Rep. Bill Bush

This Substitute bill differs from House Bill No. 252 by placing the Delaware Institute of Higher Education year-long teacher residency program under Section 1312 of Title 14 rather than Section 1305.This Substitute bill grants graduates of the Delaware Institute of Higher Education teacher-residency program 1 year of experience credit in addition to any other experience granted under Section 1312. The goal of this Act is to incentivize a new graduate who has completed the year-long Delaware residency program to stay and teach in Delaware by elevating their starting pay grade level by giving them 1 year of experience credit.

Maddy summaryThis bill expands line of duty death benefits in Delaware to include 911 dispatchers, who were previously not covered under these protections. By amending the state code, the legislation officially classifies dispatchers as "covered persons" alongside other emergency responders, ensuring their families may receive financial support if they die while performing official duties. The change applies specifically to individuals defined as 911 dispatchers under existing state statutes and does not alter the overall structure of the benefits program.

This Act requires the Department of Human Resources to develop an executive branch policy restricting nepotism in state employment and prohibiting supervision of a state employee by a relative. It further requires the legislative and judicial branches, as well as offices headed by other elected officials to develop and implement comparable policies.

This Substitute bill adds 5 additional speech-language diagnosis to the 2 diagnoses listed in H.B. 273 and references that all 7 speech-language diagnoses are classified in the International Classification of Diseases (ICD-10) for billing purposes. This Substitute bill broadens the definition of “child” from 1 year to first grade to include all children from birth to age 18. This Substitute bill deletes the definition of carrier since the term is not referred to in these new sections and clarifies that Section 2 refers to group and blanket health insurance policies not individual health policies. This Substitute bill also clarifies that the Act applies to all health insurance contracts delivered, issued for delivery, or renewed after December 31, 2024.

This Act is the result of a successful pilot project involving disadvantaged business enterprises in State contracts. In 2023, Section 189 of Senate Bill No. 35, as amended by Senate Amendment No. 2, authorized the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to engage in a pilot program to include Disadvantaged Business Enterprises (DBE) as part of large public works projects. If an agency elects to award based on best value, this Act allows for projects, valued in excess of $30,000,000, to be scored using DBE usage of at least 10% but no more than 30%. This Act also makes technical corrections to conform existing law to the standards of the Delaware Legislative Drafting Manual. This House Substitute Bill for House Bill No.387 clarifies that some or all of the objective criteria shall be assigned a specified weight in determining best value. This House Substitute bill also amends the Synopsis.

According to the American Cancer Society, prostate cancer is the second-leading cause of death from cancer in men. It is estimated that about 1 in 41 men will die of prostate cancer. According to ZERO Prostate Cancer, Black men face serious health care disparities regarding prostate cancer. 1 in 6 Black men will develop prostate cancer in their lifetime compared to 1 in 8 men overall. Black men are also 1.7 times more likely to be diagnosed with, and 2.1 times more likely to die from, prostate cancer than white men.  HB 302 requires all group, blanket, and individual health insurance policies to cover prostate screening for men at risk of prostate cancer. This Substitute bill broadens the definition of “prostate screening” to include any medically necessary and clinically appropriate method for the detection and diagnosis of prostate cancer, including a digital rectal exam and prostate specific antigen test, and associated laboratory work. This Substitute bill also clarifies the ages at which prostate screenings must be covered, consistent with the American Cancer Society guidelines, as follows: (1) Age 50 for men at average risk of developing prostate cancer; (2) Age 45 for men at high risk of developing prostate cancer, including African American men and men who have a first degree relative diagnosed with prostate cancer; and (3) Age 40 for men at even higher risk for prostate cancer, including men who have more than one first degree relative diagnosed with prostate cancer.  This Substitute bill also extends the effective date to health insurance policies modified after December 31, 2025, and makes technical corrections.

This Act authorizes the creation of Family Justice Centers within Delaware to provide victims of crime with a single source to obtain resources and support services.

This Act does the following: (1) Makes amendments to the administration of the Ivyane Davis Memorial Scholarship Fund by removing disbursement requirements to allow more flexibility to scholarship recipients, and clarifying that scholarship funds may be used for direct or indirect educational expenses and may not be used to reduce the amount of a waiver under the Delaware Fostering Independence Through Education Tuition Waiver Program. The Act also removes the 1 year residency requirement preceding application for the scholarship. (2) Makes amendments to the administration of the Delaware Fostering Independence Through Education Tuition Waiver Program by codifying responsibility for administering the program with the Office of the Child Advocate (“Office”), and clarifying the responsibilities of the Office and those of the institutions of higher education. The Act clarifies that the waiver applies to both full-time and part-time students and summer and winter classes. The Act also lowers the maximum age of eligibility from 26 to 25, to bring this Program into alignment with the requirements of the Chafee Educational and Training Voucher program. Finally, the Act mandates that Ivyane Davis Scholarships and Chafee Education and Training Vouchers may not be applied to reduce the amount of the waiver and that students eligible for waivers may not apply for or take out loans to reduce the amount of the waiver. (3) Amends the Office of the Child Advocate’s duties outlined in § 9005A of Title 29 of the Delaware Code to include administration of the Fostering Independence Through Education Tuition Waiver Program. (4) Makes technical corrections for uniformity of language and to conform existing law to the standards of the Delaware Legislative Drafting Manual.

House Bill No. 303, with House Amendment No. 2, from the 151st General Assembly created an annual behavioral health well check and required carriers to provide coverage for this service. In order to ensure providers of behavioral health well checks are fairly compensated, HB 303 required carriers to reimburse through common procedural technology (CPT) codes at the same billing rate. The cited CPT codes (99381-99387, 99391-99397) are used for services akin to a typical annual well visit for a new or established patient. Billing for the annual behavioral health well check under these CPT codes may impact the accuracy of state claims data from the Division of Medicaid and Medical Assistance (DMMA) to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. This Act amends Title 31 of the Delaware Code to allow DMMA to develop and implement new billing codes for a behavioral health well check. These developed codes must be comparable to the rates under the cited CPT codes.

Federal and Delaware law protect the right to vote and the rights of individuals with disabilities to have equal access to voting places and public facilities. Nonetheless, recent information suggests that a substantial number of polling places in Delaware are either inaccessible to persons with disabilities or lack accessible parking, infringing on the right of all eligible persons to vote in this State. This substitute, like House Bill No. 293, requires that the Department of Elections ensure that polling places selected for elections are accessible to voters with disabilities and elderly voters. This substitute adds a provision that in addition to being accessible, the accessibility features are available to voters in any election. Like House Bill No. 293, this substitute allows certain exceptions for states of emergency, or for circumstances in which no accessible polling place in a particular polling area is available and the Election Commissioner ensures that those voters impacted are provided with an alternative accessible polling place or alternative means for casting a ballot upon advance request. This substitute limits the states of emergency that would allow an exception to natural disasters or other emergencies that render a polling place unsafe or unusable. This substitute also adds a provision allowing any person with information that the Department has not complied with this section to file an administrative complaint with the Department.