The NCMS Legislative Affairs team expects the 2011 NCMS Legislative Summary to be available in just a few days. Look for an official announcement in the Bulletin and online at https://www.compassionatecarenc.org/.
Covering bills of interest to physicians, the Summary will include the all-important SB 33 Medical Liability Reforms and HB 542 Tort Reform for Citizens and Business, along with summaries of 86 other pieces of legislation affecting health care and the community of medicine. The team is currently reviewing the final section on the State Budget, which consumed a lot of staff time and media headlines throughout the legislative session.
The Summary will include a special section on Mental Health:
SB 437 – Enact First Evaluation Program
SB 316 – Add’l Section 1915 Medicaid Waiver Sites
HB 916 – Statewide Expansion of the 1915(b)(c) Waiver
There were two pieces of legislation introduced in the 2010 session that were not heard by the Legislative Oversight Committee on Mental Health this session:
(1) A requirement for the Department of Health and Human Services to evaluate the CABHA Model, Critical Access Behavioral Health Agencies, with the goal of reducing inefficiencies in the mental health system and returning the system to one with medical leadership.
(2) A bill introduced in each chamber by the House and Senate chairs of the Legislative Oversight Committee on Mental Health to require the department to evaluate the efficiency of the model on a semiannual basis and report the results to the Legislative Oversight Committee on Mental Health.
Related stories:
2011 Legislative Session: Medical Liability Reforms and Much More (Bulletin, 8-12-11)
Legislative Summary Highlights Major Accomplishments in 2011 (Bulletin, 8-5-11)
