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THCC's
2011 state legislative focus is:
Hospital
Assessment: Most feasible revenue
option.
THCC supports
the Hospital Assessment. Without the assessment, cuts to the TennCare
program would be draconian. THCC is currently discussing the pros
and cons for increasing the assessment from 4.52% to the maximum
allowed by federal law, 5.5%, and effective 9/1/11, it can be increased
to 6%. Click
here for Fact Sheet for increasing assessment. For
information on the Tennessee Hospitals Association Fact Sheet, click
here.
Status:
Senate - Referred to the Senate Finance Committee. House - Referred
to the Health and Human Resources Committee. Here
is the link.
Tennessee
Small Business Protection Act:
Tennessee's
business tax laws allow multi-state companies to avoid taxes by
setting up subsidiaries in Delaware or Nevada to transfer ownership
to their real estate or trademarks and logos. For
More information, click here. But what you need to
know is that this could raise up to $110 million dollars per year.
With matching federal funds, this is more than enough to stop cuts
to TennCare and to mental health.
Mental
health services are at the breaking point:
Mental Health
Cuts were averted last year with one time stimulus money from the
federal government, but for this year, unless new revenues are found,
services will be cut. The Tennessee Coalition for Mental Health
and Substance Abuse Services put forth a White Paper on the harm
of continued cuts in the program. Click
here for an Executive Summary. For the full White Paper, click
here.
Health
Care Compact: Talking
points. Click Here.
*SB
0326 by *Beavers, Tracy, Gresham, Haile, Ramsey, Roberts.
(HB
0369 by *White, Shipley, Casada, Carr, Williams K,
Evans, Maggart, Rich, Hensley, Ramsey, Lollar, Todd, Weaver, Keisling,
Coley, Campbell.)
Fiscal
Summary
(CORRECTED) Increase State Expenditures - $52,000/FY12-13 and Subsequent
Years Increase Federal Expenditures - $1,232,742,500/FY12-13 and
Subsequent Years Other Fiscal Impact - Beginning in FY12-13, the
state will take over the administration of and benefits provided
through the Medicare program reflecting a total shift to Tennessee
of approximately $11,505,596,700 in federal funds. Of this amount,
$10,272,854,200 is for services currently provided to Tennessee
citizens and $1,232,742,500 is for administrative costs currently
incurred by the federal government that will be redirected to Tennessee
for administrative purposes (shown as Increased Federal Expenditures
above). This shift will not change the total amount of federal funds
being spent on the program. The total amount of services and covered
benefits that enrollees are receiving will remain unchanged. The
program will remain 100 percent federally funded.
Bill
Summary: This bill enacts the Health Care Compact which:
- Specifies
that each member state of the compact would have the authority
to enact state laws that supersede any and all federal laws
regarding health care within its state;
- Specifies
that each member state would have the right to mandatory federal
funds to support the exercise of member state authority under
this compact and that this funding would not be conditional
on any action, regulation, policy, law, or rule of any kind
of the member state. According to an appendix of the Compact,
in 2010, such federal funding in Tennessee was $16.389 billion;
and
- Creates
the interstate advisory health care commission, described below.
Under this bill, the interstate advisory health care commission
would consist of members appointed by each member state through
a process to be determined by the laws of each member state.
No state may appoint more than two members to the commission,
and at any time a member state may withdraw its members from
the commission. The commission may not act unless a majority
of the members are present, and no action would be binding on
the commission unless approved by a majority of the total number
of members. The commission will meet at least once a year. The
commission may study the issues of health care regulation of
particular concern to the member states, such as the elimination
of interstate barriers to the provision of health care. After
consideration, the commission may make non binding recommendations
to the member states. Additionally, the commission would collect
information and data to assist the member states in their regulation
of health care, including assessing the performance of various
state health care programs and compiling information on the
cost of health care. The commission would make this information
and data available to the legislatures of the member states.
Status
as of 3/30/2011: Senate - Passed the Senate
Welfare Committee and sent to the Senate Finance Committee. House
- The Health and Human Resources Sub-Committee will vote on the
bill on Tuesday morning, April 5, 2011. Click
here for a list of House Health Sub-committee members to call.
Concerns:
- Undermines
the new federal health law
- Allows
insurers to sell across state lines, weakening benefits and
protection
- According
to this bill, the state could take over Medicare Tennessee Health
Care
- Under the
new federal health law, in 2016 compacts may only be approved
by HHS if it is determined that the compact will provide coverage
that is at least as comprehensive and affordable as coverage
provided through the state Exchanges. This state law would not
have to abide by any federal laws.
Tennessee
Health Freedom
Act:
*SB
0079 by *Beavers, Johnson, Tracy, Summerville, Yager,
Watson, Bell, Gresham, Campfield, Haile, Faulk, Ramsey. (HB
0115 by *Weaver, Campbell, Brooks K, Coley, Ramsey,
Lollar, Dean, Rich, Hensley, Butt, Matlock, Faison, Miller D, Hall,
Harrison, Williams R, Sanderson, McCormick, Powers, Maggart, Holt,
Sargent, Wirgau, Shipley, Halford, Hurley, Casada, DeBerry J, Evans,
Dennis, Sexton, Eldridge, Forgety, Sparks, Womick, Carr, Gotto,
Tidwell, Alexander, Watson, Hill, Matheny, Pody, Niceley, Marsh,
Ragan, Hawk, Lundberg, McManus, Brooks H, Johnson C, White, Haynes.)
Fiscal
Summary: NOT SIGNIFICANT
Bill
Summary: This bill declares it to be the public policy
of Tennessee that:
- Every person
within the state is free to choose or to decline to choose any
mode of securing health care services without penalty or threat
of penalty; and
- Every
person within the state has the right to purchase health insurance
or to refuse to purchase health insurance.
- This bill
prohibits the state government from interfering with a citizen's
right to purchase health insurance or with a citizen's right
to refuse to purchase health insurance. This bill declares any
law passed in violation of the policy expressed in this bill
to be void ab initio. This bill prohibits any public official,
employee, or agent of this state or any of its political subdivisions
from acting to impose any penalty in Tennessee that violates
the public policy set forth in this bill.
ON FEBRUARY
23, 2011, THE SENATE ADOPTED AMENDMENTS #1 AND #2 AND PASSED SENATE
BILL 79, AS AMENDED.
AMENDMENT
#1 clarifies that it is not the public policy of this
state that the right of citizens to choose or decline to choose
health care coverage prevents courts from ordering parents to
provide health care coverage for their children in child support
cases.
AMENDMENT #2 clarifies that it is not the public
policy of this state that the right of citizens to choose or decline
to choose health care coverage prevents an employer from requiring
that the employer's employees participate in a health insurance
plan as a condition of employment.
Status:
Passed in both the House and Senate and signed by the Governor.
Concerns:
- This would
negate the individual mandate, requiring everyone to have insurance.
According to studies only about 1⁄2 of people, and most
likely sick people, would purchase health insurance.
- Healthy
people would wait to purchase insurance when they get sick.
- Such a
system would make premiums rise at an alarming rate.
- This ultimately
will have to be decided by the Supreme Court
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