time. Senator Kramer said that the Legislature should be able to finish up the budget work by next week. Senator Iverson said that he expects to adjourn next week. Governor Vilsack said that the Legislature does need to reach agreements with his office on the budget targets. He said that he will work to find another $50 million in cuts from his revised proposals, but he expects the Legislature to find $40 million for teacher compensation, and not the $8 million recently proposed. Vilsack said that he believes that the use of the Economic Emergency Fund is appropriate and that is will not threaten the state’s cash flow. The revised targets include additions to the following areas:
Redistricting Legislators have pushed back the vote on the redistricting plan. Speaker Siegriest said he expects the Republicans to make a decision on the plan next Monday. Members are reviewing the Temporary Redistricting Commission Report over the weekend. By statute, the Legislature needs a least a week to examine the plan before voting on it, but the report is not expected to be available before Wednesday, April 25. The Temporary Redistricting Commission held a telephone conference meeting at 4:00 p.m. on Tuesday, April 24th and voted 3-2 to turn down the plan which was along party lines. Both Senator Iverson and Speaker Siegrist have said that the plan may have too large of a population variance between the smallest districts and the largest districts for the Republicans to support the plan. Democrats have indicated that they will support the first plan when it comes up for a vote.
STATUS OF THE INA AGENDA
There are budget cuts in appropriations for services of interest to nursing: HF 726 the Health and Human Rights Appropriations bill for public health nursing ($330,000) and funding to the Board of Nursing and other licensing boards ($400,000). HF 732, the Human Services Appropriations bill for HAWK-I, nursing home, hospital, home health and community mental health services. Calls to legislators are needed. Language for "securitizing" the tobacco settlement funds is found in SF 532 and SF 533. SF 537 appropriates the Tobacco Settlement Endowment Fund and the "Healthy Iowans Tobacco Trust". This bill appropriates $55 million for various health and human services programs including $1,250,000 for public health nursing and home care aides. It renames the Tobacco Settlement Fund, as the Healthy Iowans Trust. HF 354 passed the Senate on April 25 on a vote of 47-0. The chiropractor amendment was ruled non-germane since they do not work in the four settings listed in the bill. HF 200 died in the funnel. It is eligible for consideration next January. Other Bills on Issues on Watch: Mental Health & Substance Abuse Parity: None of the bills made the first funnel. The reason given primarily is due to the large premium increase many Iowa employers received. The business community actively worked against all the bills citing large premium increases and their desire for no mandated coverage. Verbal Orders: SF 242 would extend the length of time for a prescribing practitioner to sign a verbal order from 72 hours to 30 days after discharge. Amended to "sunset" in six years (two cycles of JCAHO reviews) to be evaluated again. INA membership is both for and against the bill. Repeal of Code for Birth Centers: SF 390 would repeal the Code to regulate birth centers. The bill has been referred back to committee for further work. Legislators intend to work on the issue this summer. INA members are both for and against the issue. Safe Havens: SF 355 allows fourteen days for a child to be left at a facility if the mother/parents do not want to keep the child. This was signed by the Governor. MAKING CONTACT Attend local town hall meetings evenings or on Saturdays as locally scheduled. Phone Numbers for leaving a message: Governor’s Office 515/281-5211 Iowa House of Representatives at 515/281-3221 Iowa Senate at 515/281-3371 Website Contacts for sending emails or regular letters: www.state.ia.us/governor/ On the "Office of Governor" page, go to "Desk Tops" on left side and hit "Comments", this brings up the "Comments Desk" and #3 is the email hot button. www.legis.state.ia.us On the "Welcome to the Iowa General Assembly" page, go to "Members", then "Find Your Legislator" and you can type in your street address, city and zip code to get to your Congressional and state senator and representative names, phone numbers and email addresses. Deanna McCallum and Linda Goeldner are the INA registered lobbyists. To learn more about the nursing agenda or nursing issues, call the INA office at 515/225-0495 or email either at DmcCall34@aol.com or Lkgoeld@aol.com.
BILLS SIGNED BY GOVERNOR OF INTEREST TO NURSING SF 114 MEDICAID COUNCIL REFERENCES - Updates references to organizations on the Medical Assistance Advisory Council. HF 655 ADULT DAY SERVICES OVERSIGHT - Direct the Department of Elder Affairs to develop an adult day services oversight system in cooperation with the DIA, DHS, DPH, area agencies on aging, industry representatives, and consumers to study adult day services issues. HF 663 HOSPITAL BOARD TRUSTEES - Allows persons with medical staff privileges or who receive more than $1,500 in pay to serve on county public hospital boards. SF 433 DPH CHANGES - Designates GHB (Gamma-hydroxybutyric acid) as a controlled substance. Allows the DPH to grant per diem expenses to ad hoc committees. Increases certain deadlines for notice regarding continuing education requirements for optometrists to 75 days. Adds LPNs and RNs to the list of certain health professionals under the Iowa Code who receive licensing information from the DPH electronically. Makes corrective changes. dealing with water purification systems, hearing aid dispensers and barber assistants. Doesn’t let the department keep new fees. SF 242 USE OF UNIFORM PRESCRIPTION DRUG INFORMATION CARDS - Provides for standardization of information cards by providers and third-party payors. SF 355 SAFE HAVENS - Creates the Newborn Safe Haven Act. Surrender: Allows a parent to voluntarily surrender the custody of a child who is fourteen days old or younger and has not suffered bodily harm at a hospital or other health care facility. Allows the parent to surrender the child to a person of to leave the child and make another form of contact, such as a 911 call. Creates a rebuttable presumption that the person surrendering the child is the parent. Requires the person receiving the child to notify DHS, and to take information from the parent, if possible. Immunities: Grants immunity to the individual who receives the child and the owner of the health facility. Grants immunity to a person who helps the parent surrender the child. Grants the parent immunity from provisions regarding the abandonment of a child. Parental Rights: Requires DHS to immediately take action to assume custody and to notify the juvenile court and the county attorney in writing within 24 hours. Requires the county attorney to proceed with a CHINA hearing and to terminate parental rights as soon as practical. Limits the requirements regarding attempts to reunify the child with the parents. Allows the parent to intervene in the CHINA proceedings and to gain custody if it is in the newborn child’s best interest. Allows a parent to appeal the termination of parental rights within 30 days from when those rights are terminated, but allows a vacation of the order only when it is in the best interest of the child. Other: Makes the records regarding the surrender confidential records. Requires DHS to consult with DPH and DOJ on the creation of educational materials, signs, and related matters. SF 186 TAX LEVY FOR COUNTY HOSPITALS- Increases the property tax rate that may be levied by public hospitals in communities of over 250,000. (Affects primarily Broadlawns in Des Moines.) HF 341 Informed Consent Veto HF 341 INFORMED CONSENT - Creates new code section known as the "Woman’s Right to Know Act. Requires informed consent from women including information a doctor is required to provide prior to the medical termination of a pregnancy. Makes a medical emergency exception. Makes it a simple misdemeanor for a doctor to violate informed consent provisions. Effective October 1, 2001. Governor’s Veto Message: To meet this consent requirement, a physician or the physician's agent is required to provide government prescribed information, predominantly non-medical, to the woman at least 24 hours prior to performing the procedure. The bill, in a rare move, would subject medical professionals to criminal penalties for failing to comply. House File 341 is substantially the same as House File 2229, which I vetoed one year ago. The concerns that I expressed then remain today and are as follows: 1. Providing prescribed information - Iowa law currently requires a medical professional to obtain, from the patient, a written consent to any medical or surgical procedure. Women are already being provided information they need to make an informed decision about the abortion procedure. 2. 24-Hour Waiting period - This bill also assumes that women do not invest enough time before the procedure weighing the emotional, medical, and spiritual factors involved in making this extremely difficult decision. I do not believe that assumption is true. Given the current laws in Iowa and the level of information currently available to women, I must again conclude that this bill is not about providing informed consent. Rather it is about government prescribing what a woman should think about, when a woman should think, and for how long a woman should think. This goes beyond the appropriate role of government in the context of this legal procedure. Government's role is and should be limited. BILLS PASSED OF INTEREST TO NURSING
Bills to the Governor: (1) HF 662 COMMUNITY EMPOWERMENT BOARDS - Lets an AEA be the fiscal agent for a community empowerment board. Directs the Empowerment Board how to distribute the School Ready Children Grant Account monies if at least $17.9 million is appropriated. Requests the Legislative Council convene a summit to consider various related issues. The Senate PASSED the Bill, 40-0; it now goes to the Governor SF 525 FEDERAL BLOCK GRANTS - Makes the federal block grant appropriations. The House PASSED the Bill, 96-0; it now goes to the Governor Bills to the House: SF 532 TOBACCO FUND II - Makes appropriations to the tobacco
settlement trust fund and to the endowment for Iowa’s Health in the tobacco
settlement trust fund. contingent on the securitization of the tobacco settlement. The Senate PASSED the Bill, as amended, 41-1; it now goes to the House SF 533 TOBACCO FUND - Renames the Tobacco Settlement Endowment
fund the Healthy Iowans Tobacco Trust. Authorizes the state’s share of the tobacco
settlement to be securitized and allows the tobacco settlement authority to
sell bonds for capital projects. Creates a capital projects account and a healthy
Iowans account in the Tobacco trust. Requires $55 million annually, with adjustments
for inflation to be transferred into the Tobacco Trust and limits the use of
those funds. Contains related provisions. HF 680 ABUSE REPORTER TRAINING - Requires job-specific training for mandatory reporters of child and dependent adult abuse. Adds education related employees to list of mandatory reporters. Requires peace officers meet reporter-training directive along with other public employee reporters. Requires the DPH Director to create an Abuse Education Review Panel. Allows a person who makes more than three false child abuse reports to be charged with a simple misdemeanor. Requires licensing boards to training procedures for mandatory reporters. Adds head-start programs. Allows licensing boards to exempts persons who served in the military during the educational training period from having to undergo training. S-3302 by Human Resources - Makes language corrections regarding the waiver for military personnel, dependent adult abuse and other matters. ADOPTED The Senate PASSED the bill, as amended, 48-0; it now returns to the House Bills to the Senate: HF 590 AIDS TESTING - Allows for AIDS testing of individuals receiving assistance from care givers or from persons giving emergency first aid on a voluntary basis and without compensation. Gives immunity to person or institution that performs or fails to perform the test. H-1574 by the Senate - Strikes health care providers from the bill. Allows information about a person’s contagious disease to be given over police radio if personal identifiers are omitted. H-1597 to H-1574 by Carroll - Allows for the identification of the disease but not the individual over the radio. ADOPTED The House CONCURRED with the Senate Amendment, as amended, and PASSED the bill, as amended, 94-0; it now returns to the Senate. HF 726 (previously HSB 253) HEALTH AND HUMAN RIGHTS APPROPRIATION - Appropriates to health and human rights agencies: Total (from the GF): $84 million; Appropriations: Dept. for the Blind $1.7 million; Civil Rights Commission $1.1 million; Dept. of Elder Affairs $4.5 million; Governor’s Alliance on Substance Abuse $488,000; Drug Enforcement Abuse Coordinator $0; DARE $0; Dept. of Public Health Total - $28.2 million; Resource Management (Planning & Administration) $1.2 million, Public Protection $6.9 million, Addictive Disorders $1.5 million, Community Capacity $1.5 million, Child, Adult & Elderly Wellness $1.3 million; Chronic Conditions $1.6 million, Environmental Hazards $166,000, Infectious Diseases $1.2 million, Injuries $1.65 million; Dept. of Human Rights Total - $2.4 million; Central Administration $277,000; Deaf Services $350,000; Persons with Disabilities $193,000; Latino Affairs $173,000; Status of Women $401,000; Status of African Americans $137,000; Criminal & Juvenile Justice $412,000; Community Grant Fund $425,000; Veterans Affairs Commission $45.7 million; Veterans Home $45.4 million; Administration $283,000. Other Funds DPH Total $3.75 million; Gambling Treatment Fund $1.7 million; Addictive Disorders & Home Care $1.7 million. Statutory Changes: Prohibits the State Boards of Medical Examiners, Pharmacy Examiners, Dental Examiners, and Podiatry Examiners from sanctioning licensees who use automatic dispensing system of prescription drugs in the absence of a pharmacist or practitioner. PASSED, 14-10; Floor Manager: Alons and Finch AMENDMENTS TO HF 726 H-1613 by Atteberry - Increases Dept. of the Blind appropriation by $66,000 to governor’s revised FY 2002 level. FAILED H-1620 by Shoultz - Increases Civil Rights Commission appropriation by $117,000 to governor’s revised FY 2002 level. FAILED H-1621 by T. Taylor - Increases Elder Affairs appropriation by $598,000 to governor’s revised FY 2002 level. FAILED 41-51 H-1648 by T. Taylor - Corrective. H-1619 by Bell - Appropriates $75,000 for the DARE program. FAILED 38-51 H-1623 by Wise - Increases Public Health - Public Protection (licensing boards) appropriation by $400,000. FAILED H-1638 by Seng - Increases total DPH appropriation by $1.3 million to the governor’s revised level without specifying how it is allocated. FAILED 42-50 H-1637 by Ford - Increases Deaf Services appropriation by $14,000 to the governor’s revised FY 2002 level. States that fees collected from state agencies for interpreters go to the General Fund. Specifies that of the funds for Status of Women, $100,000 go for Iowans in Transition and 43,000 go for domestic violence and sexual assault grants. Increases Criminal & Juvenile Justice appropriation by $32,000 to the governor’s revised FY 2002 level. Increases Community Grant Fund appropriation by $873,000 to the governor’s revised FY 2002 level. FAILED 42-49 H-1664 by Alons - Increases Community Grant Fund appropriation by $100,000 and that of the Veterans Home by $150,000. ADOPTED H-1646 by Smith Increases Veterans Commission appropriation by to governor’s revised FY 2002 level. Administration by $60,000, War Orphans Fund by $6,000 and the Veterans Home by $1.2 million. FAILED 42-51 H-1627 by Ford - Requires lead hazard remediation if a child gets lead poisoning HF 1663 by Alons Stipulate that the standards are not a mandate. ADOPTED H-1627 ADOPTED H-1657B by Hatch - Appropriates $3 million from Underground Storage Tank Fund for LIHEAP. RULED NOT GERMANE - Motion to Suspend Rules FAILED 40-52 H-1618 by Bell - Strikes language letting the OWI fine surcharge be used of programs other than DARE. FAILED H-1657A by Hatch - Appropriates $9.5 million from the General Fund for LIHEAP. FAILED 40-52 H-1671, H1676 WITHDRAWN The House PASSED the Bill, as amended, 51-41; it now goes to the Senate. House Action Bills to the Governor: HF 680 ABUSE REPORTER TRAINING - Requires job-specific training for mandatory reporters of child and dependent adult abuse. Adds education related employees to list of mandatory reporters. Requires peace officers meet reporter training directive along with other public employee reporters. Requires the DPH Director to create an Abuse Education Review Panel. Allows a person who makes more than three false child abuse reports to be charged with a simple misdemeanor. Requires licensing boards to training procedures for mandatory reporters. Adds head-start programs. Allows licensing boards to exempts persons who served in the military during the educational training period from having to undergo training. H-1653 by the Senate - Makes language corrections regarding the waiver for military personnel, dependent adult abuse and other matters. The House CONCURRED and PASSED the Bill, as amended, 90-0; it now goes to the Governor SF 531 ADMINISTRATION AND REGULATION APPROPRIATIONS - Appropriates from the General Fund for the offices of the Governor and Lt. Governor, the Dept. of General Services, Dept. of Appeals & Inspections, Dept. of Management, Dept. of Personnel and other regulatory and administrative agencies. Total: $7.96 million; Dept. of Inspections & Appeals: Total $6.6 million, Administration $537,000; Audits $480,000; Hearings $514,000; Investigations $1 million; Health Facilities $2.5 million; Inspections $728,000; Employment Appeals Board $35,000; Foster Care Review Board $799,000 H-1715A to H-1677 by Murphy - Increases the funding to the State Auditor by $50,000. FAILED H-1715B to H-1677 by Murphy - Increases the number of employees for the DIA, Health Facilities Division by 3. FAILED, 39-55 H-1715C to H-1677 by Murphy - Increases the funding and the number of employees for various department and agencies. FAILED, 37-52 The House PASSED the Bill, as amended, it now returns to the Senate SF 537 TOBACCO SETTLEMENT - Makes the appropriations from the tobacco settlement. Total: 57.2 million DHS Reimbursements: Total 32.5 million. Non-institutional Medicaid Providers ($11.6 million); Medicaid ($4 million); Dentists ($3.8 million); Rehab treatment & providers ($3.2 million); Hospitals ($3.0 million); Home Health Care providers ($2.1 million); Respite care providers ($1.1 million); Other DHS service providers ($546,000); Adoption, independent living, care shelters ($469,000); Breast and cervical cancer care ($250,000); Children’s Health Insurance Program ($200,000); Service care providers ($147,000). DPH: Total $23.8 million. Substance Abuse Treatment ($11.3 million); Tobacco Use Prevention & Cessation ($9.3 million); Healthy Iowans ($2.6 million, including $1,250,000 for core public health functions including public health nursing and home health care; $400,000 for trauma system and EMS; $437,000 for poison control center; $300,000 for developing expertise in environmental epidemiology; $81,500 for strategies to address leading causes of death and $81,500 for childhood lead poisoning prevention. Savings Account for Healthy Iowans: School Ready Children Grants $1,153,000; Operation of a substance abuse treatment facility for persons on probation, $2,000,000). DOC; $609,000 for CBCs. Other: Changes the name of the Tobacco Settlement Trust to the Healthy Iowans Tobacco Trust. AMENDMENTS TO SF 537 S-3544 by Kramer - Technical Correction. ADOPTED S-3539 by Lundby - Directs that $75,000 of the substance abuse funding go to free clinics across the state to help persons quit smoking. ADOPTED S-3538 by Hansen - Appropriates $170,000 for a juvenile drug court in the Third Judicial District. FAILED S-3547 - WITHDRAWN The Senate PASSED the bill, 48-0; it now goes to the House BILLS IN COMMITTEE OF INTEREST TO NURSING Use the website address above to find 1) the bill language and 2) the email address for the legislators listed below. Legislators serving on the following subcommittees are the individuals to whom comments should be initially made. Legislators give first priority to those living in their House or Senate District. Make sure the legislator knows you are a registered nurse. House Committees Senate Appropriations: Voted Out: HF 726 HEALTH & HUMAN RIGHTS APPROPRIATION House Appropriations: Voted Out: SF 532 TOBACCO FUND - Renames the Tobacco Settlement Endowment fund the Healthy Iowans Tobacco Trust. Authorizes the state’s share of the tobacco settlement to be securitized and allows the tobacco settlement authority to sell bonds for capital projects. Creates a capital projects account and a healthy Iowans account in the Tobacco trust. Requires $55 million annually, with adjustments for inflation to be transferred into the Tobacco Trust and limits the use of those funds. Contains related provisions. PASSED, 23-0; Floor Manager: Brunkhorst SF 533 TOBACCO FUND II Makes appropriations to the tobacco settlement trust fund and to the endowment for Iowa’s Health in the tobacco settlement trust fund, contingent on the securitization of the tobacco settlement. PASSED, 23-0; Floor Manager: Brunkhorst HSB 258 SENIOR LIVING TRUST FUND - Appropriates money from the Senior Living Trust Fund for several programs. Appropriates $5.3 million from the Trust Fund to the Department of Elder Affairs for administrative costs; $20 million for Grants to nursing facilities for converting to assist living programs or to provide long-term care alternatives and to development of long-term care alternatives; $1.7 million to supplement the Medical Assistance Appropriation and for reimbursement to eligible persons for health care services and rent through the Home and Community Based Services Waiver and the State Supplementary Assistance Program; $24.75 million for Nursing Facility Provider Reimbursement based on case-mix reimbursement methodology. Directs all unencumbered and unobligated fund be retained in the Trust Fund. Sets the rate determination formula for Modified Price-Based Case-Mix Reimbursement. Makes approval of Nursing Facilities as Approved Providers for 2 years. PASSED 14-8 BILLS INTRODUCED OF INTEREST TO NURSING HSB 258 SENIOR LIVING TRUST- Appropriates money from the Senior Living Trust Fund for several programs. HF 738 SALES TO NURSING HOMES (Ways & Means; Successor to HSB 108) Exempts the sale or rental of tangible personal property and service to licensed non-profit nursing homes from the sales tax. Excludes facilities for persons with mental retardation or illness. HSB 260 REDISTRICTING PLAN (State Government) Sets the Legislative Service Bureau’s first redistricting plan Congressional and legislative districts. SF 537 (formerly SSB 1271) TOBACCO SETTLEMENT APPROPRIATIONS - Makes the appropriations from the tobacco settlement. Kramer (C), Lamberti, Hammond SSB 1272 REDISTRICTING PLAN (State Government) Sets the Legislative Service Bureau’s first redistricting plan Congressional and legislative districts.
© 2008 The American Nurses Association, Inc. All Rights Reserved
|