NHHA LEGISLATIVE UPDATE

February 3, 2005

The Legislature is getting busier now that bills have all been introduced.  NHHA has been following a number of bills of particular interest as well as attending briefings on Medicaid/GraniteCare and the state budget and revenues. 

State Budget
The Governor will present his budget to the Legislature on February 15^th.  In the meantime, in a presentation to the House Ways & Means Committee, it was revealed that, due to an accounting error, the $300 million deficit just grew by $70 million.  The error is attributable to double counting New Hampshire Hospital Federal Medicaid disproportionate share funds. 

GraniteCare
HHS Commissioner John Stephen has been making presentations to the House and Senate Health & Human Services Committees on his Medicaid reform plan, GraniteCare.  Two bills have been introduced to implement GraniteCare proposals.  Hearings have not yet been scheduled: 

HB 690-FN, Relative to Medical Services for Children and Pregnant Women
This bill requires the Medicaid Program to establish health services accounts to be used for health care services  for children and pregnant women on Medicaid.  This proposal requires approval by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS).

HB 691-FN, Relative to the Medicaid Program.
HB 691-FN proposes stricter standards for admission to nursing homes in order to reach the proposed goal of reducing nursing home admissions by one-third.  This means that more intensive services will be needed in community-based settings.

Governor’s Forums on Medicaid Reform
Governor Lynch is holding regional forums on Medicaid Reform.  NHHA testified at the January 24^th forum in Concord.  Click here to view our testimony.  The next two forums will be held on Monday, Feb 7^th, 9:30 – 12:30 at the Littleton Learning Center, 646 Union Street, Littleton; and Friday, February 11^th, 9:30 – 12:30 at the NH Technical College, Rooms 149 and 150, in Nashua. 

Infection Reporting
A bill requiring reporting of hospital-acquired infections was defeated in the House Health & Human Services Committee. Dr. Susan Saviteer of Concord Hospital testified on behalf of New Hampshire’s hospitals in opposition to the bill, HB 224, relative to the collection of data on hospital-acquired infections rates. 

Mandatory Overtime for Nurses
The House Labor Committee is holding on to HB 66, “Regulating mandatory overtime for nurses.”  HB 66 would prohibit disciplinary action against a nurse who refuses to work more than 12 consecutive hours.  Despite opposition to the bill by the Board of Nursing and the NH Nurses Association, proponents claim that nurses are forced to work overtime.  The committee will conduct a survey of nurses in New Hampshire to determine the extent of the problem of mandatory overtime. Hospitals reported they do not require mandatory overtime except in rare instances when patients are at risk. 
 

Upcoming Hearings:

Prompt Pay Legislation
SB 78, Relative to payment of healthcare providers by health carriers
Hearing: February 8
Under current law, health insurers must pay providers within a specific timeframe.  However, the current statute is inadequate to ensure that health plans meet this requirement as well as to provide sufficient information to the provider regarding incomplete claims.  SB 78 provides needed clarification to ensure timely payments as well as automatic interest payments to providers when payments are delayed.

SB108-FN, Relative to newborn screening tests and fees for newborn screening tests
Hearing: February 8
This bill clarifies the tests to be given to newborn children and establishes the fees paid by hospitals for newborn screening.   It is a request of the Department of Health and Human Services.

SB119, Establishing a committee to study exempting acute care rehabilitation from the nursing home moratorium
Hearing: February 8
This bill establishes a committee to study whether the physical rehabilitation services presently available are adequate to serve the citizens of New Hampshire and to determine whether acute care rehabilitation provided by either a specialty or regular hospital should be exempted from the nursing home moratorium.

HB 514, Establishing the New Hampshire health care quality assurance commission
Hearing: February 8
This bill establishes the New Hampshire health care quality assurance commission to review and analyze information concerning medical errors. Under this bill, the commission shall terminate in 5 years. (NHHA supports this bill, which is an outcome of the Medical Errors Commission.)

HB 574-FN, Requiring the reporting of burn injuries
Hearing: February 10
This bill requires health care professionals to report burn injuries to the state fire marshal within 72 hours of treatment. This bill also requires the state fire marshal to establish a burn registry data base.  (NHHA is working with the state fire marshal on this issue.)

HB 423, Relative to insurance premiums for medical malpractice liability insurance
Hearing: February 10
This bill requires medical malpractice insurers to base medical malpractice premium rates for medical malpractice liability insurance on New Hampshire statistics instead of national statistics.  

 

Go to http://www.nhha.org/nhha/state_law/bills.php to view the list of bills NHHA will be tracking in 2005.  Additional bills will be added as we become aware of them.

Click Here for the NH House and Senate Web Site