Sen. Ed Charbonneau

Provides that a program may be established to provide grants to cancer centers in Indiana to increase breast cancer research projects or breast cancer clinical trials. Provides that a pediatric cancer research and treatment grant program may be established. Establishes the breast cancer research fund and the pediatric cancer research and treatment fund. Prioritizes use of the funds to be on innovative research and treatments with the potential of resulting in novel therapies for pediatric cancer. Requires the state department to submit an annual report to the governor and legislative council concerning the grant program and publish the report on the state department's website.

Allows the office of the secretary of family and social services (office of the secretary) to study and prepare a report containing recommendations for realigning and consolidating the local area agency on aging (area agency) planning and service areas. Amends the definition of "community and home care services" for purposes of community and home options to institutional care for the elderly and disabled program (CHOICE). Prohibits the division of aging from requiring a CHOICE provider to be certified under the Medicaid program or a Medicaid waiver program. Creates an exception for a provider of certain services. Requires an area agency to prioritize CHOICE funding to identify specified individuals and provide community and home care services to these individuals. Requires the office of the secretary, in negotiating reimbursement rates for CHOICE services, to consider the location and availability of service providers. Authorizes the office of the secretary to establish a Medicaid diversion pilot program to evaluate the effectiveness of home modification and telehealth enhanced chronic care services provided by specified area agencies in reducing Medicaid expenditures. Allows the office of the secretary, a managed care organization that has contracted with the office of Medicaid policy and planning, and a person who has contracted with a certain managed care organization or the office of the secretary to contract with an area agency to provide and receive reimbursement for a level of care assessment for the: (1) health and wellness Medicaid waiver; (2) traumatic brain injury Medicaid waiver; and (3) risk based managed care program for the covered population.

Adds additional duties to a workgroup currently organized concerning the pathways for aging risk based managed care program (program). Requires the office of the secretary of family and social services (office of the secretary) to determine the base reimbursement rate structure, methodology, and reimbursement rates for provider payment by managed care organizations under the program. Allows the office of the secretary to perform claims reviews of claims under the program. Requires a managed care organization participating in the program to do the following: (1) Contract with nursing facilities if certain conditions are met under the same terms for a specified time frame. (2) Submit monthly reports for claims that had a denial rate of at least five percent in the previous month. (3) Pay minimum reimbursement rates to providers. (4) Pay interest on unpaid claims that are later determined to be clean claims. Sets forth the powers and duties of the office of the secretary concerning Medicaid home and community based services waivers. Requires a provider of services under a home and community based services waiver to follow any waiver requirements under federal law and developed by the office of the secretary. Establishes requirements for home and community based services waivers. Relocates provisions requiring reimbursement for assisted living services for individuals who are aged and disabled and receiving services under a Medicaid waiver. Specifies that: (1) these provisions apply to a home and community based services waiver that included assisted living services as an available services before July 1, 2025; (2) these provisions apply to an individual receiving services under a home and community based services waiver; and (3) reimbursement is required for certain services that are part of the individual's home and community based service plan. Relocates provisions establishing limitations concerning assisted living services provided in a home and community based services program. Relocates a provision requiring the office of the secretary to annually determine any state savings generated by home and community based services. Removes a provision allowing the division of aging to adopt rules concerning an appeals process for a housing with services establishment provider's determination that the provider is unable to meet the health needs of a resident and allows the office of the secretary to adopt rules concerning the appeals process. Requires an individual who provides attendant care services for compensation from Medicaid to register with the office of the secretary. Removes the requirement that the division of aging administer programs established under Medicaid waivers for in-home services for treatment of medical conditions. Provides that provisions of law concerning the statewide waiver ombudsman apply to an individual who has a disability and receives services administered by the bureau of disabilities services. (Current law specifies that these provisions apply to an individual who has a developmental disability and receives services under the federal home and community based services program.) Specifies that these provisions do not apply to an individual served by the long term care ombudsman program. Changes references from "statewide waiver ombudsman" to "statewide bureau of disabilities services ombudsman". Requires the unit of services for the deaf and hard of hearing and the division (rather than the unit and the board of interpreters) to adopt rules creating standings for interpreters. Removes provisions concerning the board of interpreters. Repeals a provision providing that licensed home health agencies and licensed personal services agencies are approved to provide certain services under a Medicaid waiver granted to the state under federal law that provides services for treatment of medical conditions. Repeals language concerning a long term care services eligibility screen for purposes of the Community and Home Options to Institutional Care for the Elderly and Disabled program (CHOICE). Authorizes the division of disability and rehabilitative services to charge an authorized service provider that employs a direct service professional an annual fee. Establishes the direct support professional training program fund and appropriates money in the fund.

Specifies that provisions of law governing the office of administrative law proceedings apply to the Indiana department of health (state department) in matters concerning the involuntary transfer or discharge of a resident of a health facility. Specifies conditions for the use of updated publications for design enforcement by the state department in the regulation of hospitals and ambulatory outpatient surgical centers. Amends the list of crimes or acts that preclude a home health aide, nurse aide, or other unlicensed employee from employment at a home health agency and certain health care facilities. Amends the list of crimes that preclude a person from operating a home health agency or personal services agency. Requires the state department to: (1) investigate any report that a nurse aide or home health aide has been convicted of a certain crime; and (2) remove the individual from the state nurse aide registry. Makes it a Class A infraction for a person convicted of a certain crime to knowingly or intentionally apply for a job as a home health aide or other unlicensed employee at a home health agency or certain health care facilities. For provisions concerning the women, infants, and children nutrition program (WIC program), defines "WIC vendor agreement". Requires the state department to: (1) select WIC program vendors based on selection criteria set forth in federal regulations; (2) review the selection criteria annually; (3) include the selection criteria in the WIC state plan; and (4) publish the selection criteria on the state department's website. For purposes of submitting a death record of a stillborn, requires the physician, physician assistant, or advanced practice registered nurse (APRN) last in attendance to initiate the document process unless the physician, physician assistant, or APRN was not present upon the deceased. Includes reporting to local child fatality review teams, the statewide child fatality review committee, local fetal-infant mortality review teams, and suicide and overdose fatality review teams for the release of mental health records without the consent of the patient. Requires the state department to: (1) approve courses concerning auto-injectable epinephrine that meet criteria established by the state department (rather than courses offered by an approved organization as defined in current law); and (2) publish the criteria on its website. Removes a provision allowing the state department to contract with a third party to create a certificate of completion for a course. Removes the expiration of the statewide maternal mortality review committee. Amends the membership of the statewide child fatality review committee.

Requires the office of the secretary of family and social services (office) to report specified Medicaid data to the Medicaid oversight committee. Requires the office to annually prepare and present a report to the budget committee concerning the enforcement of the Medicaid five year look back period. Prohibits specified persons from advertising or otherwise marketing the Medicaid program. Provides that the office may adopt rules concerning permissible advertising or marketing indicating participation in the Medicaid program by a person that has contracted with the office. Allows the office to reimburse medical providers at the appropriate Medicaid fee schedule rate for certified medical claims prior to the beginning of benefits, provided the claims satisfy certain conditions. Repeals language allowing for marketing of the Medicaid program. Requires the office to receive and review data from specified federal and state agencies concerning Medicaid recipients to determine whether circumstances have changed that affect Medicaid eligibility for recipients and to perform a redetermination. Requires the office to establish: (1) performance standards for hospitals that make presumptive eligibility determinations and sets out action for when hospitals do not comply with the standards; and (2) an appeals procedure for hospitals that dispute the violation determination. Sets out a hospital's responsibilities when making a presumptive eligibility determination. Imposes corrective action and restrictions for failing to meet presumptive eligibility standards. Specifies requirements, allowances, and limitations for the healthy Indiana plan.

Establishes the northwest Indiana professional sports development commission. Authorizes the commission to study various plans and recommendations that are proposed with respect to attracting a professional sports franchise to northwest Indiana. Authorizes the commission to prepare a comprehensive master plan for building the facilities and other infrastructure necessary for attracting and developing one or more professional sports franchises in northwest Indiana. Creates the professional sports development fund.

Maddy summaryHB 1478 removes the sunset provision associated with pro bono legal services fees. This action makes the collection of these fees permanent, rather than allowing them to expire on a predetermined date. The bill ensures that the established funding mechanism for pro bono legal services will continue indefinitely, impacting legal aid organizations and the availability of free legal assistance.

Prohibits a water utility from constructing a long haul water pipeline unless the water utility first obtains a certificate of public convenience and necessity (CPCN) from the Indiana utility regulatory commission (IURC). Sets forth specified information that an application for a CPCN must include. Sets forth specified findings that the IURC must make before granting a CPCN. Sets forth conditions under which a water utility may recover through rates the actual costs the water utility incurs in reliance on a CPCN issued by the IURC. Provides that a person that transfers, sells, or leases a long haul water pipeline must provide written notice to the IURC of the transfer, sale, or lease not later than 60 days after the transfer, sale, or lease is finalized. Prohibits a person that transfers or proposes to transfer: (1) more than an annual average of 30,000,000 gallons of water per day out of a basin; or (2) water from a restricted use area; from transferring water out of a basin, or supplying water to another person that the person knows will transfer more than 100,000 gallons of water out of a basin, without first obtaining a transfer permit from the department of natural resources (department). Sets forth specified information that must be included in an application for a transfer permit. Provides that a transfer permit is required for an existing or ongoing interbasin transfer (as of July 1, 2025) if the existing or ongoing transfer exceeds the capacity of any system engaged in the interbasin transfer in any 90 day period. Provides that the department shall approve an application for a permit if the department determines that the transfer: (1) will not result in a perennial overdraft of a ground water resource or in a perennial stream flow depletion; and (2) is in the public interest, as described in the Indiana Code section concerning beneficial uses of Indiana's surface water resources. Provides that a transfer permit: (1) does not expire; and (2) may be renewed, revoked, suspended, or modified in certain circumstances. Provides that the department may assess a civil penalty for violations of these provisions.

Maddy summarySB 462 reenacts an expired provision within the definition of "practitioner" as it pertains to behavior analysts. This means it restores a previously existing clarification for who is considered a practitioner in the field of behavior analysis.

Prohibits the submission of an application for a certificate of public advantage (application) after May 13, 2025. Changes the time frame in which the Indiana department of health has to review and make a determination on an application filed during a specified time frame.