Amend SB 790 (house committee printing) by adding the following appropriately numbered SECTION to the bill and renumbering subsequent SECTIONS of the bill accordingly:

SECTION ____.  (a)  In this section, "department" means the Texas Department of Insurance.

(b)  The department shall conduct a study on the balance billing practices of ground ambulance service providers, the variations in prices for ground ambulance services, the proportion of ground ambulances that are in-network, trends in network inclusion, and factors contributing to the network status of ground ambulances. The department may seek the assistance of the Department of State Health Services in conducting the study.

(c)  Not later than December 1, 2022, the department shall provide a written report of the results of the study conducted under Subsection (b) of this section to the governor, lieutenant governor, speaker of the house of representatives, and members of the standing committees of the legislature with primary jurisdiction over the department.

(d)  This section expires September 1, 2023.