1-1 By: Harris S.B. No. 97 1-2 (In the Senate - Filed December 14, 1998; January 26, 1999, 1-3 read first time and referred to Committee on State Affairs; 1-4 February 15, 1999, reported favorably by the following vote: Yeas 1-5 8, Nays 0; February 15, 1999, sent to printer.) 1-6 A BILL TO BE ENTITLED 1-7 AN ACT 1-8 relating to long-term care for public employees. 1-9 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: 1-10 SECTION 1. Subchapter E, Chapter 3, Insurance Code, is 1-11 amended by adding Article 3.50-2A to read as follows: 1-12 Art. 3.50-2A. LONG-TERM CARE FOR PUBLIC EMPLOYEES 1-13 Sec. 1. LONG-TERM CARE BOARD. (a) The Public Employees 1-14 Long-Term Care Board is established. The board consists of: 1-15 (1) the executive directors of the Teacher Retirement 1-16 System of Texas, the Employees Retirement System of Texas, the 1-17 Texas County and District Retirement System, and the Texas 1-18 Municipal Retirement System; and 1-19 (2) seven public members appointed by the governor 1-20 with the advice and consent of the senate. 1-21 (b) The executive directors serve as members of the board by 1-22 virtue of their position as executive directors, and the public 1-23 members serve two-year terms expiring February 1 of each 1-24 odd-numbered year. 1-25 (c) Members of the board annually shall select their 1-26 presiding officers. The board shall meet at the call of the 1-27 presiding officer or as otherwise determined by board policy. 1-28 (d) A member of the board is not entitled to compensation 1-29 for service on the board but is entitled to reimbursement of travel 1-30 expenses incurred in performing the business of the board, as 1-31 provided in the General Appropriations Act. 1-32 Sec. 2. EMPLOYEES AND CONSULTANTS. The board may employ and 1-33 contract with persons to assist it in performing its powers and 1-34 duties under this article and may determine their duties and 1-35 compensation. 1-36 Sec. 3. LONG-TERM CARE COVERAGE. (a) The board shall 1-37 contract with carriers offering long-term care insurance plans and 1-38 enter into health care service plan contracts covering long-term 1-39 care. 1-40 (b) The board shall award contracts to carriers who are 1-41 qualified to provide long-term care benefits and may develop and 1-42 administer self-funded long-term care insurance plans. The board 1-43 may offer one or more long-term care insurance plans or health care 1-44 service plan contracts covering long-term care and may offer 1-45 service or indemnity plans. 1-46 (c) The long-term care insurance plans and health care 1-47 service plan contracts covering long-term care shall include home, 1-48 community, and institutional care. 1-49 (d) A contract entered into under this section is subject to 1-50 competitive bidding. 1-51 (e) The long-term care insurance plans and health care 1-52 service plan contracts covering long-term care shall be made 1-53 available periodically during open enrollment periods determined by 1-54 the board. 1-55 Sec. 4. ENROLLMENT. (a) The board shall establish 1-56 eligibility criteria for enrollment, establish appropriate 1-57 underwriting criteria for potential enrollees, define the scope of 1-58 covered benefits, define criteria to receive benefits, and set any 1-59 other standards the board determines are needed. 1-60 (b) The classes of persons who are eligible to enroll in the 1-61 long-term care program provided by this article are: 1-62 (1) members and annuitants of the Employees Retirement 1-63 System of Texas, their spouses, children, and parents, and their 1-64 spouses' parents; 2-1 (2) members and annuitants of the Teacher Retirement 2-2 System of Texas, their spouses, children, and parents, and their 2-3 spouses' parents; 2-4 (3) members and annuitants of the optional retirement 2-5 program established under Chapter 830, Government Code, their 2-6 spouses, children, and parents, and their spouses' parents; 2-7 (4) members and annuitants of the Judicial Retirement 2-8 System of Texas Plan One, their spouses, children, and parents, and 2-9 their spouses' parents; 2-10 (5) members and annuitants of the Judicial Retirement 2-11 System of Texas Plan Two, their spouses, children, and parents, and 2-12 their spouses' parents; 2-13 (6) members and annuitants of the Texas County and 2-14 District Retirement System, their spouses, children, and parents, 2-15 and their spouses' parents; 2-16 (7) members and annuitants of the Texas Municipal 2-17 Retirement System, their spouses, children, and parents, and their 2-18 spouses' parents; and 2-19 (8) members and annuitants, and the spouses, children, 2-20 parents, and spouses' parents of members and annuitants, of any 2-21 other retirement system administered by the state or a political 2-22 subdivision of the state, the governing body of which has 2-23 contracted with the board to provide coverage under this article. 2-24 (c) A potential enrollee must meet the eligibility and 2-25 underwriting criteria established by the board. 2-26 (d) The full cost of enrollment in a long-term care 2-27 insurance plan or in a health care service plan contract covering 2-28 long-term care shall be paid by the enrollees. 2-29 Sec. 5. PUBLIC EMPLOYEES LONG-TERM CARE FUND. (a) The 2-30 public employees long-term care fund is established as a trust fund 2-31 outside the state treasury. 2-32 (b) The comptroller is custodian of the fund and shall make 2-33 payments from the fund at the direction of the board or the board's 2-34 designee. 2-35 (c) The board may set the premiums for any self-funded 2-36 long-term care plan and assess charges against carriers and the 2-37 premiums of enrollees to recover the administrative costs of the 2-38 public employees long-term care program. 2-39 (d) Premiums paid by enrollees, amounts recovered under 2-40 contracts for the implementation of the public employees long-term 2-41 care program established under this article, and investment and 2-42 depository income of the fund shall be credited to the fund. The 2-43 legislature may make appropriations to the fund. 2-44 (e) Money in the fund may be used only for the purpose of 2-45 administering any self-funded long-term care plan developed by the 2-46 board and for paying the administrative expenses of the long-term 2-47 care program. The fund is not subject to legislative 2-48 appropriation, except that the legislature in the General 2-49 Appropriations Act may limit the amount in the fund that may be 2-50 used to pay administrative expenses. 2-51 Sec. 6. INVESTMENT OF FUND. (a) As trustees and 2-52 fiduciaries of the public employees long-term care fund, the board 2-53 may invest assets of the fund in any investment in which an asset 2-54 of a retirement system of which the executive director is a member 2-55 of the board may be invested. The board is subject to the 2-56 investment standard provided by Section 67(a)(3), Article XVI, 2-57 Texas Constitution. 2-58 (b) The board may employ investment staff or contract with 2-59 independent investment managers to manage the investments of the 2-60 public employees long-term care fund. 2-61 Sec. 7. IMPLEMENTATION. The board shall implement the 2-62 long-term care program developed under this article when the board 2-63 determines that it is feasible to do so. 2-64 SECTION 2. If the Public Employees Long-Term Care Board does 2-65 not implement the long-term care program under Article 3.50-2A, 2-66 Insurance Code, as added by this Act, before January 1, 2001, the 2-67 board shall prepare and file a report with the governor, the 2-68 lieutenant governor, and the speaker of the house of 2-69 representatives before that date making its recommendations for the 3-1 resources necessary to implement the program. 3-2 SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 1999. 3-3 SECTION 4. The importance of this legislation and the 3-4 crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an 3-5 emergency and an imperative public necessity that the 3-6 constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several 3-7 days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended. 3-8 * * * * *