1-1 By: McDonald (Senate Sponsor - Ellis) H.B. No. 1972 1-2 (In the Senate - Received from the House May 3, 1993; 1-3 May 4, 1993, read first time and referred to Committee on Health 1-4 and Human Services; May 11, 1993, reported favorably by the 1-5 following vote: Yeas 9, Nays 0; May 11, 1993, sent to printer.) 1-6 COMMITTEE VOTE 1-7 Yea Nay PNV Absent 1-8 Zaffirini x 1-9 Ellis x 1-10 Madla x 1-11 Moncrief x 1-12 Nelson x 1-13 Patterson x 1-14 Shelley x 1-15 Truan x 1-16 Wentworth x 1-17 A BILL TO BE ENTITLED 1-18 AN ACT 1-19 relating to permissible activities of certain nonprofit medical 1-20 clinics operated by a nonprofit hospital or organization. 1-21 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: 1-22 SECTION 1. Section 3.06, Medical Practice Act (Article 1-23 4495b, Vernon's Texas Civil Statutes), is amended by adding 1-24 Subsections (g) and (h) to read as follows: 1-25 (g) This Act does not prohibit a nonprofit clinic that is 1-26 operated by a nonprofit hospital or organization and that primarily 1-27 serves a financially indigent population from: 1-28 (1) contracting with a physician to provide services 1-29 at the clinic; 1-30 (2) paying a physician a minimum guarantee to assure 1-31 the physician's availability; 1-32 (3) billing to and collecting from patients as the 1-33 physician's agent the physician's professional fees; or 1-34 (4) retaining any professional fees collected under 1-35 Subdivision (3) of this subsection up to the amount of the minimum 1-36 guaranteed fee and a reasonable collection fee. 1-37 (h) In Subsection (g), "financially indigent population" 1-38 means persons meeting Medicaid eligibility requirements or 1-39 uninsured persons who are accepted for care with no obligation to 1-40 pay or with a discounted obligation to pay for services rendered 1-41 based on the clinic's eligibility system. 1-42 SECTION 2. The importance of this legislation and the 1-43 crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an 1-44 emergency and an imperative public necessity that the 1-45 constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several 1-46 days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended. 1-47 * * * * * 1-48 Austin, 1-49 Texas 1-50 May 11, 1993 1-51 Hon. Bob Bullock 1-52 President of the Senate 1-53 Sir: 1-54 We, your Committee on Health and Human Services to which was 1-55 referred H.B. No. 1972, have had the same under consideration, and 1-56 I am instructed to report it back to the Senate with the 1-57 recommendation that it do pass and be printed. 1-58 Zaffirini, 1-59 Chair 1-60 * * * * * 1-61 WITNESSES 1-62 FOR AGAINST ON 1-63 ___________________________________________________________________ 1-64 Name: David Marwitz x 1-65 Representing: Tx Hospital Association 1-66 City: Austin 1-67 ------------------------------------------------------------------- 1-68 Name: William L. Broussard x 2-1 Representing: Tx Conference Catholic Health 2-2 City: Austin 2-3 -------------------------------------------------------------------