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A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
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AN ACT
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relating to a grant program for school-based health care |
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initiatives established to serve certain underserved students. |
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BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
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SECTION 1. Subchapter B, Chapter 531, Government Code, is |
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amended by adding Section 531.0606 to read as follows: |
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Sec. 531.0606. SCHOOL-BASED HEALTH CARE GRANT PROGRAM. (a) |
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In this section, "program" means the school-based health care grant |
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program established under this section. |
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(b) Using legislative appropriations available for that |
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purpose, the commission shall establish and administer a grant |
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program for health care organizations to implement, maintain, and |
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expand a school-based health care initiative for underserved |
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students and to provide those students with preventative, primary, |
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and behavioral health care, including: |
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(1) medical services; |
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(2) dental services; |
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(3) therapeutic services; and |
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(4) nonmedical services, such as nutritional |
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services. |
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(c) The commission shall establish grant application |
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procedures, criteria for evaluating applications and awarding |
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grants, and procedures for monitoring the use of grants awarded |
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under the program and ensuring compliance with any condition of a |
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grant awarded under the program. |
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(d) A grant recipient must use grant money to establish a |
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school-based health care initiative for a school district that has |
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a student population with at least 50 percent of its students who: |
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(1) are uninsured or underinsured; or |
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(2) receive free or reduced-price lunches. |
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(e) The commission may award a grant under the program only |
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in accordance with a contract between the commission and a grant |
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recipient. The contract must include provisions granting the |
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commission sufficient control over the money awarded to ensure the |
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public purpose of providing health care services to underserved |
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students is accomplished and this state receives the return |
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benefit. |
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SECTION 2. The Health and Human Services Commission is |
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required to implement a provision of this Act only if the |
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legislature appropriates money specifically for that purpose. If |
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the legislature does not appropriate money specifically for that |
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purpose, the commission may, but is not required to, implement a |
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provision of this Act using other appropriations available for that |
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purpose. |
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SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 2023. |
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* * * * * |