73R9411 CAG-D By McDonald H.B. No. 1972 Substitute the following for H.B. No. 1972: By McDonald C.S.H.B. No. 1972 A BILL TO BE ENTITLED 1-1 AN ACT 1-2 relating to permissible activities of certain nonprofit medical 1-3 clinics operated by a nonprofit hospital or organization. 1-4 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: 1-5 SECTION 1. Section 3.06, Medical Practice Act (Article 1-6 4495b, Vernon's Texas Civil Statutes), is amended by adding 1-7 Subsections (g) and (h) to read as follows: 1-8 (g) This Act does not prohibit a nonprofit clinic that is 1-9 operated by a nonprofit hospital or organization and that primarily 1-10 serves a financially indigent population from: 1-11 (1) contracting with a physician to provide services 1-12 at the clinic; 1-13 (2) paying a physician a minimum guarantee to assure 1-14 the physician's availability; 1-15 (3) billing to and collecting from patients as the 1-16 physician's agent the physician's professional fees; or 1-17 (4) retaining any professional fees collected under 1-18 Subdivision (3) of this subsection up to the amount of the minimum 1-19 guaranteed fee and a reasonable collection fee. 1-20 (h) In Subsection (g), "financially indigent population" 1-21 means persons meeting Medicaid eligibility requirements or 1-22 uninsured persons who are accepted for care with no obligation to 1-23 pay or with a discounted obligation to pay for services rendered 2-1 based on the clinic's eligibility system. 2-2 SECTION 2. The importance of this legislation and the 2-3 crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an 2-4 emergency and an imperative public necessity that the 2-5 constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several 2-6 days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.