Healthcare

died · Montana · House May 22, 2025

HB 377: Generally revise access by parent to child patient health care information

HB 377 revises Montana law to ensure parents generally have access to their minor child's health care records. It requires health providers to give parents access to a child's health information within 3 days of a request (or provide contact details for the records' location), with exceptions for court-limited parental rights, child abuse investigations, or government guardianship. The bill also clarifies that minors who can consent to certain care (like mental health services) have exclusive control over information related to that specific care, removing a minor's ability to enforce privacy violations by non-HIPAA-covered providers. This primarily affects parents, minors seeking care without parental consent, and health care providers managing minors' records.

Topics ✓ HealthcareSupports HealthcareBill clarifies parental access to minor's health records while protecting minors' privacy in mental health services, supporting patient rights in healthcare.90% confidence | Rep's Stance ✓ Voted Yes ✓ Supports Healthcare

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died · Montana · House May 22, 2025

HB 758: Revise health care laws relating to out-of-network services

HB 758 aims to protect health benefit plan enrollees from balance billing for out-of-network ground ambulance services. It prohibits ambulance services from billing enrollees more than their in-network cost-sharing for covered transportation. The bill requires insurers to pay ambulance providers directly, caps out-of-pocket costs for these services at $100, and ensures these costs count towards deductibles. It also mandates that insurers reimburse ambulance services at established local rates or at least 400% of the Medicare rate if no contracted rate exists, and requires the state to create a public database of local ambulance rates.

Topics ✓ HealthcareSupports HealthcarePrevents balance billing for ambulance services, caps out-of-pocket costs at $100, and ensures costs count toward deductibles, strengthening patient access and financial protection in healthcare.95% confidence | Rep's Stance ✓ Voted Yes ✓ Supports Healthcare

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died · Montana · House May 22, 2025

HB 50: Provide protections to parents and pregnant women with substance use disorder

HB 50 protects parents and pregnant women with drug use disorder by preventing child welfare investigations or custody actions solely based on positive drug test results. It amends Montana law to shield individuals seeking treatment or prenatal care from criminal charges related to drug use, and prohibits using drug test results alone to initiate child abuse cases or remove children from homes. The bill directly affects pregnant women, parents, healthcare providers, and child welfare systems by ensuring medical care access isn't penalized. Key provisions include immunity for seeking overdose help and requiring medical evaluation as the primary factor in child welfare decisions.

Topics ✓ Criminal JusticeSupports Criminal JusticePrevents criminal charges for drug use when seeking treatment, reducing criminalization and aligning with justice reform by diverting to healthcare instead of prosecution.90% confidence ✓ HealthcareSupports HealthcareBill prevents criminal charges and child welfare actions for seeking substance use treatment/prenatal care, directly protecting patient access and rights in healthcare services per summary.90% confidence | Rep's Stance ✓ Voted Yes ✓ Supports Healthcare

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died · Montana · House May 22, 2025

HB 912: Generally revise behavioral health laws to create a secure forensic facility

HB 912 proposes creating a new secure forensic facility in Montana, overseen by the Department of Public Health and Human Services. This facility would provide care, treatment, and security for up to 70 individuals involved in the legal system due to mental illness, including those needing competency restoration or forensic evaluations. The bill allocates $60 million from the Behavioral Health System for Future Generations Fund to plan, construct, and equip this facility, while also expanding the fund's uses to support new behavioral health infrastructure.

Topics ✓ Criminal JusticeSupports Criminal JusticeCreates secure forensic facility for mental health treatment in legal system, advancing rehabilitation and competency restoration within criminal justice framework.95% confidence ✓ HealthcareSupports HealthcareAllocates $60M from behavioral health fund to create facility providing mental health care/treatment for forensic patients, directly advancing mental health services under healthcare topic.95% confidence | Rep's Stance ✓ Voted Yes ✓ Supports Healthcare

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died · Montana · House May 20, 2025

HB 199: Increase physician assistant membership on the board of medical examiners

HB 199 proposed to modify the composition of the Montana State Board of Medical Examiners. The bill aimed to reduce the number of doctor of medicine members on the board from five to four. Concurrently, it sought to increase the number of physician assistant members from one to two. This adjustment would directly affect the representation of these medical professionals on the 12-member board.

Topics ✓ HealthcareSupports HealthcareBill increases PA representation on medical board, potentially enhancing provider roles in healthcare policy and access to services.85% confidence | Rep's Stance ✓ Voted Yes ✓ Supports Healthcare

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died · Montana · House May 20, 2025

HB 237: Prohibit placement of sentenced defendants in the state forensic mental health facility

HB 237 would prohibit the placement of certain sentenced defendants in the state forensic mental health facility at Galen. The bill amends existing law to specify that individuals found to have a mental disease, disorder, or developmental disability at the time of their offense, and who are committed for treatment, cannot be placed at the Galen facility. Instead, these defendants could be placed in other appropriate correctional, mental health, residential, or developmental disabilities facilities for their custody, care, and treatment. The director of the department would retain the authority to transfer individuals between these alternative facilities.

Topics ✓ Criminal JusticeSupports Criminal JusticeRedirects mentally ill defendants from forensic facility to appropriate care, promoting rehabilitation over incarceration - aligns with criminal justice reform goals.90% confidence ✓ HealthcareSupports HealthcareBill mandates placement in mental health facilities for eligible defendants, ensuring appropriate care under Health Care Services subject.85% confidence | Rep's Stance ✓ Voted Yes ✓ Supports Healthcare

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died · Montana · House May 20, 2025

HB 653: Provide for parental right to access child's health care information

HB 653 revises state law regarding parental access to a child's health care information and consent for medical care. The bill generally requires parental consent for most medical procedures, examinations, prescription drugs, and mental health services for children, with exceptions for emergencies. It also mandates that health care providers make a child's health information available to a parent within 10 days of a request. However, parental access to this information is not required if a government entity is the child's guardian, a court order limits parental rights, or the parent is under investigation for abuse or a crime against the child.

Topics ✗ HealthcareOpposes HealthcareRequires parental consent for most medical procedures, restricting minors' access to healthcare services without parental involvement, including mental health services.95% confidence | Rep's Stance ✗ Voted No ✓ Supports Healthcare

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died · Montana · House May 20, 2025

HB 273: Provide for limitations on collection of medical debt

HB 273, the "Montana Medical Debt Patient Protection Act," aimed to limit how health care providers and third-party collectors pursue medical debt from patients in Montana. The bill would have prohibited certain collection actions, including wage garnishment, placing liens on a patient's primary residence, and reporting adverse information to credit agencies. It also mandated a 180-day waiting period after the first bill before "extraordinary collection actions," such as filing lawsuits or selling debt, could begin, along with requiring a 30-day notice to the patient. Additionally, it sought to provide patients with an opportunity to appeal insurance decisions before a bill went to collections.

Topics ✓ HealthcareSupports HealthcareBill protects patients from aggressive debt collection (wage garnishment, liens, credit reporting), directly improving healthcare access and patient rights as a core healthcare policy indicator.95% confidence ✓ Labor & EmploymentSupports Labor & EmploymentProhibits wage garnishment for medical debt, protecting workers' earnings from debt collection actions that directly impact income.95% confidence | Rep's Stance ✓ Voted Yes ✓ Supports Healthcare

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died · Montana · House May 20, 2025

HB 737: Generally revise suicide prevention laws

HB 737, titled "Generally revise suicide prevention laws," establishes a voluntary do-not-sell list to aid in suicide prevention for Montana citizens. This bill allows individuals to voluntarily waive their firearm rights by adding themselves to the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS) indices, restricting them from purchasing firearms. Voluntary waiver forms would be made available by state departments, courts, medical professionals, and local law enforcement. Individuals can request removal from the list, which typically takes 21 days, or seek expedited removal through a court hearing within two business days. The bill also provides for the confidentiality of waiver documents and prohibits discrimination based on a person's voluntary waiver, while outlining penalties for false statements or coercion.

Topics ✓ HealthcareSupports HealthcareBill integrates mental health prevention through voluntary firearm restrictions, involving medical professionals to protect public health and reduce suicide risk.95% confidence | Rep's Stance ✓ Voted Yes ✓ Supports Healthcare

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died · Montana · House May 20, 2025

HB 540: Alllow DOC to contract with private corporations to establish and maintain certain facilities and programs

This bill, HB 540, aims to revise the powers of the Department of Corrections (DOC) by allowing it to contract with private corporations to establish and maintain certain facilities and programs. Specifically, it amends existing law regarding who the DOC can contract with for services like prerelease and treatment centers, residential methamphetamine treatment programs, and residential sexual offender treatment programs. While existing law already allows contracting with private,

Topics ✓ Criminal JusticeSupports Criminal JusticeEnables private contracts for correctional treatment programs, expanding rehabilitation services within the corrections system.85% confidence ✓ HealthcareSupports HealthcareBill enables DOC to contract for substance abuse (meth) and sexual offender treatment programs, expanding access to mental health services within corrections. This aligns with healthcare support indicators.90% confidence | Rep's Stance ✓ Voted Yes ✓ Supports Healthcare

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