LEGISLATIVE UPDATE FROM EQUIP FOR EQUALITY
May 20, 2016
NOTE: May 27, 2016 is the 3rd reading deadline for substantive bills in the opposite house.
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The following are disability-related bills and/or issues pending in the Illinois General Assembly that are scheduled to be heard in committee during the week of May 23, 2016:
House Human Services Committee
May 24, 2016, 3:00 p.m.
Room C-1, Stratton Building
Springfield, IL
SB 420, HA 1, Representative Barbara Flynn Currie
Amends the Illinois Public Aid Code. Provides that the Department of Healthcare And Family Services may, by rule, exempt certain replacement wheelchair parts from prior approval and determine the wholesale price by methods other than actual acquisition costs. Provides that the Department shall require, by rule, all providers of durable medical equipment to be accredited by an accreditation organization approved by the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services and recognized by the Department in order to bill the Department for providing durable medical equipment to recipients. Provides that no later than 15 months after the effective date of the rule so adopted, all providers must meet the accreditation requirement.
SB 3080, Representative Greg Harris
Amends the Illinois Public Aid Code. In a provision concerning network adequacy for managed care organizations (MCO) contracted with the Department of Healthcare and Family Services, provides that each MCO shall confirm its receipt of information submitted specific to physician additions or physician deletions from the MCO’s provider network within 3 days after receiving all required information from contracted physicians, and electronic physician directories must be updated consistent with current rules as published by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services or its successor agency. Provides that (i) in no instance shall a medically necessary covered service rendered in good faith, based upon eligibility information documented by the provider, be denied coverage or diminished in payment amount if the eligibility or coverage information available at the time the service was rendered is later found to be inaccurate; and (ii) the Department shall, by December 31, 2016, adopt rules establishing policies that shall be included in the Medicaid managed care policy and procedures manual addressing payment resolutions in situations in which a provider renders services based upon information obtained after verifying a patient’s eligibility and coverage plan through either the Department’s current enrollment system or a system operated by the coverage plan identified by the patient presenting for certain services. Requires the Department to publish on at least a quarterly basis, each MCO’s operational performance, including, but not limited to, certain categories of metrics. Requires the Department to ensure that (1) the metrics report is accessible to providers online by January 1, 2017; (2) the metrics are developed in consultation with industry representatives of the Medicaid managed care health plans and representatives of associations representing the majority of providers within the identified industry; and (3) the metrics are defined and incorporated into the applicable Managed Care Policy Manual issued by the Department.
House Executive Committee
May 25, 2016, 8:30 a.m.
Room 118, Capitol Building
Springfield, IL
SB 2504, Representative Sara Feigenholtz
Amends the Specialized Mental Health Rehabilitation Act of 2013. Deletes a provision that provides that the emergency rules for provisional licensure shall be for a period of 3 years and shall not be extended beyond that date. Provides that except for initial licensure, the provisional period shall not extend beyond 3 years. Provides that at the end of the 3-year period a facility must be licensed as a specialized mental health rehabilitation facility pursuant to provisions of the Specialized Mental Health Rehabilitation Act of 2013. Amends the Illinois Act on Aging. Adds specialized mental health rehabilitation facilities under provisions of the Specialized Mental Health Rehabilitation Act of 2013 to the definition for “Long Term Care Facility”
SB 2596, Representative Fred Crespo
Amends the State Employees Group Insurance Act of 1971. Provides that physical therapy
benefits provided for persons affected by multiple sclerosis shall be governed by the Illinois Essential Health Benefits plan.
House Appropriations-General Services Committee
May 26, 2016, 9:00 a.m.
Room 118, Capitol Building
Springfield, IL
SUBJECT MATTER: FY 16 Budget and FY 17 Budget proposal.
Senate State Government and Veterans Affairs Committee
May 25, 2016, 3:00 p.m.
Room 409, Capitol Building
Springfield, IL
SR 1824, Senator Mattie Hunter
Urges all federal, State, and county legislators and officials to consider and enact policies to enhance access to mental health services at multiple levels in the criminal justice system which will create better results for both the individual and the system. Shows support for a wide range of programs to improve mental health treatment for individuals involved in the criminal justice system aimed to aid communities to end recidivism. Urges the law enforcement community to consider the integration of mental health treatment and services such as crisis intervention teams into the criminal justice system spectrum, in an effort to address mental health crisis situations and to reduce arrest rates. Calls upon all states and the federal government to examine the costs and benefits of suspending Medicaid coverage instead of termination of coverage for individuals in the criminal justice system and to allow Medicaid coverage to be suspended for incarcerated persons instead of being terminated. Calls upon the states and the federal government to consider promising criminal justice interventions and policies for mentally-ill offenders such as diversion programs and mental health courts to send seriously mentally ill offenders to community-based mental health treatment programs instead of prison or jail.
NOTE: If you wish to take any action regarding any of these bills/issues, you may wish to attend the committee hearing and/or contact the members of the Committee conducting the hearing and/or the legislators in your home district. The names, addresses, and telephone numbers of all legislators, both Representatives and Senators, can be found on the Illinois General Assembly website at: www.ilga.gov. You may check this website to find out if any of the committee hearing dates or times have been changed, which may happen upon very short notice. You may also use this website to file an electronic witness slip for any bill that is posted for hearing by clicking on “GA Dashboard” on the homepage.
For additional information, please contact:
Cheryl R. Jansen
Public Policy Director
Equip for Equality
217-544-0464 ext. 6013
