The act allows a health-care provider (applicant) who possesses a license, certificate, registration, or other approval as a health-care provider in another state (out-of-state credential) to provide health-care services through telehealth to patients located in Colorado if the applicant registers with the regulator that regulates the health-care services the applicant will provide (regulator). An applicant is eligible for registration if: The applicant submits an application in a manner prescribed by the division of professions and occupations (division) in the department of regulatory agencies (department) and pays the applicable fee; The applicant possesses an out-of-state credential issued by a governmental authority in another state, the District of Columbia, or a possession or territory of the United States that is active and unencumbered, that has educational and supervisory standards equivalent to or exceeding the educational and supervisory standards required for the equivalent credential in this state or the interstate compacft license for the applicable credential type, and that entitles the applicant to perform health-care services that are substantially similar to health-care services that may be performed by a licensee, certificate holder, or registrant in this state; The applicant designates an agent upon whom service of process may be made in Colorado; The applicant has not been subject to any disciplinary action relating to the applicant's out-of-state credential during the 5-year period immediately preceding the submission of the applicant's application that has resulted in the applicant's out-of-state credential being limited, suspended, or revoked, unless the disciplinary action pertains to an action, behavior, or treatment permitted under Colorado law; and The applicant demonstrates passage of a jurisprudence examination administered by the division if passage of a jurisprudence examination is required for substantially similar credentialing in this state. An applicant who has been registered to provide health-care services through telehealth to patients located in Colorado (registered provider) shall: Provide health-care services in compliance with the professional practice standards for health-care services in this state; In the event of an emergency situation, make a good faith effort to contact and coordinate with emergency services located near the originating site, or facilitate contact with the appropriate local mental and behavioral health services, and remain on a synchronous connection with the patient, if the emergency arises during a synchronous connection, until emergency services have reached the originating site or the situation is resolved in the registered provider's clinical judgment; Maintain a written emergency protocol that is appropriate to the applicable standard of care for Colorado; Notify the applicable regulator of restrictions placed on the registered provider's out-of-state credential in any state or jurisdiction or of any disciplinary action taken or pending against the registered provider in any state or jurisdiction; Maintain and have in effect a form of financial responsibility that covers services provided to patients in this state as required by the applicable regulator; Disclose to the patient that the registered provider does not have a physical location in Colorado and disclose the location of the registered provider; and Not open an office in this state and shall not provide in-person health-care services to patients located in this state unless the health-care provider obtains the license, certification, or registration that the applicable regulator requires for the performance of the relevant health-care services in this state. The act also allows the division or the regulator to take disciplinary action against a registered provider under specified conditions. The department may notify other states in which the registered provider is licensed, registered, or certified to practice of any disciplinary actions taken against the registered provider in this state. A registered provider is prohibited from prescribing a controlled substance. APPROVED by Governor June 7, 2024 EFFECTIVE June 7, 2024(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)
Sponsored bills
The act reforms and clarifies the criminal competency to proceed process. The act provides necessary parties with access to information related to the defendant's claim of incompetency to proceed. The act adds to the information that is included in a competency report. The act delineates a court's options when it finds that a defendant is incompetent to proceed. The act directs when competency services may be provided on an outpatient basis. The act sets forth the circumstances when a court has to dismiss the defendant's case based on the highest level of charge against the defendant and how long the defendant has been waiting for restoration services. APPROVED by Governor June 4, 2024 PORTIONS EFFECTIVE June 4, 2024 PORTIONS EFFECTIVE July 1, 2024(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)
The act continues the Colorado state advisory council for parent involvement in education (advisory council) until September 1, 2030. Prior to its repeal, the department of regulatory agencies will conduct a sunset review of the advisory council. The act adds a department of early childhood representative to serve on the advisory council. The act requires the advisory committee to: Advise educator preparation programs about best practices for including research-based family engagement strategies in coursework and program requirements; and Provide feedback to state agencies and other organizations about publicly available tools and resources that assist families with navigating the education system. For the 2024-25 state fiscal year, the act appropriates $33,364 from the general fund to the department of education for use by school quality and support. APPROVED by Governor June 4, 2024 EFFECTIVE August 7, 2024(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)
The act appropriates $4,197,000 to the department of education from the state education fund to fund student educator stipend program stipends. The department of education is required to transfer the appropriation spending authority to the department of higher education to fund student educator stipend program stipends. APPROVED by Governor June 4, 2024 EFFECTIVE June 4, 2024(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)
The act extends for an additional 5 years the availability of the state income tax credit allowed to a taxpayer for an approved environmental remediation of contaminated property, through income tax years commencing prior to January 1, 2030. APPROVED by Governor June 4, 2024 EFFECTIVE August 7, 2024(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)
Current law prohibits electroconvulsive treatment (ECT) from being performed on a minor under 16 years of age. The act authorizes ECT to be performed on a minor who is under 16 years of age only if: 2 individuals licensed to practice medicine in Colorado and specializing in psychiatry approve the ECT; Other less-invasive treatments have failed; ECT is medically necessary to treat life-threatening malignant catatonia; ECT is performed by at least one physician, or the physician's designee, who is trained and credentialed in ECT; and The minor's parent or guardian consents to ETC. APPROVED by Governor June 3, 2024 EFFECTIVE June 3, 2024(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)
The act, the "CARE for Living Organ Donors Act", includes the following benefits and recognition for living organ donors: A list of provisions in current law, as well as in the act, that may benefit a living organ donor; and A requirement that, at least twice before performing an organ donation recovery operation on a living organ donor donating an organ without an intended recipient, a transplant center shall advise the potential donor that the transplant center or another transplant center in Colorado has or may have an organ voucher program or that a national-level organ voucher program exists or may exist for the organ being donated. Further, the act requires a transplant center to provide information to all organ donors and organ recipients about benefits that may be available at each transplant center in Colorado. The list must be updated at least annually. The act prohibits an employer from intimidating, threatening, coercing, discriminating, or retaliating against or taking an adverse action against an employee, as described in the act, for the period extending 30 days before and 90 days after the employee is or becomes a living organ donor. The act designates April 11 each year as "Living Organ Donor Recognition Day". APPROVED by Governor June 3, 2024 EFFECTIVE June 3, 2024(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)
The suicide prevention commission (commission) created in the department of public health and environment is scheduled to repeal on September 1, 2024. The act continues the commission until September 1, 2034. The act also adjusts the appointments to the commission and limits the number of members from the current 26 to 22. APPROVED by Governor May 31, 2024 EFFECTIVE August 7, 2024(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)
The act creates 3 new programs to be implemented and administered by the division of housing in the department of local affairs (division). The division is required to adopt policies, procedures, and guidelines for each program on or before November 1, 2024; except that, if there is insufficient funding before July 1, 2025 to implement and administer the child care facility development capital grant program, then the division is required to adopt policies, procedures, and guidelines for this program on or before November 1, 2025. For each program, consultation between the division and the department of early childhood is required for the policies the division develops and adopts to implement the programs. Additionally, the division is required to publish on its website and submit an annual report regarding the programs to specified legislative committees and to the department of early childhood. The child care facility development toolkit and technical assistance program is created to provide technical assistance from consultants and related professionals to enable interested child care providers, developers, employers, public schools, institutions of higher education, and local governments to understand the technical aspects of planning, developing, building, and co-locating child care facilities. The division must prioritize applications for projects that will meet a demonstrable need for child care in the areas of greatest need across the state and that satisfy one or more purposes of the program. The division's annual report must contain information regarding the assistance provided under this program and the uses of such assistance by program recipients. This program is available until July 1, 2028. The child care facility development planning grant program is created to incentivize and support local governments in identifying and making regulatory updates or improvements to community planning, development, building, zoning, and other regulatory processes to support the development of child care facilities. The division must develop a menu of recommended policy or regulatory tools, and eligible recipients for the grant must intend to implement one or more of such tools off the menu or identify other local policies or programs to implement to streamline the eligible recipient's regulatory environment for the development of child care facilities. The division's annual report must contain information regarding the amount of grants distributed and a description of recipients' use of the grants. This program is available until July 1, 2028. The child care facility development capital grant program is created to provide eligible entities, which are local governments, public schools, institutions of higher education, or public-private partnerships, with money to support the development of licensed child care and to construct, remodel, renovate, or retrofit a child care facility to meet a demonstrated need for child care in an eligible entity's community. The division shall utilize the state housing board within the division to review and make recommendations on grant applications. Grant recipients are required to provide a financial match. The financial match required from a grant recipient is 50% for a center-based facility and 25% for a home-based facility. More weight is given to applications that represent geographic diversity, will serve a high percentage of families below the area's median income, commit to providing a well-compensated staff, co-locate with or repurpose facilities with other uses, plan to serve children in regions with low child care capacity, or plan to serve infants and toddlers. The division's annual report must contain information regarding the amount of grants distributed and a description of recipients' use of the grants. The act also creates the child care facility development cash fund (fund) for use by the division to administer and implement the 3 programs and to make grants under the child care facility development planning grant program and the child care facility development capital grant program. On August 15, 2024, the state treasurer shall transfer $250,000 from the general fund to the fund. The money from the transfer must be used before June 30, 2025, to implement the child care facility development toolkit and technical assistance program and the child care facility development planning grant program, and the division must prioritize money first for the toolkit and technical assistance program. Then, after June 30, 2025 but before June 30, 2028, money from the transfer can be used for all 3 programs, and after July 1, 2028, but before June 30, 2029, money from the transfer may be used for the child care facility development capital grant program. Additionally, the division may receive gifts, grants, or donations to implement and administer and make grants under the child care facility development capital grant program. The division may also use $70,000 from the general fund transfer for administrative costs. For the 2024-25 state fiscal year, the act appropriates $250,000 from the child care facility development cash fund to the department of local affairs for child care facility development. APPROVED by Governor May 29, 2024 EFFECTIVE August 7, 2024(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)
The act implements the recommendations in the department of regulatory agencies' 2023 sunset review and report on the Colorado commission for the deaf, hard of hearing, and deafblind (commission) by: Continuing the commission for 7 years, until 2031; Establishing a permanent state auxiliary services program; and Changing the name of the deafblind citizens council to the Colorado deafblind advisory council. APPROVED by Governor May 28, 2024 EFFECTIVE August 7, 2024(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)