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SENATE BILL 789 |
SENATE AUTHOR: Moncrief et al. |
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EFFECTIVE: 6-15-01 |
HOUSE SPONSOR: Maxey et al. |
Senate Bill 789 adds provisions relating to telemedicine medical services. The bill amends the Government Code to require each health and human services agency that administers part of the Medicaid program to provide Medicaid reimbursement for a telemedicine medical service provided by a physician. It amends the Health and Safety Code to require state child health plan providers to permit benefits to be provided through telemedicine medical services. The bill requires the Health and Human Services Commission to consult with the Texas Department of Health to establish certain procedures, including procedures to identify clinical evidence supporting delivery of health care services using a telecommunications system and procedures to establish pilot programs in designated areas under which the commission may reimburse a health professional for providing telehealth services.
The bill amends the Human Resources Code to require the commission to establish a pilot program under which certain recipients of medical assistance receive home health care services through telemonitoring systems, with one program in a rural area, an urban area, a medically underserved area, and an area that adjoins the Texas-Mexico border.
The bill amends the Health and Safety Code to require the Texas Board of Mental Health and Mental Retardation and the Texas Department of Mental Health and Mental Retardation to develop and implement a pilot program using telecommunications systems to divert persons with mental illness from the criminal justice system when treatment services are available, to provide access to appropriate mental health services to persons who have entered the criminal justice system, and to increase awareness among law enforcement officers of mental health issues that may bring persons with mental illness into the criminal justice system.
The bill adds provisions concerning teledentistry and directs the commissioner of health and human services to appoint a program administrator for a pilot program that uses teledentistry and other methods of delivering dental services to provide dental services to students in one public school district.
The bill also makes conforming changes to the Insurance Code and the Occupations Code. The bill amends the Utilities Code to make conforming changes and allow the Telecommunications Infrastructure Fund Board to make grants to certain health care facilities based on the amount of charity care provided and services provided to Medicaid and state child health plan recipients.