1-1 By: Zbranek, et al. (Senate Sponsor - Moncrief) H.B. No. 606 1-2 (In the Senate - Received from the House April 14, 1997; 1-3 April 16, 1997, read first time and referred to Committee on Health 1-4 and Human Services; May 5, 1997, reported favorably, as amended, by 1-5 the following vote: Yeas 11, Nays 0; May 5, 1997, sent to 1-6 printer.) 1-7 COMMITTEE AMENDMENT NO. 1 By: Moncrief 1-8 Amend HB 606 (as engrossed) on page 2, line 12 by amending 1-9 subsection (d) to read as follows: 1-10 (d) The department may not contract under this section for 1-11 more than 120 additional nursing home beds per county per year and 1-12 may not exceed more than 500 additional nursing home beds statewide 1-13 in a calendar year. 1-14 A BILL TO BE ENTITLED 1-15 AN ACT 1-16 relating to access to nursing facilities in rural counties. 1-17 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: 1-18 SECTION 1. Subchapter B, Chapter 32, Human Resources Code, 1-19 is amended by adding Section 32.0246 to read as follows: 1-20 Sec. 32.0246. NURSING HOME BEDS IN CERTAIN COUNTIES. (a) 1-21 At the request of the commissioners court of a county in which not 1-22 more than two nursing facilities are certified to participate in 1-23 the state Medicaid program, and subject to Subsection (d), the 1-24 department may contract for additional nursing home beds under the 1-25 state Medicaid program in the county without regard to the 1-26 occupancy rate of available Medicaid beds. 1-27 (b) A commissioners court that intends to make a request 1-28 under Subsection (a) shall publish notice of its intent in the 1-29 Texas Register and in a newspaper of general circulation in the 1-30 county. The notice must request: 1-31 (1) comments on whether the request should be made; 1-32 and 1-33 (2) proposals from persons interested in providing 1-34 additional Medicaid beds in the county, including persons providing 1-35 Medicaid beds in a nursing facility with a high occupancy rate. 1-36 (c) A commissioners court shall determine whether to proceed 1-37 with a request after considering all comments and proposals 1-38 received in response to the notices provided under Subsection (b). 1-39 If the commissioners court proceeds with the request, the court may 1-40 recommend that the department contract with a specific nursing 1-41 facility that submitted a proposal. In determining whether to 1-42 proceed with the request and whether to recommend a specific 1-43 nursing facility, the commissioners court shall consider: 1-44 (1) the demographic and economic needs of the county; 1-45 (2) the quality of existing nursing facility services 1-46 under the state Medicaid program in the county; 1-47 (3) the quality of the proposals submitted; and 1-48 (4) the degree of community support for additional 1-49 nursing facility services. 1-50 (d) The department may not contract under this section for 1-51 more than 500 additional nursing home beds in a calendar year. 1-52 SECTION 2. If, before implementing Section 32.0246, Human 1-53 Resources Code, as added by this Act, the Texas Department of Human 1-54 Services determines that a waiver or authorization from a federal 1-55 agency is necessary for implementation, the department shall 1-56 request the waiver or authorization and may delay implementing that 1-57 section until the waiver or authorization is granted. 1-58 SECTION 3. The importance of this legislation and the 1-59 crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an 1-60 emergency and an imperative public necessity that the 1-61 constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several 1-62 days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended, 1-63 and that this Act take effect and be in force from and after its 1-64 passage, and it is so enacted. 2-1 * * * * *