TO:	Honorable Stephanie Klick, Chair, House Committee on Public Health

FROM:	Jerry McGinty, Director, Legislative Budget Board

IN RE:	HB1742 by Guerra (Relating to the practice of dentistry and the provision of teledentistry dental services.), As Introduced

Estimated Two-year Net Impact to General Revenue Related Funds for HB1742, As Introduced : a negative impact of ($174,226) through the biennium ending August 31, 2023.

The estimate only reflects costs associated with the Texas State Board of Dental Examiners conducting the study required by the bill. The fiscal implications to Medicaid and the Children's Health Insurance Program cannot be determined at this time due to the inability to determine the impact on service utilization.

The bill would make no appropriation but could provide the legal basis for an appropriation of funds to implement the provisions of the bill.

Fiscal Year	Probable Net Positive/(Negative) Impact to General Revenue Related Funds
2022	($87,113)
2023	($87,113)
2024	$0
2025	$0
2026	$0

Fiscal Year	Probable Savings/(Cost) from General Revenue Fund 1	Change in Number of State Employees from FY 2021
2022	($87,113)	1.0
2023	($87,113)	1.0
2024	$0	0.0
2025	$0	0.0
2026	$0	0.0

The bill would establish the practice of teledentistry.

The bill would allow the Texas State Board of Dental Examiners (TSBDE), in consultation with the Texas Department of Insurance (TDI), to adopt rules related to the practice of teledentistry.

The bill would require TSBDE and the Texas State Board of Pharmacy (TSBP) to adopt rules to determine a valid teledentistry prescription and publish frequently asked questions relating to a valid prescription on each respective agency website.

The bill would require TSBDE to adopt rules governing call coverage agreements between dentists.

The bill would require TSBDE to study the extent to which teledentistry dental services may be used to substantially increase access to dental care for the children of low-income families.

The bill would require the Health and Human Services Commission (HHSC) to establish policies that permit reimbursement under Medicaid and the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) for services provided through teledentistry dental services.

The bill would require Medicaid reimbursement for teledentistry dental services to be the same rate as the Medicaid program reimburses for the same in-person dental service.

According to TSBDE, the agency would need an additional 1.0 Full-time Equivalent (FTE) during the 2022-23 biennium at a cost of $0.1 million in General Revenue in each fiscal year in order to complete the study required by the bill. It is assumed that any additional costs to TSBDE to implement the provisions of the bill could be accomplished by utilizing existing resources.

It is unknown how the addition of coverage of teledentistry dental services to Medicaid and CHIP will impact service utilization.

It is assumed that any costs to TDI, TSBP, the Employees Retirement System, Texas A&M University System Administration, and the University of Texas System Administration to implement the provisions of the bill could be accomplished by utilizing existing resources.

It is assumed that any costs to HHSC associated with rulemaking, and development of any state plan amendments or waivers could be absorbed within existing agency resources.

LEGISLATIVE BUDGET BOARD
Austin, Texas

FISCAL NOTE, 87TH LEGISLATIVE REGULAR SESSION


March 30, 2021