House Committee on Health and Human Services (04/12/2010)

Final
STAFF SUMMARY OF MEETING

HOUSE COMMITTEE ON HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

Date:	04/12/2010	ATTENDANCE

Time:	01:34 PM to 04:03 PM	Acree	X
		Apuan	X
Place:	LSB A	Gerou	X
		Kefalas	X
This Meeting was called to order by		Kerr J.	X
	Representative Riesberg	Primavera	X
		Roberts	X
This Report was prepared by		Swalm	X
	Kelly Stapleton	Tyler	X
		Gagliardi	X
		Riesberg	X
		X = Present, E = Excused, A = Absent, * = Present after roll call

Bills Addressed:		Action Taken:
SB10-073 SB10-124 SB10-061 SB10-117		Referred to the Committee of the Whole Amended, Referred to Finance Referred to Appropriations Amended, Referred to the Committee of the Whole

01:34 PM -- Senate Bill 10-073

Representative McFadyen presented Senate Bill 10-073 which modifies the duties for the Department of Public Health and Environment (DPHE) and the Anschutz Medical Campus health sciences facility concerning the operation of the Nurse Home Visitor Program which was implemented under Senate Bill 00-071.

01:37 PM -- Pilar Baca, University of Colorado, spoke in favor of the bill. Ms. Baca described the Nurse Home Visitor Program. She stated the program focuses on three goals which are reducing tobacco and alcohol use during pregnancy; improving children's health; and improving families' economic self-sufficiency. Ms. Baca stated that it is the only program in the country that has been awarded a top tier recognition from the Coalition of Evidence-Based Policy. She stated that national Nurse Family Partnership partners with Colorado's Invest in Kids program to implement the program. Ms. Baca explained the benefits of the public/private partnership between the DPHE and the nonprofit that administers the program. She described the evaluation of the program.

01:45 PM -- Lisa Merlino, Executive Director, Invest in Kids, spoke in support of the bill. Ms. Merlino described the Invest in Kids program to the committee. A handout describing the program was provided to the committee (Attachment A).

01:53 PM -- Barbara Bronson, Invest in Kids, testified in support of the bill.

01:56 PM

Representative McFadyen provided concluding remarks to the bill.


BILL:	SB10-073
TIME:	02:02:09 PM
MOVED:	Kefalas
MOTION:	Moved to refer Senate Bill 10-073 to the Committee of the Whole. The motion passed on a 11-0 roll call vote.
SECONDED:	Gagliardi
		VOTE
	Acree	Yes
	Apuan	Yes
	Gerou	Yes
	Kefalas	Yes
	Kerr J.	Yes
	Primavera	Yes
	Roberts	Yes
	Swalm	Yes
	Tyler	Yes
	Gagliardi	Yes
	Riesberg	Yes
Final YES: 11 NO: 0 EXC: 0 ABS: 0 FINAL ACTION: PASS

02:06 PM -- Senate Bill 10-124

Representative Ryden presented Senate Bill 10-124 which modifies the Michael Skolnik Transparency Act to include audiologists, acupuncturists, podiatrists, chiropractors, dentists and dental hygienists, physician assistants, midwives, nurses, optometrists, physical therapists, and all mental health therapists. She explained that the Michael Skolnik Transparency Act requires medical professionals to disclose certain information to the State Board of Medical Examiners. Amendment L.005 was provided to the committee (Attachment B).

02:15 PM -- Rose McCool, Director, Division of Registrations, Department of Regulatory Agencies (DORA), responded to committee questions. She stated that the division discussed whether to include occupational therapists on the list of medical professions required to report information for the Michael Skolnik Transparency Act, but decided against it. She stated that the department will review whether occupational therapists should be required to provide information pursuant to the Michael Skolnik Transparency Act after the sunset review of the State Board of Occupational Therapy next year. In responding to Representative Kerr's question, she stated that the bill will add approximately 117,000 medical practitioners to the registry. Ms. McCool stated that the website receives about 6,000 to 7,000 hits a month.

02:27 PM -- Barbara Hughes, Certified Nurse Midwives of Colorado, testified in support of the bill. She stated that the database allows consumers to feel safer when choosing a medical professional and it improves transparency.

02:31 PM -- Dr. Ben Vernon, Colorado Medical Society, spoke in support of the bill. He stated that initially physicians were reluctant to file information with the DORA, but over time have come to understand that it is a positive tool for consumers. He spoke to the provision in the bill that allows physicians or other medical practitioners to share their charity work and awards through the database.

02:34 PM -- Charlie Hebeler, Colorado Dental Association, testified in support of the bill, if amended. She stated that her clients have concerns that the bill will create an administrative burden. She spoke in support of amendment L.005, which clarifies that only medical professionals with an active license must report and excludes the requirement that applicants report information regarding contracts with insurance carriers.

02:44 PM -- Patty Skolnik, Citizens for Patient Safety, spoke in support of the bill. Ms. Skolnik provided a handout to the committee (Attachment C). She relayed a personal story about researching physicians on the DORA website. She stated it was a positive step forward to be able to review medical facts available for consumers.


BILL:	SB10-124
TIME:	02:58:34 PM
MOVED:	Kefalas
MOTION:	Moved to adopt prepared amendment L.005 (Attachment B). The motion passed without objection.
SECONDED:	Gagliardi
		VOTE
	Acree
	Apuan
	Gerou
	Kefalas
	Kerr J.
	Primavera
	Roberts
	Swalm
	Tyler
	Gagliardi
	Riesberg
Not Final YES: 0 NO: 0 EXC: 0 ABS: 0 FINAL ACTION: Pass Without Objection

02:59 PM

Representative Ryden provided concluding remarks on the bill. She commented that the department has received very little negative feedback regarding the registry currently in place. Rose McCool returned to the table to respond to Representative Primavera's question regarding whether married names are included under aliases by responding that the information is populated in the database.


BILL:	SB10-124
TIME:	03:02:38 PM
MOVED:	Kefalas
MOTION:	Moved to refer Senate Bill 10-124, as amended, to the Committee on Finance. The motion passed on a 6-5 roll call vote.
SECONDED:	Primavera
		VOTE
	Acree	No
	Apuan	Yes
	Gerou	No
	Kefalas	Yes
	Kerr J.	No
	Primavera	Yes
	Roberts	No
	Swalm	No
	Tyler	Yes
	Gagliardi	Yes
	Riesberg	Yes
Final YES: 6 NO: 5 EXC: 0 ABS: 0 FINAL ACTION: PASS

03:10 PM -- Senate Bill 10-061

Representatives Riesberg and Soper presented Senate Bill 10-061, which was referred by the Interim Committee to Study Hospice and Palliative Care. Representative Riesberg explained that Senate Bill 10-132 and Senate Bill 10-061 have been combined into one single bill in order to reduce implementation costs associated with the federal Medicaid waiver process. The bill requires the Medicaid program, administered by the Department of Health Care Policy and Financing, to pay nursing facilities and licensed hospice inpatient facilities directly for hospice care provided. There was some discussion regarding the bill's fiscal note dated April 7, 2010.

03:17 PM -- Darla Schueth, President, Colorado Center for Hospice and Palliative Care, and Susan Langley, Colorado Center for Hospice and Palliative Care, introduced themselves to committee. Ms. Schueth explained the waiver needed from the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services in order to directly pay nursing homes for hospice care.

03:23 PM -- Edie Busam, Colorado Center for Hospice and Palliative Care, spoke in support of the bill. Discussion ensued regarding the fiscal note of the bill. Ms. Busam spoke to the gifts, grants, and donations that have been raised to pay for the application fee for the waiver.

03:27 PM -- Bill Zepernick, Colorado Legislative Council, came to the table and responded to committee questions concerning the fiscal note date April 7, 2010.

03:32 PM

The committee discussed the bill's fiscal note. Nicole Storm, Colorado Department of Health Care Policy and Financing came to the table and stated she had not had an opportunity to review the new fiscal note.


BILL:	SB10-061
TIME:	03:40:01 PM
MOVED:	Riesberg
MOTION:	Refer Senate Bill 10-061 to the Committee on Appropriations. The motion passed on a 11-0 roll call vote.
SECONDED:	Roberts
		VOTE
	Acree	Yes
	Apuan	Yes
	Gerou	Yes
	Kefalas	Yes
	Kerr J.	Yes
	Primavera	Yes
	Roberts	Yes
	Swalm	Yes
	Tyler	Yes
	Gagliardi	Yes
	Riesberg	Yes
Final YES: 11 NO: 0 EXC: 0 ABS: 0 FINAL ACTION: PASS

03:44 PM -- Senate Bill 10-117

For witness testimony, see the committee summary from March 25, 2010. A handout depicting the process for Medicaid patients to receive over-the counter medications was distributed to the committee (Attachment D). Val Kalnins, Executive Director, Colorado Pharmacists' Society, spoke in support of the bill. Mr. Kalnins explained the training pharmacists are required to have in order to practice pharmacy. He described how pharmacists assess a patient and how they help a patient understand how to take medication properly. He stated that pharmacists are not seeking to expand their scope of practice. Mr. Kalnins spoke to how a dispensing fee is determined. Representative Swalm asked if Mr. Kalnins could provide a specific dollar amount. Mr. Kalnins stated that there is a $4 dispensing fee.

03:58 PM

Representative Primavera spoke to amendment L.003, which limits the number of over-the-counter medications that may be placed on the list to be reimbursed through Medicaid (Attachment E). Representative Primavera reiterated that any medication placed on the list will be required to go through the utilization and review process in order to ensure a cost savings to the state.


BILL:	SB10-117
TIME:	04:00:32 PM
MOVED:	Primavera
MOTION:	Moved to adopt prepared amendment L.003 (Attachment E). The motion passed without objection.
SECONDED:	Gagliardi
		VOTE
	Acree
	Apuan
	Gerou
	Kefalas
	Kerr J.
	Primavera
	Roberts
	Swalm
	Tyler
	Gagliardi
	Riesberg
Not Final YES: 0 NO: 0 EXC: 0 ABS: 0 FINAL ACTION: Pass Without Objection


BILL:	SB10-117
TIME:	04:01:17 PM
MOVED:	Primavera
MOTION:	Moved to adopt prepared amendment L.004 (Attachment F). The motion passed without objection.
SECONDED:	Gagliardi
		VOTE
	Acree
	Apuan
	Gerou
	Kefalas
	Kerr J.
	Primavera
	Roberts
	Swalm
	Tyler
	Gagliardi
	Riesberg
Not Final YES: 0 NO: 0 EXC: 0 ABS: 0 FINAL ACTION: Pass Without Objection

04:01 PM


BILL:	SB10-117
TIME:	04:02:11 PM
MOVED:	Primavera
MOTION:	Moved to refer Senate Bill 10-117, as amended, to the Committee of the Whole. The motion passed on a 10-1 roll call vote.
SECONDED:	Gagliardi
		VOTE
	Acree	Yes
	Apuan	Yes
	Gerou	Yes
	Kefalas	Yes
	Kerr J.	Yes
	Primavera	Yes
	Roberts	Yes
	Swalm	No
	Tyler	Yes
	Gagliardi	Yes
	Riesberg	Yes
Final YES: 10 NO: 1 EXC: 0 ABS: 0 FINAL ACTION: PASS

04:03 PM

The committee adjourned.