BG C.S.H.B. 1647 75(R)BILL ANALYSIS PUBLIC HEALTH C.S.H.B. 1647 By: Delisi 3-19-97 Committee Report (Substituted) BACKGROUND In 1977, the Family Practice Residency Program was created by the 65th Texas Legislature, with it's goal being "to distribute family physicians and improve medical care in underserved urban and rural areas of the state." In 1989, the Texas Legislature passed the Omnibus Health Care Rescue Act. This created the Rural Rotation Program, a state-funded, optional, one-month experience aimed at increasing Texas family practice residents' exposure to rural medical practice. The program was implemented in 1991 as one measure to affect practice patterns of physicians in Texas. PURPOSE HB 1647 provides an opportunity for family practice residents to do an optional one-month rotation through a public health setting. RULEMAKING AUTHORITY It is the committee's opinion that this bill does not expressly grant any additional rulemaking authority to a state officer, department, agency or institution. SECTION BY SECTION ANALYSIS SECTION 1. Amends Section 51.918(b)(2), Education Code, to add "a public health setting" to the required one-month rotation opportunity in a rural setting, as mandated by the Texas Higher Education Coordination Board for family practice residency programs. SECTION 2. Subsection (a) Establishes that this Act takes effect September 1, 1997. Subsection (b) Requires the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board to require a family practice residency program, without causing undue disruption in student curriculum on the date this Act takes effect, to conform as soon as practicable after the effective date of this Act. SECTION 3. Emergency Clause. COMPARISON OF ORIGINAL TO SUBSTITUTE CSHB 1647 changes the language in the preface of the bill to omit the words "medical students" from the term "family practice resident medical students" as was used in the original bill.