This bill expands access to low-cost financing for nonprofit organizations and public-benefit projects in Montana, including hospitals, schools, renewable energy facilities, and family service providers. It increases the Montana Facility Finance Authority's bond issuance limit to $1.5 billion and adds a biennial inflation adjustment to that cap to maintain funding capacity over time. The legislation also updates legal definitions to clarify which types of facilities and entities qualify for these financing options, ensuring broader eligibility for community and economic development projects.
This bill revises Montana's Genetic Information Privacy Act to include neural data, which covers information generated by measuring brain and nervous system activity through devices. It directly affects individuals whose genetic or neural data is collected, as well as companies and organizations that offer genetic testing services or analyze such data. Key changes include adding a formal definition of neural data, updating privacy notice requirements to ensure consumers receive clear information about data collection, and expanding protections to cover both invasive and noninvasive neurotechnologies used outside medical settings. The legislation also strengthens the legal framework by adding legislative findings that recognize the sensitivity of neural data and its potential to reveal intimate information about health, mental states, and cognitive functioning.
This bill allows Montana counties and consolidated city-counties to vote on whether to implement a local sales tax, which would be limited to a maximum rate of 4%. The tax would apply to specific goods and services like restaurant meals, alcoholic beverages, non-SNAP food items, airport landings, and outdoor guiding services, while exempting essentials such as medicine, medical supplies, pet food, and cleaning products. Any revenue collected from this tax must be used exclusively for property tax relief on primary residences and long-term rentals within the taxing area. Additionally, a portion of the state's lodging and rental car sales tax revenue would be distributed to counties that choose not to levy their own local option tax.
This bill expands mandatory health insurance coverage in Montana to include hearing loss treatment for individuals of all ages, not just children. It amends existing state insurance laws to require group health plans to cover hearing loss treatments under the same provisions currently required for children with hearing loss. The legislation directly affects health insurance providers and policyholders by mandating that insurance contracts include these specific coverage provisions. The bill does not create new funding or change eligibility requirements, but rather updates existing statutory language to align coverage requirements with the age range of affected individuals.
This bill, known as the Prompt Cost Report Reimbursement Act, requires Montana's Department of Public Health and Human Services to process cost reports from critical access hospitals more quickly to ensure timely reimbursement. Currently, the department waits for Medicare audits before settling payments, which has caused multi-year delays for hospitals participating in Montana Medicaid. The law mandates that the department make an interim payment within 240 days of receiving a cost report, treating reported costs as accurate unless there are obvious errors. If an audit later reveals an overpayment, hospitals have 60 days to repay the amount, and if an underpayment is found, the department must reimburse within 90 days. The changes apply retroactively to cost reports submitted before the bill takes effect.
This bill adopts the Physician Assistant Licensure Compact, which allows licensed physician assistants to practice across multiple participating states without needing separate licenses for each location. The legislation establishes a system where a PA holding a valid license in one state can receive a compact privilege to practice in other states that have joined the agreement, while maintaining that the PA remains under the jurisdiction of the state where the patient is located during care. Key provisions include requirements for criminal background checks for all applicants, a centralized data system to track licenses and disciplinary actions, and special provisions for military families to obtain compact privileges based on their existing unrestricted licenses. The bill also creates a national commission to oversee the compact and grants state licensing boards authority to take adverse actions against PAs practicing under compact privileges.
This bill establishes a clearer framework for funding education for children in Montana who are receiving inpatient treatment for serious emotional disturbances at state-qualified facilities. It requires the Superintendent of Public Instruction to create rules for calculating tuition costs and outlines how state and local school districts will share payment responsibilities for these educational services. The legislation also clarifies that facilities must prioritize Montana residents, prohibits additional charges for eligible students, and provides backup options if a facility fails to offer appropriate educational programs.
This bill directs Montana's Department of Public Health and Human Services to stop enrolling new individuals in the expanded Medicaid program for able-bodied adults starting September 1, 2025, while allowing those already enrolled to continue coverage. The state will apply for a federal waiver to maintain funding for existing participants and may implement additional program requirements such as biannual eligibility reviews and lifetime benefit limits if federal funding decreases. The legislation also sets a termination date of June 30, 2025, for the current waiver and includes provisions for the program to end entirely once all enrolled participants have transitioned out of the expanded coverage.
This bill eliminates the termination of Montana's chemical dependency treatment voucher program by repealing a 2023 law that ended the program. It directly affects individuals who rely on state-funded vouchers to access substance abuse treatment services. The legislation restores the voucher system immediately upon passage and approval, allowing continued funding for eligible participants. By removing the previous restriction, the bill ensures the program remains available for those seeking chemical dependency treatment.
This bill prohibits health insurance companies in Montana from requiring prior authorization for psychiatric medications that are either in shortage or have been discontinued, as well as for long-acting injectable antipsychotics. It also removes prior authorization requirements for generic drugs that have been prescribed without interruption for six months and for dosage adjustments made by prescribers within FDA-approved ranges. Additionally, the bill mandates that any adverse prior authorization decisions for prescription drugs must be reviewed by a physician specializing in the relevant medical condition. These changes directly affect patients prescribed psychiatric medications and the insurance plans that cover them, aiming to reduce administrative barriers to accessing necessary mental health treatments.
