Del. Brian Chisholm

Maddy summaryHB 1351 requires health insurance carriers in Maryland to accept or reject applications from specific behavioral health professionals within 30 days of receiving a complete application. It directly affects licensed graduate social workers, counselors, therapists, and psychology associates who practice within their licensed scope, prohibiting carriers from rejecting them solely based on their license type. The bill shortens the decision timeline for clinical professionals (like Licensed Clinical Social Workers) to 30 days, compared to the previous 120-day window for others, and mandates written notice of decisions. Carriers failing to comply face penalties under Maryland insurance law. This change aims to streamline access to behavioral health services by reducing delays in provider panel enrollment.

Maddy summaryHB 995 establishes a 15-member workgroup to study rising adverse decisions (like denied insurance claims or medical necessity denials) in Maryland's health care system. The workgroup, including state agency leaders, hospital representatives, insurers, and patient advocates, will review current reporting data and recommend standardized definitions, reporting methods, and processes to reduce such denials. It must submit findings and recommendations to legislative committees by December 1, 2025, with the bill expiring June 30, 2026. This is a procedural study mechanism with no immediate policy changes.

Maddy summaryHB 11 updates Maryland health insurance rules to improve access to nonparticipating health providers, particularly for mental health and substance use disorder services. The bill requires insurers to establish a referral process that helps members connect with specialists not on their provider panel when needed, and to provide additional assistance if standard referrals fail. It also prohibits insurers from demanding prior authorization for scheduling appointments with nonparticipating providers for these services. Additionally, the Maryland Health Care Commission must set reimbursement rates for nonparticipating providers to ensure fair payment. This directly affects health insurance carriers and their members seeking specialized care outside their network.

Maddy summaryHB 776 updates Maryland's laws regulating physicians, physician assistants, and allied health professionals by revising outdated or inconsistent language in the Medical Practice Act and Physician Assistants Act. The bill clarifies licensure requirements, disciplinary procedures, and reporting rules for these healthcare professionals, while also modifying grounds for discipline and administrative penalties. It affects licensed medical practitioners, the State Board of Physicians, and allied health advisory committees by streamlining regulatory processes. The bill focuses on administrative modernization rather than creating new policy, removing redundant provisions and aligning existing rules across the statutes.

Maddy summaryHB 820 requires health insurance companies, pharmacy benefits managers, and private review agents to follow specific rules when using artificial intelligence (AI) for medical coverage decisions (utilization review). It mandates that AI tools base decisions on individual patient medical records - not just group data - and cannot replace healthcare providers in review processes. The bill also prohibits AI from causing prohibited discrimination and requires insurers to report whether AI was used in denied claims. This directly affects insurers and review entities that use AI to approve or deny treatments, hospital stays, or medications.

Maddy summaryHB 757 redirects funds from oil transfer license fees to establish a dedicated program for professional and volunteer firefighters' cancer screening. Starting in fiscal year 2026, $4 of the $9 per barrel oil transfer fee (collected under Maryland's Environment Article) will be transferred annually to the Professional and Volunteer Firefighter Innovative Cancer Screening Technologies Program. The Secretary of Health must use these funds exclusively for this program, including supporting academic medical centers for screening purposes. This bill directly affects Maryland firefighters by creating a new, ongoing funding source for innovative cancer screening technologies.

Maddy summaryHB 406 changes how hearing aid dispensers are appointed to Maryland's State Board of Examiners. The bill requires the Board to notify all licensed hearing aid dispensers in the state when a vacancy occurs, instead of relying solely on a pre-submitted list. It also mandates that the list of candidates provided to the Governor must include at least three times the number of available positions. This applies specifically to the three hearing aid dispenser members on the 15-member board, directly affecting licensed hearing aid dispensers seeking board appointments. The bill takes effect July 1, 2025.

Maddy summaryHB 56 allows the Maryland State Department of Education to directly manage master contracts for purchasing local food for schools, including food grown within 200 miles of schools, from certified local farms, and certified Chesapeake invasive species. This change removes the need for the Department to seek approval from other state procurement units for these specific purchases. The bill also requires the Department to coordinate with the Maryland Department of Agriculture and report annually to the legislature on the value and number of these contracts. The policy directly affects school meal programs, local farmers, and Chesapeake invasive species providers in Maryland.

Maddy summaryHB 333 requires Maryland's healthcare ecosystem entities - including hospitals, medical facilities, data exchanges, and other defined providers - to adopt cybersecurity standards, implement a "zero-trust" security approach, undergo third-party audits, and report incidents to the State Security Operations Center. It mandates the Maryland Health Care Commission to hire a cybersecurity expert to advise on oversight and collaborate with security offices. The bill also directs the Department of Emergency Management to convene a workgroup to study and improve healthcare cybersecurity practices. These requirements directly affect healthcare providers and data handlers but exclude insurers and pharmacy benefits managers.

Maddy summaryHB 869, the Preserve Telehealth Access Act of 2025, removes the June 30, 2025, expiration date from Maryland's law allowing audio-only telephone conversations to count as telehealth for reimbursement and coverage. The bill requires Maryland's Medicaid program and participating insurers to continue covering and reimbursing audio-only telehealth visits at the same rate as in-person services without time restrictions. This change directly affects Medicaid beneficiaries, health care providers, and private insurers operating in Maryland. The bill does not alter existing requirements that telehealth services must be medically necessary and appropriately delivered.