Bill Update

Bill Updates

HB 317, Improve Education for Children Who Are Deaf (Blackwell, Farmer-Butterfield, Holloway, Martin).  HB 317 mandates assessment and consideration of language and communication needs of children who are deaf or hard of hearing; ensures that personnel who are highly qualified in the education of children who are deaf or hard of hearing are available to meet the unique needs of each child, including interactions in the child's language and communication modality to meet academic and social goals; and directs DPI to develop and implement strategies to ensure that parents of a child who is deaf or hard of hearing know they are entitled to request that the child's IEP team consider placement of their child in a residential setting and, if such a request is made, that a representative from one of the two North Carolina residential/day program schools for the deaf shall be a member of the IEP team.  HB 317 has passed both chambers and has been presented to the Governor.

HB 492, Safeguard Qualified Individuals/Medicaid PCS (Dollar). HB 492 allows for an additional 50 hours per month of Medicaid Personal Care Services (“PCS”) for recipients who meet the PCS eligibility criteria and additional criteria.  HB 492 was approved by the Senate Health Care committee last week. There were a few changes made to the bill (which was incorporated in large part into the Senate budget but not the House). The bill now states that rates will be reduced to allow for the additional hours within the current Medicaid budget.  It also directs the department to submit a State Plan Amendment by August 15, with an effective date of July 1. There was testimony at the committee that 86% of Medicaid recipients in Special Care Units receiving PCS need hands-on assistance with 5 ADLs.  We do not yet know the number for individuals receiving PCS in their homes. It is scheduled to be heard in the Senate Appropriations committee tomorrow.

HB 543, Guardianship Roles of MH/DD/SA Providers (Jones, Avila, Glazier, Turner). HB 543 was approved by the Senate Health Care committee this week.  It was further amended in the Health Care committee to make clear that a corporation shall not be appointed as guardian for any individual to whom it provides MH/DD/SA services for compensation as part of a contractual or other arrangement with a local management entity (LME), including an LME that has been approved to operate the 1915(b)/(c) Medicaid Waiver.  It also now allows for a licensed family foster care provider, or a licensed therapeutic foster care provider who is under contract with an LME for the delivery of MH/DD/SA services and is serving as a guardian as of January 1, 2013, to continue to serve as guardian.  It will next be considered in the Senate Judiciary I committee.

HB 585, PREA Compliance (Lewis). HB 585 directs all correctional facilities in the state prison system to comply with the provisions of the Federal Prison Rape Elimination Act. HB 585 was amended in the Senate Judiciary II committee to add back in a policy for local county facilities to comply.  It was set to be heard by the full Senate last week but was withdrawn from the calendar and referred to the Senate Appropriations committee.

HB 944, Opportunity Scholarship Act (Bryan, Brown, Brandon, Hanes). HB 944 would provide scholarship grants for students who qualify for the federal free or reduced price lunch program to attend private schools. The grants may be up to $4200 per student. It has been approved by the House Education committee and incorporated into the House budget, which allocates $10 mil in the first year for the program.

HB 980, Medicaid/2012-2013 Additional Appropriations (Burr).  HB 980 directs budget adjustments to cover a total $451 mil projected budget shortfall in Medicaid ($333 mil in Medicaid payments and $118 mil for the repayment of federal drug rebates). One of the adjustments under the bill allows any unspent or unobligated State appropriations from the Transitions to Community Living Fund to be used to cover the shortfall (all payments required to be made from the fund must be made first). It was signed by the Governor on May 30, and is S.L. 2013-56.

SB 208, Effective Operation of 1915(b)/(c) Waiver (Tucker, Barringer). SB 208 seeks to define LME/MCOs in state statute and enact parameters for a properly functioning LME/MCO.  If an LME/MCO cannot operate in accordance with the law, the HHS Secretary shall transfer the operation of that LME/MCO to another LME/MCO.  The bill passed the House this week, and the Senate concurred in the House Committee substitute.  The bill is off to the Governor to be signed into law.

SB 334, Dorothea Dix Lease (Hise, Pate, Tucker). As originally filed, SB 334 seeks to take by condemnation the leasehold interest in the Dix property that was conveyed to the City of Raleigh. The bill was rewritten in the House to give the state and Raleigh officials time to renegotiate the deal, giving officials until April 2014 to rewrite a deal over the 325-acre Dorothea Dix property and give the city a chance to add an adjacent piece of land to link two parks. It also states the intent of the General Assembly for the proceeds from any disposition of the property to be held in a special fund for mental health purposes consistent with the purposes in the underlying deeds transferring the Dorothea Dix Property to the State and in the laws of 1848-1849 that authorized acquisition of the Property.  The Senate did not concur in this House Committee substitute and the bill has been referred to conference.  The conferees are Reps. Burr, Stam, Daughtry, Brisson and Sens. Pate, Hise and Tucker.

SB 542, Drug Testing for LTC Applicants and Employees (Cook, Jackson, Rabin). SB 542 would require Adult Care Homes and nursing homes to require applicants for employment and certain employees to submit to drug testing for controlled substances. It was approved by the House Health and Human Services committee and full House this week. It was amended on the House floor to allow a single-use test device to be used and administered on-site. It has been placed on the Senate calendar for concurrence.

SB 663, Blue Ribbon Commission Recs/Supportive MH Housing (Hise). SB 663 would implement the recommendations of the Housing Subcommittee of the Blue Ribbon Commission on Transitions to Community Living to require DHHS to establish a Supportive Housing Program and an Assistive Technology Reutilization Program and to create a Transitions to Community Living Housing Budget within the Transitions to Community Living Fund to integrate individuals with Mental Illness into Community-Based Supported Housing. A Proposed Committee Substitute was approved by the Senate Health committee last week. The policy outlined in the bill is not included in the Senate budget, so it will need to pass both chambers to become law. The bill is scheduled to be heard in the Senate Appropriations committee tomorrow.