Rep. Susan Beckman

Sunset Process - House Health, Insurance, and Environment Committee. The bill implements the recommendation in the department of regulatory agencies' sunset review of the stroke advisory board by continuing the board but imposes a 10-year sunset period rather than continuing the board indefinitely, as was recommended.(Note: This summary applies to the reengrossed version of this bill as introduced in the second house.) , Read More

The bill imposes requirements on health care facilities, health care providers, pharmacies, and health insurers, starting January 1, 2019, to disclose information about health care charges. Specifically, section 2 of the bill enacts the 'Comprehensive Health Care Billing Transparency Act' (act), which requires health care facilities, including hospitals, ambulatory surgical centers, community clinics, and physician practice groups, to: Publish their fee schedules or other lists of charges the facilities bill for specific health care services before applying any discounts, rebates, or other charge adjustment mechanisms; Include in every bill sent to a patient an itemized detail of each health care service provided, the charge for the service, how any payment or adjustment by the patient's health insurer was applied to each line item in the bill, and, for hospitals, the amount of the healthcare affordability and sustainability fee the hospital is charged; and In situations where an individual provides health insurance information to the facility or a provider in a facility setting, disclose whether the facility or provider participates in the individual's health insurance plan; whether the services the facility or provider will render will be covered as an in-network or out-of-network benefit; and whether the individual will receive a service from an out-of-network provider at an in-network facility. For an individual health care provider who provides health care services at a health care facility, has a separate fee schedule for the services the provider delivers in the facility setting, and whose fees for those services are not included in the facility's published fee schedule, the provider must provide a fee schedule to the facility for posting on the facility's website. Section 2 also prohibits a facility or provider from billing a patient or third-party payer an amount in excess of the lower of any established self-pay rate or the lowest rate negotiated with or reimbursed by any third-party payer, including the federal centers for medicare and medicaid services in the United States department of health and human services, for the particular health care services rendered to the patient if the facility or provider has failed to publish or provide its fee schedule. Additionally, section 2 requires a pharmacy to publish a list of its retail drug prices, which is a list of the charges the pharmacy charges to an insured or uninsured person for prescription drugs it administers or dispenses, before any rebates, discounts, or other price adjustment mechanisms are applied. Section 4 specifies that failure to comply with the requirements to publish retail drug prices constitutes grounds for the state board of pharmacy to discipline a pharmacist. Health insurers, facilities, and providers are prohibited from including any provision in a contract between the parties issued, amended, or renewed on or after January 1, 2019, that restricts the ability of a provider, facility, or health insurer to provide patients with the charge information required to be published. Section 2 also directs the state board of pharmacy to adopt rules necessary to implement the provisions of the act that are applicable to pharmacies and the executive director of the department of public health and environment to adopt any other rules necessary to implement and administer the act. Section 3 requires health insurers to publish information about contract terms, cost-sharing arrangements, and prescription drug prices. The commissioner of insurance is directed to adopt rules to implement and administer these requirements and is authorized to use enforcement powers under current law to enforce the requirements on health insurers. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as introduced.) Read More

The Colorado department of human services (department) operates numerous facilities in the state that provide direct care to vulnerable people, including veterans and their families, youth in rehabilitation programs, people with intellectual and developmental disabilities, and people with mental health diagnoses. Current law specifies when an employee of the department (employee) will be suspended or dismissed after being charged with specified criminal offenses. However, the department has encountered difficulty in suspending, dismissing, or otherwise disciplining employees through the administrative process when the employee was involved in an egregious incident of mistreatment of a vulnerable person but was not convicted of a criminal offense. The bill specifies that: In considering a disciplinary action against an employee for engaging in mistreatment, abuse, neglect, or exploitation, against a vulnerable person, the appointing authority shall give weight to the safety of vulnerable persons over the interests of any other person. If the appointing authority finds that the employee has engaged in mistreatment, abuse, neglect, or exploitation against a vulnerable person, the appointing authority may take such disciplinary action as the appointing authority deems appropriate, up to and including termination, taking into consideration the harm or risk of harm to vulnerable persons created by the employee's actions.(Note: This summary applies to the reengrossed version of this bill as introduced in the second house.) , Read More

The bill recreates the former health care task force, renamed as the statewide health care review committee, to study health care issues that affect Colorado residents throughout the state. The committee consists of the members of the house of representatives committees on health, insurance, and environment and on public health care and human services and the senate committee on health and human services. The committee is permitted to meet up to 2 times during the interim between legislative sessions, including 2 field trips. For the 2018-19 fiscal year, the bill appropriates $23,951 from the general fund to the legislative department to implement the bill. (Note: This summary applies to the reengrossed version of this bill as introduced in the second house.) , Read More

The bill directs the department of health care policy and financing (department) to prepare and submit a waiver to the federal government requesting authority to implement certain self-sufficiency provisions as part of the Colorado medical assistance program (medicaid). The bill: Requires able-bodied adults as a condition of eligibility for medicaid to become employed, actively seek employment, attend job or vocational training, or volunteer at a nonprofit organization; except that this requirement does not apply to certain persons specified in the bill; Requires able-bodied adults to verify income monthly for determination of eligibility; Authorizes the department to prohibit enrollment in medicaid if a person fails to report a change in family income or makes a false statement regarding compliance with the work requirement; Establishes a lifetime limit on medicaid benefits of 5 years, and includes persons excepted from the limit; and Authorizes the department to impose copayments to deter the use of emergency departments and ambulance services for nonemergency services and nonemergency transportation. The bill requires the department to report to the general assembly regarding the preparation, submission, approval, implementation, and outcome of the self-sufficiency waiver provisions. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as introduced.) , Read More

The bill updates statutory references to Alzheimer's and other dementia diseases and reflects that dementia diseases have related disabilities impacting memory and other cognitive abilities. Missing persons with a dementia disease and related disability are added to the missing senior citizen and missing person with developmental disabilities alert program, and the program is renamed to reflect this change. The Alzheimer's disease treatment and research center within the university of Colorado school of medicine is renamed the dementia diseases and related disabilities treatment and research center. (Note: This summary applies to the reengrossed version of this bill as introduced in the second house.) , Read More

Section 1 of the bill repeals the motorist insurance database. If a person drives without insurance, the bill: Requires the person, in sections 3, 5, and 8 , to pay a $250 fee each year for 3 years unless the person prepays for insurance for 6 months, in which case the person pays $125; except that the fee is waived if the person's income is under 130% of the poverty line and he or she prepays for insurance for 6 months; and In section 7, imposes a surcharge of up to $4,000 if the violation occurred in connection with an accident that caused serious bodily injury to another person. Section 7 also authorizes a court to order an immobilization device (a boot) on the person's motor vehicle for up to 180 days. If the person does not pay the fees or prepay for insurance as required in section 3, 5, and 8, section 5 cancels the person's driver's license. In section 2, the fees are deposited in the Colorado DRIVES vehicle services account in the highway users tax fund. In section 6, the motorist insurance fee is set to 10 cents.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as introduced.) , Read More

County Courthouse and County Jail Funding and Overcrowding Solutions Interim Study Committee. Current law tasks the underfunded courthouse facility cash fund commission to evaluate grant applications and issue grants to counties for underfunded courthouse facilities through master planning services, matching funds or leverage grant funding opportunities, or for addressing emergency needs due to the imminent closure of a court facility. The bill changes the name of the commission and the fund and expands the responsibilities of the commission to include jails in addition to court facilities. Additionally, the bill allows grants to be issued for up to 50% of a county's annual voter-approved debt service on any county-approved financing of the construction or remodeling costs of a court or jail facility. The bill also creates a low-interest loan program to be administered by the commission whereby counties may apply for low-interest loans to finance the capital construction or remodeling costs of a court or jail facility. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as introduced.) Read More

The bill requires the works allocation committee to annually submit to the executive director of the department of human services (department), the governor, and the joint budget committee recommendations for the use of the money in the Colorado long-term works reserve for the upcoming state fiscal year. The department-appointed members are not required to vote on the annual recommendations. The county-appointment members shall draft the annual recommendations.(Note: This summary applies to the reengrossed version of this bill as introduced in the second house.) , Read More

The bill clarifies the applicability provisions of legislation enacted in 2015 and 2016 to promote an equitable financial contribution among affected public bodies in connection with urban redevelopment projects allocating tax revenues in the following respects: The bill clarifies that a substantial modification of an urban renewal plan (plan) is a proposed modification that substantially changes provisions of the plan regarding land area, land use, authorization to collect incremental tax revenue, the extent of the use of tax increment financing, the scope or nature of the urban renewal project, the scope of method of financing, design, building requirements, timing, or procedure, as previously approved, or where the modification will substantially clarify a plan that, when approved, was lacking in specificity as to the urban renewal project or financing. If the modification is substantial, the modification is subject to pertinent requirements of the urban renewal law addressing modifications. For plans to which a pledge of the revenues deposited into the special fund was made by an indenture or other legally binding document that is separate from the plan itself prior to January 1, 2016, a pledge to secure the payment of refunding bonds is not a substantial modification and is not subject to the modification requirements of the urban renewal law. Not less than 30 days prior to approving any modification of a plan, the bill requires the governing body or an urban renewal authority (authority) to provide a detailed written description of the proposed modification to each taxing entity that levies taxes on property located within the urban renewal area and a notice of the date and time of the meeting at which the governing body will consider the modification. Any taxing entity that levies taxes on property located within the urban renewal area may file an action in the state district court exercising jurisdiction over the county in which the urban renewal area is located for an order determining, under a de novo standard of review, whether the modification is a substantial modification. Further, if requested by the taxing entity, the court is required to enjoin any action by the authority pursuant to the modification until the court has determined whether the modification is a substantial modification and, if so, the court is required to further enjoin any action by the authority until there has been compliance with statutory provisions addressing the sharing of incremental property tax revenues. The bill prohibits any action from being brought to enjoin any undertaking or activity of the authority to a plan, including the issuance of bonds, the incurrence of other financial obligations, or the pledge of revenue, unless the action is commenced within 45 days after the date the authority provided notice of its intention regarding such undertaking or activity. The notice must describe the undertaking or activity proposed to be engaged in by the authority and specify that any action to enjoin the undertaking or activity must be brought within 45 days from the date of the notice. The notice must be published one time in a newspaper of general circulation within the county. On or before the date of publication of the notice, the bill also requires the authority to mail a copy of the notice to each taxing entity that levies taxes on property within the urban renewal area. Finally, the bill clarifies that legislation enacted in 2015 to promote an equitable financial contribution among affected public bodies in connection with urban redevelopment projects allocating tax revenues, legislation adopted in 2016 to clarify such 2015 legislation, and the bill apply to municipalities, authorities, and any plans created on or after January 1, 2016, and to any substantial modification of any plan approved on or after January 1, 2016.(Note: This summary applies to the reengrossed version of this bill as introduced in the second house.)