BILL ANALYSIS

S.B. 2151

By: Kolkhorst

Public Health

Committee Report (Unamended)

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE

Established in 1983, the Texas Diabetes Council addresses issues affecting people with diabetes in Texas and advises the legislature on legislation that is needed to develop and maintain a statewide system of quality education services for all people with diabetes and health care professionals who offer diabetes treatment and education. There have been calls to update state law to more accurately reflect the council's functions, purview, and composition. S.B. 2151 seeks to provide this update.

CRIMINAL JUSTICE IMPACT

It is the committee's opinion that this bill does not expressly create a criminal offense, increase the punishment for an existing criminal offense or category of offenses, or change the eligibility of a person for community supervision, parole, or mandatory supervision.

RULEMAKING AUTHORITY

It is the committee's opinion that this bill does not expressly grant any additional rulemaking authority to a state officer, department, agency, or institution.

ANALYSIS

S.B. 2151 amends the Health and Safety Code to change the definition of a "person with diabetes" from a person diagnosed by a physician as having diabetes to a person diagnosed by a physician in accordance with nationally recognized standards as having diabetes. The bill changes the composition of the Texas Diabetes Council by adding one representative each from the Employees Retirement System of Texas (ERS) and the Teacher Retirement System of Texas (TRS) and replaces a representative from the Department of Assistive and Rehabilitative Services with a representative from the Texas Workforce Commission (TWC) vocational rehabilitation services division. The bill requires the executive directors of ERS and TRS and the director of the TWC vocational rehabilitation services division to appoint that agency's representative. The bill includes persons active in the Texas affiliates of the American Association of Diabetes Educators among the persons to whom special consideration is given for appointment as one of the three citizen consumer members of the council. The bill requires the Department of State Health Services to provide administrative support to the council by providing research services and preparing any required reports.

S.B. 2151 revises provisions relating to the Texas Diabetes Council by:

· authorizing the council to establish work groups that the council considers necessary;

· authorizing the state plan for diabetes treatment, education, and training to include provisions to address obesity treatment, education, and training related to obesity‑dependent diabetes and the health impacts of obesity on a person with diabetes;

· changing certain contemporary issues affecting health promotion services in Texas that the council is required to address;

· replacing the authorization for the council to carry out certain prescribed activities with an authorization for the council to establish priorities and make recommendations for program expenditures that align with the council's mission;

· including the TWC vocational rehabilitation services division among the agencies required to work with the council to jointly develop, produce, and implement a general public awareness strategy and that may jointly develop and implement a statewide plan for conducting regional training sessions for public and private service providers; and

· including the Texas Education Agency among the agencies with which the council consults in developing and making available informational materials on diabetes to be distributed to students and their parents by health clinics at public primary or secondary schools.

EFFECTIVE DATE

September 1, 2019.