BG C.S.H.B. 1716 75(R)BILL ANALYSIS PUBLIC HEALTH C.S.H.B. 1716 By: Maxey 4-17-97 Committee Report (Substituted) BACKGROUND The state spends a significant portion of its budget for health care related services, including medical education, state employee health-care services, and health care for needy Texans. But Texas does not have an effective health planning system to allocate state funds and coordinate the strategic efforts of agencies responsible for educating health professionals and providing health care services. The Statewide Health Coordinating Council (the council), created in 1974 is responsible for developing a state health plan to guide policy makers in creating cost-effective health policies and programs as well as identifying resources needed to carry out these programs. The council's current membership, however, does not represent all the current stakeholders in the health care delivery system nor does it include all state agencies responsible for health education and health care delivery; in addition, the council does not have adequate staff support. Furthermore, the health data needed for the council to do comprehensive analysis are scattered among various state agencies and collected and updated in irregular intervals which could effect the data integrity. PURPOSE C.S.H.B. 1716 enhances state health planning by increasing the membership of the Statewide Health Coordinating Council and by providing it with additional staff. 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 104.011, Health and Safety Code, as follows: Subsection (a) revises the composition of the council to increase the number of members from the current to 17; and sets forth how the members are to be determined. Omits language requiring the governor to appoint members as specified. Subsection (b) requires the appointments made by the governor to be with the advice and consent of the senate. SECTION 2. Amends Subchapter B, Chapter 104, Health and Safety Code, by adding Section 104.015 as follows: Sec. 104.015. ADVISORY BOARDS AND AD HOC COMMITTEES. Allows the council to form advisory boards or ad hoc committees of experts from both private and public sectors to help them review health policy matters. SECTION 3. Amends Section 105.001, Health and Safety Code, to add the definition for "council" as specified and make conforming changes. SECTION 4. Amends Section 105.002, Health and Safety Code, by replacing the word "department" with "council." SECTION 5. Amends Section 105.003, Health and Safety Code, by replacing the word "department" with "council." SECTION 6. Amends Section 105.004, Health and Safety Code, by replacing the word "department" with "council." SECTION 7. Amends Section 105.007, Health and Safety Code, by replacing the word "department" with "council." SECTION 8. Amends Subchapter D, Chapter 104, Health and Safety Code, by adding Section 104.0421 as follows: Sec. 104.0421. Statewide Data Collection and Coordination. Subsection (a) requires the council to work with appropriate health professional licensing agencies to develop uniform standards for data as specified. Subsection (b) requires the council to retrieve data on health professionals from appropriate agencies. Allows the council to seek assistance of the agency or department in the data retrieval. Subsection (c) requires the council to monitor and evaluate long-term needs as specified. Requires the council to use this evaluation for developing health recommendations as specified. Subsection (d) requires the council to use data collected to develop workforce goals for health professionals and to make recommendations as specified. Requires the council to evaluate short- term and long-term effects of the recommendations. Subsection (e) requires the council, with the assistance of higher education agencies and other institutions as specified to improve coordination of statewide planning. Allows the council to seek assistance of the National Association of Health Data Organizations, the Association of American Medical Colleges, the National Council of State Legislatures, the American Association of Colleges of Osteopathic Medicine, the Association of American Health Centers, and any other appropriate entities. Subsection (f) requires Texas Department of Health to continue to assist the council and the health professions resource center with the development of the state health plan. Requires the council to coordinate related health planning functions within the department. Requires the staff of the health professionals resource center to continue to be department employees, but to be governed by the council. Requires that the staff of the Bureau of State Health Data and Policy Analysis that previously assisted the council continue to do so. SECTION 9. Establishes that the effective date of this bill is September 1, 1997. SECTION 10. Provides that the statewide health coordinating council as it existed previously is abolished upon the effective date of this bill. Requires the governor to appoint members to staggered terms as specified. SECTION 11. Emergency Clause. COMPARISON OF ORIGINAL TO SUBSTITUTE In SECTION 1, Sec. 104.001, Health and Safety Code, the composition of members as laid out in HB 1716 is changed. The substitute bill adds another member to the council so that non exofficio members are divisible by three as was recommended by the existing council. A new subsection 5 is added in CSHB 1716 to mandate that the head of the Texas Department of Mental Health and Mental Retardation be a member. The substitute bill's new subsection 6 (A) replaces the original's subsections (5), (6), and (10), so that rather than the governor appointing a physician, nurse, and psychologist, there are broader appointments from the fields of allied health, dental, medical, mental health, nursing, and pharmacy. Also now specified is that none of the three appointees are to be from the same field. Additionally, CSHB 1716 renumbers the original's subsections (7)-(9) and (11)-(13) as subsection (6)(B-F) and changes the appointments of members so that they are all made by the governor, rather than half by the governor and half by the lieutenant governor as was in the original bill. In SECTION 8, the substitute bill adds language to Sec. 104.0421(a), Health and Safety Code to clarify that the Council work with "health professional licensing" agencies to develop "uniform" standards to maintain a "comprehensive health professional database. Another clarification is made by CSHB 1716 in subsection (b) to mandate that the Council "retrieve" the data from appropriate agencies, rather than "collect" it as the original bill stated. In subsection (e), the substitute bill adds "the American Association of Colleges of Osteopathic Medicine" to those entities from which the Council may seek assistance.