Aging and Youth Committee 3/16/04

The Senate Aging and Youth Committee met on Tuesday, March 16, 2004 and unanimously reported out the following bills:

As amended:

House Bill 518 (Hess)   This bill licenses home care agencies and registries under the Department of Health. The bill also requires criminal background checks, screening for communicable diseases and training to provide appropriate services to the population being served.

Amendment A0452 (Schwartz)   This amendment makes technical changes to clarify meanings within the bill. The amendment also establishes penalties for violations and sets certain regulations.

As committed:

Senate Resolution 207 (Orie)   This resolution memorializes Congress to urge the fedral Dept. of Health and Human Services to designate PACE as the enroller of Medicare and Medicaid recipients under the Medicare Prescription Drug, Improvement and Modernization Act of 2003.

Aging and Youth Committee 10/15/03

The Senate Aging and Youth Committee met on Wednesday, October 15, 2003 and unanimously
reported out the following bill:

As amended:

House Bill 888 (Vance)   This bill increases the income limits of the PACE program by $500.  The new limits will be $14,500 for singles and $17,700 for married couples.  The income limits for PACENET, a similar program for seniors with higher incomes, would become $14,500 to $22,500 for individuals, while the income range for married couples would become $17,700 to $30,500.  Also the current annual dedeuctible of $500 for PACENET would be reduced to $40 per person per month, not to exceed $480 in a year.

These limits would go into effect on January 1, 2004

A3743 (Kukovich/Orie)   A3743 Changes language that says Department “shall” increase copays and deductibles annually to “may.”  Rewrites pharmacy reimbursement section.  Compels PACE to update all drug prices every 30 days, per pharmacists request.  Corrects federal citation for best price.  Adds certified nurse practitioners to statute as licensed prescriber.  Allows PACE to make patient referrals to voluntary health organizations.  Makes best price retroactive to January1, 2003.  Adds anti-epileptic drugs to types of drugs that cannot be subject to prior authorization, any future preferred drug list, etc.  HB 888 currently provides the same exception for psychotropic drugs and HIV/AIDS drugs.