House Committee on Health and Environment (03/08/2012)

Final
STAFF SUMMARY OF MEETING

HOUSE COMMITTEE ON HEALTH AND ENVIRONMENT

Date:	03/08/2012	ATTENDANCE

Time:	01:36 PM to 04:28 PM	Bradford	X
		Brown	X
Place:	LSB A	Fields	X
		Joshi	X
This Meeting was called to order by		Kefalas	X
	Representative Summers	Kerr J.	X
		Massey	X
This Report was prepared by		McCann	E
	Amanda King	Peniston	X
		Schafer S.	X
		Young	X
		Acree	X
		Summers	X
		X = Present, E = Excused, A = Absent, * = Present after roll call

Bills Addressed:		Action Taken:
HB12-1311 SB12-033 SB12-011		Amended, Referred to Finance Amended, Referred to the Committee of the Whole Referred to the Committee of the Whole

01:38 PM -- House Bill 12-1311

Representative Summers presented House Bill 12-1311, concerning continuation of the State Board of Pharmacy. The bill implements the recommendations from the Department of Regulatory Agencies 2011 Sunset Review, and continues the Colorado State Board of Pharmacy and the regulation of the practice of pharmacy through September 1, 2021. It also recodifies and relocates the laws regulating the practice of pharmacy and the laws pertaining to the licensing of addiction programs by the Department of Human Services. Representative Summers discussed amendments L.002, L.004, and L.007 (Attachments A through C), which were distributed to the committee. Representative Summers responded to questions about the fiscal note, including the need for additional FTEs added by the bill.

01:54 PM -- Val Kalnins, Colorado Pharmacists Society, testified in support of the bill. He provided a packet of information (Attachment D) to the committee. He explained the steps that occurred during the sunset review of the Board of Pharmacy. He stated the support of amendment L.002 by several organizations including the Colorado Pharmacists Society, Rx Plus, and the Colorado Retail Council. Mr. Kalnins explained amendment L.002, including explaining "other outlets," and responded to questions about "other outlets." He continued his explanation of amendment L.002, including the provisions that address veterinary issues and issues related to pharmacy interns. Mr. Kalnins responded to questions about the amendment.

02:19 PM

Brad Young, Rx Plus, and Shannon Butler, Colorado Retail Council, did not testify on the bill but signed up in support of the bill.

02:21 PM

Mr. Young acknowledged the presence of several pharmacy students at the hearing.

02:23 PM -- Clare Pramuk, Legislative Council Staff, responded to questions about the fee structure included in the fiscal note.

02:26 PM

The committee dialogued about the bill.

02:27 PM -- Cynthia Hoskins Koenck, Peer Assistance Services, was asked to the table to respond questions about the Pharmacy Peer Health Assistance Diversion Program.

02:29 PM

Mr. Kalnins clarified a previous statement about ambulatory surgical centers related to the bill.

02:31 PM -- Wendy Anderson, Department of Regulatory Agencies, was asked to the table to respond to questions about the Pharmacy Peer Health Assistance Diversion Program, including how the program is funded.


BILL:	HB12-1311
TIME:	02:34:15 PM
MOVED:	Summers
MOTION:	Moved amendment L.002 (Attachment A). The motion passed without objection.
SECONDED:	Kefalas
		VOTE
	Bradford
	Brown
	Fields
	Joshi
	Kefalas
	Kerr J.
	Massey
	McCann	Excused
	Peniston
	Schafer S.
	Young
	Acree
	Summers

YES: 0 NO: 0 EXC: 1 ABS: 0 FINAL ACTION: Pass Without Objection

02:34 PM

Representative Summers explained amendment L.004.

02:35 PM

Ms. Anderson was asked to return to the table to further explain amendment L.004 and respond to questions about the amendment L.004.

02:38 PM

Christy Chase, Office of Legislative Legal Services, was asked to the table to responded to questions about amendment L.004.


BILL:	HB12-1311
TIME:	02:41:45 PM
MOVED:	Summers
MOTION:	Moved amendment L.004 (Attachment B). The motion passed without objection.
SECONDED:	Brown
		VOTE
	Bradford
	Brown
	Fields
	Joshi
	Kefalas
	Kerr J.
	Massey
	McCann	Excused
	Peniston
	Schafer S.
	Young
	Acree
	Summers

YES: 0 NO: 0 EXC: 1 ABS: 0 FINAL ACTION: Pass Without Objection

02:42 PM

Representative Summers explained amendment L.007.


BILL:	HB12-1311
TIME:	02:43:25 PM
MOVED:	Summers
MOTION:	Moved amendment L.007 (Attachment C). The motion passed without objection.
SECONDED:	Brown
		VOTE
	Bradford
	Brown
	Fields
	Joshi
	Kefalas
	Kerr J.
	Massey
	McCann	Excused
	Peniston
	Schafer S.
	Young
	Acree
	Summers

YES: 0 NO: 0 EXC: 1 ABS: 0 FINAL ACTION: Pass Without Objection

02:44 PM

Representative Summers provided closing comments on the bill.

02:45 PM

Ms. Anderson returned to the table to respond to questions about whether pharmacists are licensed, certified, or registered and how many pharmacists there are in Colorado.


BILL:	HB12-1311
TIME:	02:46:14 PM
MOVED:	Summers
MOTION:	Moved to refer House Bill 12-1311, as amended, to the Committee on Finance. The motion passed on a vote of 12-0 with one member excused.
SECONDED:	Acree
		VOTE
	Bradford	Yes
	Brown	Yes
	Fields	Yes
	Joshi	Yes
	Kefalas	Yes
	Kerr J.	Yes
	Massey	Yes
	McCann	Excused
	Peniston	Yes
	Schafer S.	Yes
	Young	Yes
	Acree	Yes
	Summers	Yes

Final YES: 12 NO: 0 EXC: 1 ABS: 0 FINAL ACTION: PASS

02:47 PM

The committee took a brief recess.

02:54 PM

The committee came back to order.

02:55 PM -- Senate Bill 12-033

Representative Massey presented Senate Bill 12-033. The bill adds near fatalities and incidents of egregious abuse or neglect to the types of incidents to be investigated by the Child Fatality Review Team in the Department of Human Services. County departments of human services are required to report suspicious near fatalities and other egregious incidents to the Department of Human Services. Representative Massey distributed amendment L.002 (Attachment E) to the committee.

02:58 PM -- Ruby Richards, Department of Human Services, testified in support of the bill. She provided handouts (Attachments F and G) to the committee. She explained that Colorado is one of two states that is currently not in compliance with federal laws concerning near fatalities. She discussed the need to learn from these incidents both on a case-specific basis and aggregate basis. Ms. Richards responded to questions about why Colorado is one of the last states to comply with the federal requirements regarding near fatalities, the purpose of publically disclosing information about near fatalities, and what information would be disclosed in the case-specific reports and the aggregate reports. She responded to questions about the communication between counties about abuse cases.

03:09 PM -- Stephanie Villafuerte, Rocky Mountain Children's Law Center, testified on the bill. She explained how the information about near fatalities could be utilized. She discussed a circumstance that could have been investigated if the near fatality investigation legislation would have been in place. Ms. Villafuerte expressed concerns about amendment L.002. Representative Massey responded to comments about the amendment and his willingness to address the issue with an additional amendment.

03:18 PM -- Renee Rivera, National Association of Social Workers - Colorado, testified in support of the bill.

03:19 PM -- Pat Ratliff, Colorado Counties Inc., testified in support of the bill.

03:20 PM -- Moira Cullen, Kempe Center, testified in support of the bill.

03:22 PM

Ms. Villafuerte returned to the table to respond to questions about amendment L.002. She stated she would provide additional written comments to the committee about her concerns.


BILL:	SB12-033
TIME:	03:23:14 PM
MOVED:	Massey
MOTION:	Moved amendment L.002 (Attachment E). The motion passed without objection.
SECONDED:	Kefalas
		VOTE
	Bradford
	Brown
	Fields
	Joshi
	Kefalas
	Kerr J.
	Massey
	McCann	Excused
	Peniston
	Schafer S.
	Young
	Acree
	Summers

YES: 0 NO: 0 EXC: 1 ABS: 0 FINAL ACTION: Pass Without Objection

03:24 PM

Representative Massey provided closing comments on the bill. The committee dialogued about the bill.


BILL:	SB12-033
TIME:	03:25:51 PM
MOVED:	Massey
MOTION:	Moved to refer Senate Bill 12-033, as amended, to the Committee of the Whole. The motion passed on a vote of 12-0 with one member excused.
SECONDED:	Brown
		VOTE
	Bradford	Yes
	Brown	Yes
	Fields	Yes
	Joshi	Yes
	Kefalas	Yes
	Kerr J.	Yes
	Massey	Yes
	McCann	Excused
	Peniston	Yes
	Schafer S.	Yes
	Young	Yes
	Acree	Yes
	Summers	Yes

YES: 12 NO: 0 EXC: 1 ABS: 0 FINAL ACTION: PASS

03:27 PM -- Senate Bill 12-011

Representative Summers presented Senate Bill 12-011 concerning the Differential Response Pilot Program for child abuse or neglect cases of low or moderate risk. The bill removes the five-county limit on the Differential Response Pilot Program in the Department of Human Services. Representative Summers distributed a handout (Attachment H) to the committee. He discussed prior legislation that created the pilot program for five counties for five years and the success of the pilot program.

03:33 PM -- Pat Ratliff, Colorado Counties, Inc., testified in the support of the bill. She explained that the pilot program has a few years before the complete review will be completed, but that the expansion of the pilot program through Senate Bill 12-011 would allow additional counties to join the program sooner. She explained the preparation process necessary to implement a differential response program in a county. She described the responses that occur in dependancy and neglect cases with differential response and traditional response.

03:37 PM -- Angela Lytle, Arapahoe County Department of Human Services, testified in support of the bill. She explained the process in both traditional and differential responses. She explained how differential response allows for family engagement. She explained the impact differential response has on social workers in doing their job. Ms. Lytle responded to questions about the criteria used to determine if differential response should be utilized in a case, the grants used to fund the program, whether spontaneous home visits occur, and whether consultation with school officials occur.

03:48 PM

Ms. Ratliff discussed the funding for the program. She discussed the need for the bill to expand the program.

03:49 PM

Ms. Lytle responded to questions about what constitutes a moderate case of abuse, how the differential response protocols were developed, and the data available on the pilot program.

03:56 PM -- Rebecca Meyers, National Association of Social Workers - Colorado, testified in support of the bill. Ms. Meyers responded to a question about the turnover rates for social workers.

04:00 PM -- Bob Grant, CASA Network, testified on the bill. He stated the CASA Network does not oppose the bill, but does have concerns about the program, including regarding the availability of data and how many of the differential response cases end up in the court system. He discussed the advocates, such as CASA volunteers and guardian ad litems, that children have access to when cases go through the court system. He expressed the need to define what constitutes a differential response case and what should be addressed in the rule-making process. Mr. Grant responded to questions about expanding the pilot program beyond five counties and whether the CASA Network will be involved in the rule-making process.

04:12 PM -- Ruby Richards, Colorado Department of Human Services, testified in support of the bill. She discussed the importance of the safety of children and the ability to address the needs of families. She responded to questions about the department's involvement with the counties that have implemented the pilot program and the TRAILS system. She responded to questions about how cases are investigated in counties that are not participating in the differential response pilot program and the re-referral rate in traditional response cases.

04:23 PM

Representative Young asked for data on re-referrals in traditional response cases. Representative Summers providing closing comments on the bill, including the involvement by the Department of Human Services with counties implementing differential response programs and the need for flexibility.


BILL:	SB12-011
TIME:	04:27:41 PM
MOVED:	Summers
MOTION:	Moved to refer Senate Bill 12-011 to the Committee of the Whole. The motion passed on a vote of 12-0 with one member excused.
SECONDED:	Kefalas
		VOTE
	Bradford	Yes
	Brown	Yes
	Fields	Yes
	Joshi	Yes
	Kefalas	Yes
	Kerr J.	Yes
	Massey	Yes
	McCann	Excused
	Peniston	Yes
	Schafer S.	Yes
	Young	Yes
	Acree	Yes
	Summers	Yes

YES: 12 NO: 0 EXC: 1 ABS: 0 FINAL ACTION: PASS

04:28 PM

The committee adjourned.