By Maxey                                         H.B. No. 663

      75R1806 DLF-D                           

                                A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

 1-1                                   AN ACT

 1-2     relating to the assessment of needs of individuals served by

 1-3     long-term care services programs offered by health and human

 1-4     services agencies.

 1-5           BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:

 1-6           SECTION 1.  DEFINITIONS.  In this Act:

 1-7                 (1)  "Commission" means the Health and Human Services

 1-8     Commission.

 1-9                 (2)  "Pilot program" means the pilot program for

1-10     consistent functional needs assessment established under this Act.

1-11           SECTION 2.  PILOT PROGRAM FOR CONSISTENT FUNCTIONAL NEEDS

1-12     ASSESSMENT.  (a)  The commission shall develop a  functional needs

1-13     assessment pilot program to determine the feasibility of a

1-14     consistent process to be used by long-term care services programs

1-15     in this state to assess the needs of populations served by the

1-16     programs. The consistent functional needs assessment process must

1-17     be appropriate to the needs of the populations served by long-term

1-18     care services programs in this state and must be based on the

1-19     functional needs of an individual for assistance, rather than the

1-20     origin of the individual's disability or the individual's diagnosis

1-21     or age.

1-22           (b)  In developing the consistent functional needs assessment

1-23     process, the commission shall consult with:

1-24                 (1)  advocacy groups representing individuals served by

 2-1     long-term care services programs in this state and the families of

 2-2     those individuals;

 2-3                 (2)  providers of services to individuals served by

 2-4     long-term care services programs;

 2-5                 (3)  representatives of state agencies that provide

 2-6     long-term care services programs or that would otherwise be

 2-7     affected by implementation of the consistent functional needs

 2-8     assessment process; and

 2-9                 (4)  other appropriate individuals and entities.

2-10           (c)  The commission shall conduct the pilot program using a

2-11     test population that is representative of the types of populations

2-12     who are enrolled in or who seek enrollment in long-term care

2-13     services programs in this state.

2-14           SECTION 3.  REPORT TO LEGISLATURE.  (a)  Not later than

2-15     November 1, 1998, the commission shall report the preliminary

2-16     results of the pilot program to the legislature.

2-17           (b)  Not later than November 1, 2000, the commission shall

2-18     report to the legislature on the feasibility of implementation of

2-19     the consistent functional needs assessment process developed under

2-20     this Act.

2-21           SECTION 4.  EXPIRATION DATE.  This Act expires September 1,

2-22     2001.

2-23           SECTION 5.  EMERGENCY.  The importance of this legislation

2-24     and the crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an

2-25     emergency and an imperative public necessity that the

2-26     constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several

2-27     days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended,

 3-1     and that this Act take effect and be in force from and after its

 3-2     passage, and it is so enacted.