By Madla S.B. No. 381
76R2225 JRD-D
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
1-1 AN ACT
1-2 relating to establishing a visiting physician program to provide
1-3 temporary relief to physicians practicing in rural areas.
1-4 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
1-5 SECTION 1. Chapter 106, Health and Safety Code, is amended
1-6 by adding Subchapter G to read as follows:
1-7 SUBCHAPTER G. VISITING PHYSICIAN PROGRAM
1-8 Sec. 106.201. DEFINITIONS. In this subchapter:
1-9 (1) "Physician" means a person licensed to practice
1-10 medicine in this state.
1-11 (2) "Primary care" means physician services in family
1-12 practice, general practice, general internal medicine, general
1-13 pediatrics, obstetrics, or gynecology.
1-14 (3) "Rural area" means:
1-15 (A) an area in a county with a population of
1-16 50,000 or less; or
1-17 (B) a relatively large, isolated, and sparsely
1-18 populated area in a county with a population of more than 50,000.
1-19 Sec. 106.202. VISITING PHYSICIAN PROGRAM; CONTRACTS WITH
1-20 PUBLIC MEDICAL SCHOOLS AND HEALTH SCIENCES CENTERS. (a) The
1-21 Center for Rural Health Initiatives shall establish a visiting
1-22 physician program to provide temporary relief to physicians who:
1-23 (1) provide primary care on site in a rural area of
1-24 this state for an average of 30 hours a week; and
2-1 (2) need to spend short periods of time away from
2-2 their practice to attend continuing medical education classes or
2-3 for other reasons.
2-4 (b) The center shall implement the program only through
2-5 contracts with one or more health sciences centers or medical
2-6 schools that are considered to be or that are affiliated with an
2-7 institution of higher education as defined by Section 61.003,
2-8 Education Code. The health sciences centers or medical schools
2-9 under the contracts shall provide for furnishing a visiting
2-10 physician who will provide primary care for persons in a rural area
2-11 as temporary relief for rural physicians described by Subsection
2-12 (a).
2-13 (c) A health sciences center or medical school that enters
2-14 into a contract with the center under this section must agree to
2-15 provide for furnishing a minimum of 1,600 hours of visiting primary
2-16 care under this subchapter during a calendar year.
2-17 Sec. 106.203. PAYMENT FOR SERVICES PROVIDED BY VISITING
2-18 PHYSICIAN. (a) A visiting physician is provided under this
2-19 subchapter without cost to the rural physician who the visiting
2-20 physician relieves.
2-21 (b) Payment by or on behalf of patients for services
2-22 provided by a visiting physician under this subchapter shall be
2-23 obtained through the usual billing and collection procedures used
2-24 by the rural physician's office.
2-25 (c) Money received in payment for the services shall be
2-26 applied first toward the overhead expenses of operating the rural
2-27 physician's practice during the time that the rural physician is
3-1 away and the visiting physician is providing the services. Money
3-2 received in payment for the visiting physician's services that
3-3 exceeds the amount of the overhead expenses shall be paid to the
3-4 Center for Rural Health Initiatives to defray the cost of
3-5 administering this subchapter or to apply toward the cost of the
3-6 contract under which the visiting physician was provided.
3-7 SECTION 2. The importance of this legislation and the
3-8 crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an
3-9 emergency and an imperative public necessity that the
3-10 constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several
3-11 days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended,
3-12 and that this Act take effect and be in force from and after its
3-13 passage, and it is so enacted.