Register for Lobby Days! Two days of guided lobbying of state legislators on issues of importance to nurses are offered Wednesday and Thursday with a Thursday morning continental breakfast. Tables will be available on the first floor of the Capitol to feature various nursing specialty organizations.

Republican leaders are looking for additional budget cuts rather than a transfer of funds out of the Economic Emergency Fund. They said that they want to protect funding for K-12 schools by cutting salary increases for state employees. They have proposed furloughs for state employees and have called for every state employee to take one unpaid day a month off for the next sixteen months. Senator Iverson said that the furloughs could save $12 million in FY 2002, and more than $50 million in FY 2003. Iverson said that according to a May 2001 analysis prepared by the Public Interest Institute in Mt. Pleasant, the average state government employee wage is $38,590, nearly 50% higher than the average private sector wage in Iowa. Iverson said that no other state has this large a gap, and that unless this trend is reversed, the state will not have enough money "to reduce elementary school class sizes and enhance the quality of our community colleges."

Republican leaders said that the state budget includes $63.9 million for increases in employee salaries. They said that the state cannot afford salary increases at this time and that the furloughs will eliminate that spending increase.

Rep. Rants said that state workers need "to share the pain" that many Iowa families are going through during the current tough economic times and that "having a job with an occasional furlough beats not having one at all."

Rep. Rants said that legislators would be willing to meet with the Governor on the details of the employee furlough plan.

Speaker Siegrist said that Governor Vilsack already used $66 million out of the Economic Emergency Fund in FY 2002 to meet the budget shortfall for that year and that the proposal to take $120 million this fiscal year and another $48 million next year would drain the fund of most of the $171 million left.

Siegrist said that despite the cuts made in November, "there are still areas where efficiencies can be found."

The Revenue Estimating Conference met Thursday, February 21 and lowered the FY 2002 revenue estimate to -0.7%, the first time the state has had negative revenue growth in nearly 50 years. The national economic slowdown has reduced corporate profits, and greatly reduced state collections for the bank franchise tax and for corporate income taxes. Governor Vilsack must now act to balance the budget in the next two weeks by either making cuts or by using the reserve funds. Vilsack needs the approval of the Legislature to use the reserve funds, and if he does not receive that approval, then he will need to institute an across-the-board cut of 2.6%

Republican legislators intend to move their own budget cuts out of committee on Monday, February 25. The Senate Appropriations Committee hopes to have a bill ready to make cuts of up to $108.7 million. Republicans have already proposed furloughs for state employees, which they estimate at $12 million savings in FY 2002. Speaker Siegrist said that the Republicans are ready to make the difficult but necessary decisions to balance the state budget.

Democrats said that the Republicans have no reasonable alternative but to use the Economic Emergency Fund. They said that the furlough savings will not be $12 million and that the provisions could conflict with existing collective bargaining agreements. They also said that the Republicans cannot find more than $100 million cuts in the last quarter of FY 2002. Rep. Myers said that the Republicans need to "get serious about what is important to Iowans". Senator Gronstal said that Republicans cannot continue to furlough employees and still say that education is a priority because the furloughs will have a disproportionate impact on education.

Rep. Russ Teig, one of the House Assistant majority Leaders, suffered a stroke last night and is currently hospitalized at Mercy Medical Center in Des Moines. Teig said that his condition is fair but that he is still in the intensive care unit.

Iowa General Assembly's effort to reduce the number of bills to consider is called the funnel. The first deadline for bills to make in order to continue to be eligible for consideration is February 22. There was heavy introduction of bills and committee action this past week. The following includes the information known as of Thursday. The House Human Resources Committee met until late Thursday evening and those committee actions are missing from the following list. However, INA supported bills were not anticipated to have received action.

House Bills

House Commerce: Voted Out:

HF 2333 INTERNET PHARMACIES - Requires pharmacies that use the Internet or e-mail to be licensed as an in state or nonresident pharmacies and show in a conspicuous manner that it meets federal standards. Prohibits limits or waiver of liability. Set a civil penalty of $25,000 for violation. Floor Manager: Bradley

House Education: Voted Out:

HSB 650 AEA REORGANIZATION - Makes changes in the procedures and deadlines for reorganizing or dissolving an Area Education Agency. PASSED, 20-0; Floor Manager: Brunkhorst

House Human Resources: Voted Out:

HSB 596 DEATH & MEDICAL EXAMINERS - Increases form one to three days the time by which a death must be certified. Increases from one to three days the time a medical examiner has to determine cause of death. Eliminates religious exception for cremation permit and raises the fee for a cremation permit from $35 to $75. Allows medical examiners to perform private autopsies for a fee so long as they don't compete with autopsy services. PASSED, 17-2; Floor Manager: Roberts

HSB 623 OUT OF HOSPITAL DO NOT RESUSCITATE - Directs the DPH to develop a standard form and personal identifier for Do Not Resuscitate Orders outside a hospital setting. Makes a serious misdemeanor to destroy, withhold, or conceals such orders without the maker's consent. PASSED, 19-0; Floor Manager: Hoversten

HSB 662 OVERSIGHT RESPONSIBILITY - Transfers certain duties, including reviewing community health centers, performed by DHS to DIA and the DPH. Makes other changes in departmental duties. Authorizes the elimination of certain services performed at the Mt. Pleasant MHI if the DHS co-locates its unit for sexually violent offenders there. Makes other changes in oversight responsibility. Makes language corrections.
PASSED, 18-0; Floor Manager: Boal

HF 2360 ANTHRAX PENALTIES - Makes the possession of anthrax a Class C felony and the distribution of anthrax a Class B felony. Makes an exception for persons who have anthrax for reasons authorized under federal law. PASSED, 18-0; Floor Manager: Baudler

HF 2217 STATE OVERTIME TIME PAY - Directs to DOP to determine job classifications subject to the overtime pay requirements of the federal Fair Labor Standards Act based on administrative rules and collective bargaining agreements. Effective upon enactment. AMENDED & PASSED, 20-0; Floor Manager: Millage

HSB 617 LOBBYIST REPORTS - Harmonizes lobbyist filing rules for both the Legislature and the Ethics and Campaign Board. Reduces the number of filings. Requires the lobbyist to report certain information now filed by the client. Contains other provisions. AMENDED & PASSED, 19-0; Floor Manager: Gipp

HSB 670 IPERS BILLS - Makes numerous changes to IPERS, PORS, the statewide fire and police retirement system and the judicial retirement system. AMENDED & PASSED, 20-0; Floor Manager: Elgin

Senate Bills

SSB 3117 WORKER'S COMP REDUCTION - Reduces an employer's workers compensation liability in cases of permanent partial disability if the worker had a portion of that disability preexisting and wasn't due to a work related injury under the same employer. Reduces an employer's permanent partial and permanent total disability liability to the degree that the worker has already been paid under workers compensation. (See HSB 637) PASSED, 7-3; Floor Manager: Behn

SSB 3080 MENTAL HEALTH CARE BENEFITS - Requires coverage for mental health benefits and for substance abuse in insurance or other third-party coverage. AMENDED & PASSED, 11-4; Floor Manager: Lundby

SF 2029 DIABETES INSURANCE COVERAGE - Requires third-party insurance contracts cover diabetes costs. AMENDED & PASSED, 13-2; Floor Manager: Maddox

SF 2254 ENTERAL COVERAGE - Prohibits denying insurance or health benefits coverage for enteral formulas for home uses. Contains related provisions. PASSED, 12-3; Floor Manager: Gronstal

SSB 3149 AEA REORGANIZATION - Makes changes in the procedures and deadlines for reorganizing or dissolving an Area Education Agency. PASSED, 14-0; Floor Manager: Connolly (See HSB 650; SF 2260)

SSB 3106 WELL-BEING VISITS - Authorizes the DHS to conduct well-being visits to families that have lost their cash assistance under FIP, if funding is available, on an optional basis. Effective immediately.
PASSED, 12-0; Floor Manager: Harper

SSB 3137 HOSPITAL CHECKS - Authorizes hospitals to have access to the abuse registries for the purpose of employment checks. PASSED, 12-0; Floor Manager: Redwine

SSB 3146 PMIC INSPECTIONS - Makes the Dept. of Inspections and Appeals the sole agency for inspections and complaints for Psychiatric Medical Institutions for Children (PMIC). Allows Inspections & Appeals to release information to DHS, , a protection and advocacy agency or other regulatory agency that might otherwise perform a similar inspection or investigation. Requires insurance policies allow payment to a PMIC if it would have paid a hospital or other or other inpatient care facility. PASSED, 12-0; Floor Manager: Veenstra

COMMITTEE ASSIGNMENTS

House Commerce: Assigned to Subcommittee:

HF 2161 OFF LABEL DRUGS - Jacobs (C), Chiodo, Hansen

HF 2188 HMO EARLY DISCHARGE - Bradley (C), Johnson, Seng

HF 2209 HAWK-I COVERAGE - Hoffman (C), Osterhaus, Van Fossen

HF 2242 GROUP HEALTH INSURANCE - Hoffman (C), Jenkins, Quirk

House Labor: Assigned to Subcommittee:

HSB 637 WORKER'S COMP REDUCTION - Sukup (C), Dotzler, Wilderdyke (Reassigned)

SF 2220 MENTAL HEALTH PARITY - Jensen (C), Deluhery, Maddox

SF 390 BIRTH CENTERS - Schuerer (C), Hammond, Redwine

HF 2247 RESIDENT ADVOCATE DUTIES - Boettger (C), Holveck, Veenstra

SF 2211 MH/DD COMMISSION - Veenstra (C), Behn, Dvorsky

SF 2177 FREE HEALTH CLINIC CHECK-OFF - Boettger (C), Dearden, Redwine, Bolkcom, Drake

BILLS INTRODUCED OF INTEREST TO NURSES

HF 2368 MEDICAID ELIGIBILITY (Dix, et al) increases the level of resources that will not be considered when determining Medicaid eligibility to $30,000. Allows retirement accounts, medical savings accounts and assistive technology accounts as sources that may be disregarded.

HF 2382 ARNPs as Primary Medicaid Providers (Human Resources; Successor to HF 2096) - Makes advanced registered nurse practitioners primary care providers under Medicaid managed care. (Calendar) Floor Manager: Boddicker

HF 2387 PMIC INFORMATION (Heaton & Foege) Makes the DIA the sole agency to respond to complaints under the Psychiatric Medical Institutions For Children. Allows for disclosure of information by DIA to DHS as well as certain other agencies. Requires certain accident and health group policies and non-profit HMO's offer payment for behavioral health care within the scope of a PMIC license (Human Resources)

HF 2390 REFLEXOLOGY LICENSING (State Government; Successor to HF 2141) Excludes "massage therapy" from the licensing requirements of reflexology. Defines reflexology. (Calendar)

HF 2407 VOLUNTEER HEALTH CARE (Greimann) Includes in the list of medical services that may be provided by a health care provider participating in the Volunteer Health Care Provider Program include a licensed physician licensed to practice in a medical specialty. (Human Resources)

HF 2411 AEA REORGANIZATION (Education; Successor to HSB 650) Makes changes in the procedures and deadlines for reorganizing or dissolving an Area Education Agency. Floor Manager: Brunkhorst (Calendar).

HF 2419 MENTAL HEALTH PARITY (Foege, et al.) Creates new Code section requiring a group policy providing for 3rd party payment or prepayment of medical expenses include coverage for treatment of serious mental illness or substance abuse. Makes definitions and allows a limit of mental illness coverage to $100,000. (Commerce)

HF 2430 MH/DD COMMISSION (Carroll) Transfers some of the duties of the state-county management committee to the MH/DD Commission. Makes changes in the commission's membership. Transfers rule-making authority to the Commission from the Council on Human Services. (See SF 2211(Local Government)

HF 2439 JUVENILE HEALTH ASSESSMENT (Heaton) Requires physical and mental health assessment of juveniles involved in the juvenile justice system. (Human Resources)

HF 2450 OUT OF HOSPITAL DO NOT RESUSCITATE (Human Resources; Successor to HSB 623) Directs the DPH to develop a standard form and personal identifier for Do Not Resuscitate Orders outside a hospital setting. Makes a serious misdemeanor to destroy, withhold, or conceals such orders without the maker's consent. Floor Manager: Hoversten (Calendar)

HF 2453 DEATH & MEDICAL EXAMINERS (Human Resources; Successor to HSB 596) Increases form one to three days the time by which a death must be certified. Increases from one to three days the time a medical examiner has to determine cause of death. Eliminates religious exception for cremation permit and raises the fee for a cremation permit from $35 to $75. Allows medical examiners to perform private autopsies for a fee so long as they don't compete with autopsy services. Floor Manager: Roberts (Calendar)

HF 2487 CHILDREN'S HOSPITAL (State Government; Successor to HSB 674) Directs the DHS to designate a children's hospital meeting the criteria for a voting member of the National Association Of Children's Hospitals And Related Institutions as qualifying member for the receipt of disproportionate share hospital payments under Medicaid. Directs the DHS to seek a waiver. Floor Manager: Metcalf

HF 2488 ELDER AFFAIRS CHANGES (State Government; Successor to HSB 598) Updates Elder Iowans Act to conform with federal names. Changes references as necessary. Floor Manager: Broers

HF 2499 CHILD SAFETY SEATS (Transportation; Successor to HF 496) Requires children between the ages of 3 and 14 to wear seat belts, except in school buses. Floor Manager: Johnson

SF 2190 WORKERS COMPENSATION (Business & Labor; Successor to SSB 3003) Keeps records which could identify an injured employee, or the employee's dependent, confidential. Includes exempt household and agricultural workers under workers' compensation if those workers are covered by a workers' comp insurance policy. Establishes new subrogation procedures and allows an employer to subrogate the recovery of an injured employee. Prohibits health care providers from seeking payment for fees from employers when the provider and the insurance company are disputing the fee. Prohibits debt collection against an employer during a contested case proceeding. Defines a day of incapacity to mean eight hours and allows those hours to be collected over more than three days. Prohibits insurance plans from denying benefits to an employee because of a dispute over the employer's liability. Eliminates the requirement to present a certified copy of a decision in order to enforce it. Allows the Workers Compensation Commissioner to require employers to submit proof of liability insurance.
Floor Manager: McKibben

SF 2191 NURSE RECRUITMENT (Education; Successor to SF 2091) Creates the Nurse Recruitment Program administered for the College Student Aid Commission. Creates three sub-programs within the Nurse Recruitment Program, 1) Forgivable Loan Program; 2) Tuition Scholarship Program; and, 3) Registered Nurse Repayment Program. Creates the Registered Nurse Revolving Fund. Sets standards for the various programs. Floor Manager McKinley

SF 2195 ORGAN DONATIONS (Human Resources; Successor to SSB 3049) Includes an organ donation statement on a driver's license and an entry in a donor registry as a document of gift for organ donation purposes. Defines donor registry. Allows medical examiners, fire fighters, police officers and EMS workers to release information to organ procurement organizations. Floor Manager: Boettger

SF 2200 WORKER'S COMP REDUCTION (Business; Successor to SSB 3117) Reduces an employer's workers compensation liability in cases of permanent partial disability if the worker had a portion of that disability preexisting and wasn't due to a work related injury under the same employer. Reduces an employer's permanent partial and permanent total disability liability to the degree that the worker has already been paid under workers compensation. Floor Manager: Behn

SF 2211 MH/DD COMMISSION (Veenstra) Transfers some of the duties of the state-county management committee to the MH/DD Commission. Makes changes in the commission's membership. Transfers rule-making authority to the Commission from the Council on Human Services.

SF 2214 DEPENDENT ADULT ABUSE (Lundby) Makes changes to the dependent adult abuse program to emphasize reporting and evaluation of suspected cases. Contains related provisions.

SF 2220 MENTAL HEALTH PARITY (Shearer, et al.) Creates new Code section requiring a group policy providing for 3rd party payment or prepayment of medical expenses include coverage for treatment of serious mental illness or substance abuse. Makes definitions and allows a limit of mental illness coverage to $100,000. (Commerce) (See HF 2419)

SF 2229 PMIC INSPECTIONS (Human Resources; Successor to SSB 3146) Makes the Dept. of Inspections and Appeals the sole agency for inspections and complaints for Psychiatric Medical Institutions for Children (PMIC). Allows the Department of Inspections & Appeals to release information to DHS or to a protection and advocacy agency or other regulatory agency that might otherwise perform a similar inspection or investigation. Requires insurance policies allow payment to a PMIC if it would have paid a hospital or other or other inpatient care facility. Floor Manager: Veenstra

SF 2230 WELL-BEING VISITS (Human Resources; Successor to SSB 3106) Authorizes the DHS to conduct well-being visits to families that have lost their cash assistance under FIP, if funding is available, on an optional basis. Effective immediately. Floor Manager: Harper

SF 2231 HOSPITAL CHECKS (Human Resources; Successor to SSB 3137) Authorizes hospitals to have access to the abuse registries for the purpose of employment checks. Floor Manager: Redwine

SF 2253 ASSISTED LIVING (McCoy) Establishes the actions that the DEA can take against assisted living centers for violations. Establishes an investigation process. (Human Resources)

SF 2260 AEA REORGANIZATION (Education; Successor to SSB 3149) Makes changes in the procedures and deadlines for reorganizing or dissolving an Area Education Agency. Floor Manager: Connolly (See HSB 650)

SF 2261 BIRTH DEFECTS REGISTRY (McCoy) Increases the fees for birth certificate registrations. Uses the fees to fund a Birth Defects Central Registry. (Human Resources)

SF 2265 CHILD SEATBELTS (Judiciary; Successor to SSB 3046) Requires that children under the age of 16 use seatbelts when riding in vehicles other than school buses. Requires that children under the age of 1, and under 20 pounds, be secured in a rear-facing restraint device. Allows a child under the age of 8 and more than 40 pounds to ride in the back seat of a car with just a lap belt if the care lacks a combination seatbelt. (Calendar: Floor Manager: Tinsman)

SF 2280 MEDICAID PAYMENTS (Human Resources; Successor to SSB 3138) Requires the DHS to implement specific recommendations from the rehabilitative services provider regulation and continuous quality improvement work group in regards to Medicaid payments for rehabilitative services.
Floor Manager: Veenstra

HSB 670 IPERS BILLS (State Government) Makes numerous changes to IPERS, PORS, the statewide fire and police retirement system and the judicial retirement system. Elgin (C), Gipp, Metcalf, Connors, Larkin

HSB 696 PHYSICIAN ASSISTANTS (Human Resources) Allows a licensed physician assistant to render care during an emergency or state or local disaster without the supervision of a physician or physicians specified in the license but under the supervision of any available physician. Grants immunity except for gross negligence or reckless, wanton, or intentional misconduct or if the medical care is rendered in the normal place where the physician assistant renders care. Tymeson (C), Boddicker, Smith

HSB 697 PUBLIC HEALTH (Human Resources) Makes various changes to certain programs and public health issues. (DPH) Roberts (C), Boddicker, Kreiman

HSB 701 BIRTH CENTERS (Human Resources) Repeals the Code Chapter that requires the licensing of birth centers. Boddicker (C), Carroll, Reynolds

SSB 3137 HOSPITAL CHECKS (Human Resources) Authorizes hospitals to have access to the abuse registries for the purpose of employment checks. Redwine (C), Shearer, Boettger

SSB 3138 MEDICAID PAYMENTS (Human Resources) Requires the DHS to implement specific recommendations from the rehabilitative services provider regulation and continuous quality improvement work group in regards to Medicaid payments for rehabilitative services. Veenstra (C), Hammond, Behn

SSB 3140 OVERSIGHT RESPONSIBILITY (Oversight) Transfers certain duties, including reviewing community health centers, performed by DHS to DIA and the DPH. Makes other changes in departmental duties. Authorizes the elimination of certain services performed at the Mt. Pleasant MHI if the DHS co-locates its unit for sexually violent offenders there. Makes other changes in oversight responsibility. Makes language corrections. (Governor)

SSB 3146 PMIC INSPECTIONS (Human Resources) Makes the Dept. of Inspections and Appeals the sole agency for inspections and complaints for Psychiatric Medical Institutions for Children (PMIC). Allows Inspections & Appeals to release information to DHS, a protection and advocacy agency or other regulatory agency that might otherwise perform a similar inspection or investigation. Requires insurance policies allow payment to a PMIC if it would have paid a hospital or other or other inpatient care facility.
Veenstra (C), Shearer, Behn

SSB 3149 AEA REORGANIZATION (Education) Makes changes in the procedures and deadlines for reorganizing or dissolving an Area Education Agency. (DOE) Connolly (C), Boettger, Rehberg

(See HSB 650)

SSB 3177 LICENSING DIVISION (Oversight) Moves the Professional Licensing Division into the Secretary of State's office. (Governor) Lundby (C), King, Freeman, Shearer, Deluhery