Date: 03/18/2009

Final
BILL SUMMARY for HB09-1116

SENATE COMMITTEE ON HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

Votes: View--> Action Taken:
Refer House Bill 09-1116 to the Committee on ApproPASS



10:54 AM -- House Bill 09-1116

Senator Hudak introduced House Bill 09-1116. The bill removes a statutory ban on the appropriation of General Fund moneys to the Children's Dental Assistance Program. She clarified that the bill does not contain an appropriation. She described the health problems associated with the lack of dental care, and cited data regarding the lack of dental care for children.

10:57 AM -- Theresa Anselmo, Oral Health Program Director at the Department of Public Health, testified in support of the bill. She discussed the preventative sealant program overseen by the department. She stated the program is effective in preventing dental decay, but that only 10 percent of the eligible children can receive services through the program due to a lack of funding. She responded to questions from Senator Lundberg regarding federal funding for dental programs for children and federal stimulus moneys that could possibly fund dental services.

11:02 AM -- Jennifer Goodrum, representing the Colorado Dental Association, testified in support of the bill. She stated that the bill increases the availability of preventative dental care, which can prevent complicated dental problems in the future.

11:04 AM -- Tara Trujillo, representing the Colorado Children's Campaign, testified in support of the bill and relayed a number of statistics regarding dental care among low-income and minority children. She stated that preventative dental care can prevent costly services in the future.

11:06 AM -- Julie Collett, representing Kids in Need of Dentistry, testified regarding sealant programs offered by Kids in Need of Dentistry.

11:08 AM -- Dr. Ned Calonge, Chief Medical Officer, Department of Public Health and Environment, distributed a handout in support of the bill (Attachment A). He stated that the bill supports preventative dental care, which can prevent costly problems in the future. He clarified that while the bill does not appropriate money, it does open the door to future General Fund support of the program. He discussed the number of children who participated in the Children's Dental Assistance Program in the prior year. Dr. Calonge responded to questions from Senator Mitchell regarding the services provided through the program. Senator Hudak commented on the importance of sealants for the children served through the program.

09SenateHHS0318AttachA.pdf


11:19 AM

Senator Hudak gave concluding remarks regarding the bill.
BILL:HB09-1116
TIME: 11:20:02 AM
MOVED:Tochtrop
MOTION:Refer House Bill 09-1116 to the Committee on Appropriations. The motion passed on a 5-3 roll call vote.
SECONDED:
VOTE
Carroll M.
Yes
Lundberg
No
Mitchell
No
Morse
Yes
Newell
Yes
Schultheis
No
Tochtrop
Yes
Boyd
Yes
Final YES: 5 NO: 3 EXC: 0 ABS: 0 FINAL ACTION: PASS