By Ellis S.B. No. 1725 76R6326 CLG-D A BILL TO BE ENTITLED 1-1 AN ACT 1-2 relating to the establishment of a neonatal and prenatal care 1-3 outreach services pilot project for Medicaid recipients. 1-4 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: 1-5 SECTION 1. DEFINITIONS. In this Act: 1-6 (1) "Department" means the Texas Department of Health. 1-7 (2) "Project" means the pilot project established 1-8 under this Act. 1-9 SECTION 2. NEONATAL AND PRENATAL CARE OUTREACH SERVICES 1-10 PILOT PROJECT. (a) The Texas Department of Health by rule shall 1-11 establish a pilot project to provide outreach services to Medicaid 1-12 recipients to expand the use of neonatal and prenatal care services 1-13 by those recipients. The project shall be administered by one or 1-14 more grant recipients selected under Section 3 of this Act. 1-15 (b) The project must begin operation not later than January 1-16 1, 2000, and must operate in six counties selected by the 1-17 department, three of which must be urban counties and three of 1-18 which must be rural counties. In selecting the counties in which 1-19 to establish the project, the department shall give priority to 1-20 those counties that have been identified by the Texas Board of 1-21 Health as having the highest incidences of low birth weights and 1-22 infant mortality rates in the state. 1-23 SECTION 3. ADMINISTRATION OF PILOT PROJECT; REQUEST FOR 1-24 PROPOSALS. (a) The department shall adopt rules governing the 2-1 awarding of a grant to one or more public or private entities or 2-2 organizations, including managed care organizations, for the 2-3 development and implementation of the project. The rules must 2-4 include criteria for the awarding of a grant and procedures for the 2-5 use of a grant. 2-6 (b) The department shall develop a request for proposals in 2-7 connection with awarding a grant and shall make the request for 2-8 proposals available to any entity or organization requesting it 2-9 before September 1, 1999. Proposals must be received by the 2-10 department not later than November 1, 1999. 2-11 SECTION 4. DUTIES OF GRANT RECIPIENT. The recipient of a 2-12 grant under Section 3 of this Act shall: 2-13 (1) implement the project as required by this Act; and 2-14 (2) identify and address, through a strategic plan, 2-15 barriers encountered by Medicaid recipients in accessing neonatal 2-16 and prenatal health care services, including: 2-17 (A) cultural and language differences between 2-18 health care providers and their patients; 2-19 (B) limited accessibility of health care 2-20 facilities because of days and hours of operation; 2-21 (C) lack of transportation to and from health 2-22 care facilities; 2-23 (D) inconvenient locations of health care 2-24 facilities; 2-25 (E) unfamiliarity of recipients with enrollment 2-26 processes and health care benefits; and 2-27 (F) unfamiliarity of health care providers with 3-1 community needs or cultural and health benefits. 3-2 SECTION 5. CONFIDENTIALITY. (a) Subject to the 3-3 requirements of federal law, the department by rule may authorize a 3-4 grant recipient under the project to obtain from the department or 3-5 a contractor implementing a part of the Medicaid program in this 3-6 state the name, address, and telephone number of a Medicaid 3-7 recipient and the recipient's Medicaid managed care plan and 3-8 primary care provider for use in conducting the project. 3-9 (b) Confidential information obtained by a grant recipient 3-10 under this section may be used by the grant recipient only for the 3-11 purposes for which it was obtained and may not be released to any 3-12 person other than the department or a contractor described by 3-13 Subsection (a) of this section. 3-14 (c) The department may adopt rules that impose additional 3-15 restrictions on the use of confidential information obtained by a 3-16 grant recipient under this section. 3-17 SECTION 6. EVALUATION AND REPORT. Not later than January 1, 3-18 2001, the department shall submit a report to the governor, 3-19 lieutenant governor, and speaker of the house of representatives 3-20 that evaluates the effectiveness of the project. The report must 3-21 include: 3-22 (1) an evaluation of the effects of the project on the 3-23 reduction of barriers to health care accessibility encountered by 3-24 project participants; and 3-25 (2) recommendations for changes in or expansion of the 3-26 project. 3-27 SECTION 7. TERMINATION OF PILOT PROJECT. The project ends 4-1 and this Act expires September 1, 2001. 4-2 SECTION 8. The importance of this legislation and the 4-3 crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an 4-4 emergency and an imperative public necessity that the 4-5 constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several 4-6 days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended, 4-7 and that this Act take effect and be in force from and after its 4-8 passage, and it is so enacted.