Legislative Action Alert - March 15, 2010
Good afternoon friend of the DLC,
Hallelujah! It was a roller coaster of a final night, but we made it. To summarize: overall, the session turned out much better than any of us had a right to expect given the budget outlook going in. Much of the credit for this has to go to Gov. Herbert and the emphasis he placed on vital health and human service programs from the outset. Kudos must also be given to legislative leadership for its willingness to dip deeply into the rainy day fund to help fill the gaps.
With that said, I believe the vast majority of the credit for any successes this year belongs to the Grassroots Advocacy Partnership, the Legislative Coalition for People with Disabilities, the Independent Living Centers, and other groups of individuals and families who got out there, introduced themselves to their senators and representatives, and educated them about the value of vital programs and services. None of this would have been possible without all of you. Well done!
In terms of the budget, there are only a few relatively minor changes since our last update, including:
- an extension of the enhanced federal match rate for Medicaid through the end of June 2011, meaning that eligibility criteria cannot be changed for at least the next year;
- DSPD will not suffer as deep a reduction in administrative personnel;
- the cut at USDC was reduced by a quarter;
- OT and PT will be available; and
- clinics for children with special healthcare needs in Logan, Vernal, and St. George should continue to operate; but local mental health authorities will likely have to absorb a significant cut.
As for legislation, it was not a banner year for the DLC:
- HB 198, Rep. Moss' Assertive Community Treatment Team Pilot Project was never heard in committee because of the fiscal note;
- Sen. Christensen's SB 213 failed in the House Government Operations Committee; and
- Sen. Dayton's SB 160 passed, although we did better than expected in the House with 25 "no" votes.
For information on the fate of a specific bill, please see www.disabilitylawcenter.org/legislative-advocacy-10/billtracker10.pdf or www.le.state.ut.us/asp/billsintro/index.asp. I have concluded that one can have success with bills or money, but not both. In a year like this one, I will choose money every time.
Over the summer we will be monitoring efforts to:
- implement SB 160
- adopt limited service waivers within DSPD;
- change oversight requirements for community-based providers;
- privatize the USDC;
- update the guardianship and conservatorship statutes; and
- transition students from the USDB residential program to their local schools.
Additionally, the Master Study Resolution includes these items of potential interest for discussion during interim:
87. Election Code Violation Amendments - to study whether to change the election code to include a process for a person to restore the person's right to vote, and whether there should be a penalty if a person who has forfeited the person's right to vote still votes.
88. Election Day Registration - to study the potential merits of election day registration.
96. Online Voter Registration - to study online registration and registration updates for voting.
102. Voter Engagement - to study ways to improve voter engagement in Utah (H.B. 244, H.B. 368, H.B. 164).
103. Voting by Mail - to study expanding the option for governmental entities to use voting by mail in elections (H.B. 358).
105. Access to Medicaid Benefits - to study how to lower the asset level for pregnant women to become eligible for Medicaid benefits.
106. Behavioral Treatment System Improvement - to study the delivery of a more effective treatment system to address the behavioral health treatment needs of children and youth in the custody of the state.
108. Children's Mental Health - to study and consider proposals for consolidating and coordinating administrative functions within the Department of Human Services and identify the services necessary to develop an effective home and community-based system of care for children's mental health.
109. Community-based Mental Health Service Costs - to study how the costs of community-based mental health services compare to similar services provided in the correctional system and in-patient treatment.
111. Division of Child and Family Services Efficiencies - to study potential efficiencies in delivering services in the Division of Child and Family Services.
112. End of Life Care - to study issues related to end of life care associated with Medicaid.
113. Health Care Budgeting Methods - to study and identify a budgeting method to remove the double counting in Medicaid due to transfers between the Department of Health and other state agencies.
121. Income and Asset Testing - to study the rules and policies for income and asset testing related to Medicaid and other welfare programs.
122. Individuals with Disabilities - to study options for meeting the needs of individuals with disabilities who are in crisis, medically fragile, or have significant behavior challenges.
126. Medicaid Improvements - to study the lessons learned in Medicare that could be applied in the Medicaid program.
127. Medicaid Program Coordination - to study the consolidation or improved coordination of the Medicaid program by the Department of Health, the Department of Human Services, and the Department of Workforce Services.
128. Medicaid Statutes - to study and review Medicaid statutes for clarification in assigned responsibilities, desired policy direction, and agency interactions, and consider raising all the statutes relating to Medicaid from chapter level to a separate title and consolidating related statutes within that title.
129. Medical Assistance Asset Test - to study whether to prohibit the use of an asset test in determining the eligibility of a child or an independent foster care adolescent for medical assistance (H.B. 87).
130. Medical Assistance Collections - to study and review a list of options for expansion in the areas of collections, such as requiring insurers to share benefit information for all medical assistance recipients to increase collections and cost avoidance.
131. Medical Benefits Recovery - to study and reconsider S.B. 50, Medical Benefits Recovery Amendments, 2008 General Session, which amended the Medical Benefits Recovery Act to provide that a lien to recover medical assistance benefits provided by the state may be imposed against the real property of a person who is an inpatient in a care facility during the life of that person.
132. Medical Industrial Complex - to study issues related to the Medical Industrial Complex.
133. Mental Health Care Delivery - to study the development of a design for delivery of an effective community-based system of care to address the mental health needs of children, youth, and their families. The design is to be developed by the Department of Human Services, working with stakeholders in the public mental health and substance abuse treatment system, and family support advocacy organizations.
134. Mental Health Pilot Project - to study the establishment of a pilot program for assertive community treatment services for people with a severe mental disorder, who are not receiving or are transitioning out of other mental health services, and to their families (H.B. 198).
140. State Agency Auditing of Local Health and Human Services - to study the effectiveness of streamlining and consolidating audit efforts by the Department of Health and the Department of Human Services and their contracted monitors on county-delivered human service programs, local public health programs, and private providers.
Congratulations on another successful session! If you have any questions or would like more information, please do not hesitate to contact me. As always, thank you for your interest and support. See you after Spring Break,
Andrew Riggle
Public Policy Advocate
1-800-662-9080 (Voice) or 1-800-550-4182 (TTY)
801-557-9182 (Mobile)
ariggle@disabilitylawcenter.org