This bill requires Iowa employers with 10 or more full-time employees to provide up to 12 weeks of paid leave to workers whose child is hospitalized in a neonatal intensive care unit (NICU). The leave must be paid at the employee's regular hourly rate or salary, including all benefits like health insurance. Employers who fail to comply face penalties, including back pay and legal costs, with enforcement handled by the Department of Inspections, Appeals, and Licensing. It directly affects Iowa workers with newborns in NICU care and their employers.
HF 2454 creates a temporary license for mental health counselors who have met all licensing requirements except the postgraduate supervised clinical experience. This allows school districts, accredited nonpublic schools, charter schools, and innovation zone schools to hire such temporary counselors to provide mental health services to students under a qualified supervisor. The temporary license is valid for three years and renewable, with fees set by the licensing board to cover administrative costs. Schools must ensure these counselors work under supervision as defined by the board.
HF 2564 allows pregnant minors in Iowa to legally consent to prenatal, intrapartum, and postnatal medical care from specific healthcare providers (including physicians, nurse practitioners, and emergency providers) if their parent, guardian, or legal custodian is not reasonably available. This directly affects pregnant minors who lack immediate adult support for their medical needs. The bill ensures minors can authorize care without parental involvement in these specific circumstances, while maintaining that healthcare providers must still obtain the minor’s informed consent. It does not change existing requirements for providers to secure consent directly from the minor patient.
This bill (SF 2322) requires most health insurance plans in Iowa to cap out-of-pocket costs for prescription insulin at $35 per prescription for up to a 31-day supply. It directly affects diabetes patients covered by health insurance plans that include prescription drug coverage, limiting their cost-sharing for four types of insulin: rapid-acting, short-acting, intermediate-acting, and long-acting. The cap applies to any covered insulin prescribed as medically necessary by a healthcare provider, though insurers may choose to set lower cost-sharing amounts. The rule takes effect for plans issued or renewed on or after January 1, 2027, and excludes certain specialized insurance types like Medicare supplements.
This bill (SF 2226) requires health insurance carriers in Iowa to use human clinical reviewers before automatically denying or downcoding claims submitted by health care providers. It mandates detailed written notices to providers explaining any automated denial or downcode, including the reason, policy justification, and appeal rights (with 30 days to appeal). Health carriers must also disclose their automated system use and oversight processes to the insurance commissioner and maintain documentation for five years. The law applies directly to health carriers (insurance companies, HMOs, etc.) and affects health care providers who submit claims for reimbursement.
SF 2347 allows Iowa cities to establish a property tax fund for emergency medical services (EMS) after voter approval. Cities must meet specific conditions: they cannot have an existing EMS district (Chapter 357G), participate in an emergency response district (Chapter 357J), or be in a county already levying a similar tax under Chapter 422D. The bill authorizes cities to impose a maximum property tax rate of $0.75 per $1,000 of assessed value, subject to a 60% voter approval threshold at a city election. This fund would cover EMS costs, including those listed in Chapter 422D.6, and the tax can be terminated using the same voter approval process.
This bill clarifies cost-sharing rules for people enrolled in qualified high-deductible health plans (HDHPs) who also use health savings accounts (HSAs). It ensures that copayments, coinsurance, or deductibles paid by plan members won't make them ineligible for an HSA - unless the service is preventive care. Specifically, cost-sharing amounts only count toward the deductible after the member meets their minimum deductible, with preventive care exceptions applying immediately. The bill directly affects individuals using HDHPs and HSAs in Iowa, aligning state rules with federal HSA eligibility requirements under the Internal Revenue Code.
SF 2239 establishes Iowa's first state-run paid family and medical leave insurance program. It requires private employers with 10+ employees and all public employers to provide eligible workers with up to 12 weeks of paid leave for family reasons (like bonding with a newborn or caring for a sick family member) and up to 12 weeks for medical reasons (an employee's own serious health condition). To qualify, employees must have worked 1,250 hours over the past 12 months for their employer. The program, administered by the Iowa Department of Workforce Development, allows a combined maximum of 16 weeks of paid leave for both family and medical needs within any 12-month period.
SF 2184 updates Iowa's licensing rules for medical doctors (both allopathic and osteopathic) and administrative medicine license holders. It requires licenses to expire on the licensee's birthday, limits renewal to every three years, caps continuing education at 15 hours annually, and mandates final license decisions within 45 days (or 75 days with notice of delays). The bill directly affects all physicians and administrative medicine licensees in Iowa by streamlining application processing and reducing recurring requirements. Key provisions include standardized license terms, simplified renewal rules, and clear timelines for board decisions.
HF 2663 appropriates $2 million to fund a University of Iowa study on the underlying causes of cancer rates in Iowa, and $3 million to the Department of Health and Human Services to award grants supporting clinical cancer research and improving access to cancer research trials for Iowa residents. The funds would cover research costs at the university and allow the health department to provide grants to public or private organizations running cancer research programs. This is a funding measure for research infrastructure, not a direct healthcare service or treatment program.
