BILL ANALYSIS

Senate Research Center	S.B. 1636
86R2994 EAS-D	By: Zaffirini
	Health & Human Services
	3/22/2019
	As Filed

AUTHOR'S / SPONSOR'S STATEMENT OF INTENT

Currently, 199 of the state's 254 counties have a shortage of mental health service providers. Texas also ranks 47th out of 50 states for having an adequate number of physicians to care for its patient population. By 2030, Texas is expected to experience a shortage of approximately 40,000 to 100,000 doctors. What's more, the Department of State Health Services recently reported an imminent shortage of nurses in each license category. Collecting and analyzing data regarding the health care licensing process is critical to develop a comprehensive statewide strategy to tackle this workforce shortage.

S.B. 1636 would require the Health Professions Council to include strategies for expanding the healthcare workforce in their annual report. Specifically, the annual report would include methods for reducing the processing time for healthcare professional applications, increasing the number of practitioners providing mental and behavioral healthcare services, and any other recommendation regarding how to expand the healthcare workforce. 

As proposed, S.B. 1636 amends current law relating to an annual report prepared by the Health Professions Council.

RULEMAKING AUTHORITY

This bill does not expressly grant any additional rulemaking authority to a state officer, institution, or agency.

SECTION BY SECTION ANALYSIS

SECTION 1. Amends Section 101.151, Occupations Code, as follows:

Sec. 101.151. ANNUAL REPORT. (a) Requires the Health Professions Council (HPC) to prepare an annual report that includes:

(1) makes no changes to this subdivision;

(2) makes a nonsubstantive change to this subdivision;

(3) strategies to expand the health care workforce in this state, including:

(A)  methods for reducing the time required to process license applications for health care professions;

(B)  methods for increasing the number of health care practitioners providing mental and behavioral health care services; and

(C)  any statutory and legislative appropriation recommendations HPC determines are appropriate for expanding the health care workforce in this state, including recommendations for expanding the health care workforce in medically underserved areas; and

(4)  Redesignates existing Subdivision (3) as this subdivision and makes no further changes.�

(b) Requires HPC to send the report to the governor, the lieutenant governor, the speaker of the house of representatives, the chairs of the standing committees of the senate and the house of representatives having primary jurisdiction over public health, and the chairs of the standing committees of the senate and the house of representatives having primary jurisdiction over state finance or appropriations not later than February 1 of each year. Makes a nonsubstantive change.�

SECTION 2. Provides that, notwithstanding Section 101.151, Occupations Code, as amended by this Act, HPC:

(1)  is not required to include in the annual report required under Section 101.151 the strategies described by Section 101.151(a)(3), Occupations Code, as added by this Act, until February 1, 2021; and

(2)  is required to submit to the governor, the lieutenant governor, the speaker of the house of representatives, the chairs of the standing committees of the senate and the house of representatives having primary jurisdiction over public health, and the chairs of the standing committees of the senate and the house of representatives having primary jurisdiction over state finance or appropriations a report that includes only the strategies described by Section 101.151(a)(3) not later than June 1, 2020.

SECTION 3. Effective date: upon passage or September 1, 2019.