Final Report
2007 SESSION OF THE
MARYLAND GENERAL ASSEMBLY
Volume
14, Number 11����������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������
�������������������������������������������������������������������June 25, 2007
In this
first session of a four-year term, the Maryland General Assembly did not pass
any major budget or programmatic initiatives.�
Though careful not to worsen the state’s fiscal outlook, the
General Assembly deferred action on the state’s projected $1.5 billion
structural deficit.� Nevertheless, it was
an exciting session and a busy one for Johns Hopkins as legislation affecting
health care and hospitals took center stage and progress was made on several
key education and research priorities.� Here’s a look at the new laws and
legislative initiatives that will impact Johns Hopkins.
To view the legislative information
below, click on the subject of interest to go directly to that area or scroll
down to view the entire document.�
Background and summary information is provided for each subject area
followed by details on the bills that passed of interest to Johns
����������� Sellinger Aid
����������� Cigarette Restitution Fund
����������� Maryland Stem Cell Research Fund
����������� Medicaid
����������� Budget Outlook
BUSINESS & ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT
HEALTH INSURANCE/HEALTH CARE ACCESS
HIGHER EDUCATION AND FINANCIAL AID
MEDICAL LIABILITY & TORT REFORM
The General
Assembly approved a $30 billion operating budget on the last day of session,
one week behind schedule.� Despite the
unusual delay and some contentious debate, lawmakers in the end adopted a
budget bill that largely followed that proposed by Governor O’Malley.
Sellinger Aid:� $24.7 million for Johns
The Governor’s budget included $58.6 million for the Sellinger Aid Program, which provides unrestricted support
for private institutions of higher education—a 17.2% increase over FY
2007.� Although the House cut $1 million
from Sellinger by limiting annual growth to 15%, the
final budget restored full funding.�
Johns Hopkins received $24.7 million in Sellinger
Aid—a 17.6% increase over FY 2007.
Cigarette Restitution
Fund:� $3.7 million for Johns
Funding for stem cell research became a particular sticking
point in the budget debate during the final days of session.� The House supported full funding of the
Governor’s $25 million request, but the Senate cut the appropriation back
to $15 million, the amount in the FY 2007 budget.� In conference, lawmakers agreed to a
compromise of $23 million.
FY 2007 Stem Cell Research Fund Grants: On May 17, the Maryland Stem Cell
Research Commission announced that 24 investigators among 86 applicants had
been chosen to receive the state’s first grants for stem cell
research.� Investigators at Johns
Medicaid:
Medicaid constitutes the state’s largest single budget item, and costs
continue to grow at a rate that is consistently outpacing revenue.� The FY 2008 budget increases funding for
Medicaid and the Maryland Children’s Health Program (
Physician Reimbursement:� $40
million increase
The $40 million enhancement in FY
2008 physician reimbursement represents the third year of the four year
initiative to raise Medicaid reimbursement rates to 100% of the Medicare fee
schedule.
Hospital Day Limits:� $17.2 million reduction
The Governor’s proposed budget
eliminated hospital day limits, which cap the number of days Medicaid will pay
for a hospital stay and were instituted in 2003 as a short-term cost savings
measure scheduled to terminate
Budget Outlook: The significant imbalance between
incoming revenues and ongoing spending is projected to lead to a cash shortfall of $1.5 billion in FY
2009.� Over the last five years, as K-12
education spending rose dramatically, the state spent
down a number of special funds rather than make significant programmatic
cuts.� The state is now holding a reserve
fund balance of only $68 million, or 5% of the general fund—the minimum
recommended for
Also on the
final day of session, the General Assembly approved a capital budget of $805
million for FY 2008.� As Governor
O’Malley promised during his gubernatorial campaign, public school
construction was a top priority in formulating the capital budget,
with over $385 million in funding that consumes nearly half of total budget
dollars (an additional $15 million in operating funds brings the total up to
$400 million).� The budget includes the
following projects at Johns Hopkins:
Cardiovascular and
Gilman Hall Renovations:� $2
million
Maryland Independent Colleges and
Universities Association (MICUA) received $8 million in bond funding (including $2 million
for Gilman Hall) for the following projects:
Mount
Maryland Hospital Association (MHA) received $5 million in bond funding
(including $560,000 for the
Adventist HealthCare���������������������� $�� 120,000������� ��� Shady Grove Hospital Prenatal Center
����������������������������������������������������������������������������� ��� Child Sexual Assault Services
Shore Health System���������������������� $�� 500,000������� ��� Dorchester General ED renovation
St. Agnes HealthCare��������������������� $�� 560,000������� ��� Birthing Center/NICU renovation
In
addition, $5 million was allocated to the East
Baltimore Development, Inc. (EBDI) biotechnology park.
Business &
Economic Development
On the last
day of session, the legislature passed a “living
wage” bill and made Maryland the first state in the nation to require
contractors to pay a living wage to employees who perform work under state
contracts—$11.30/hour in the Baltimore-Washington metropolitan area and
$8.50/hour elsewhere in the state, with the rates adjusted annually based on
the Consumer Price Index.� Also a leader
in living wage initiatives,
With the
state facing unprecedented opportunities and challenges as a result of the Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC)
process, lawmakers passed bills to establish a subcabinet
in the executive branch and a joint committee in the legislative branch to
facilitate state action and planning.
A number of
proposals aimed at protecting consumers against identify theft were debated
this session.� The legislation that
passed, the Personal Information
Protection Act, requires businesses to take measures to protect personal
information and to promptly disclose security breaches of personal data.� Johns Hopkins’ response to a possible
loss of personal information in February 2007 exceeded the notification
requirements of the bill.
For the biotechnology investment tax credit
program established in 2005, the FY 2008 budget again approved $6 million,
although legislation failed that would have raised the maximum credit value and
allowed excess credits to be carried forward to future taxable years.
A
gubernatorial initiative was passed establishing a Life Sciences Advisory Board for promoting collaboration and
coordination among life sciences organizations and institutions of higher
education in the state.� A Senate bill
that would have expanded the prohibition
against human cloning to include cells derived from somatic cell nuclear
transfer (SCNT) research received an unfavorable report.� Additionally, a bill that would have
established a biomedical product
development fund for research and development on the treatment of
smoking-related diseases funded by an increase in the tobacco tax, and a bill
that would have increased the annual cap on the R&D tax credit program from $6 million to $12 million also
failed.
Legislation
failed again this session that would have established a tax credit program for
a business or nonprofit organization that provides adult literacy services to its employees.� Although legislation also failed that would
have established a job skills
advancement training program for awarding grants to local workforce
investment boards, legislative leaders requested that the Secretary of Labor,
Licensing and Regulation meet with stakeholders during the interim and report
back to the General Assembly on the issue.�
Several bills regarding procurement activities and minority business enterprise participation were debated this
session, but no committee action was taken on the measures.
During the
2006 session, forty-three bills relating to eminent domain were introduced and all failed.� Of the thirteen eminent domain bills
introduced during the 2007 session, only one was successful.� This measure, for the first time in almost
forty years, increases a number of caps on compensation for homeowners,
tenants, and business and farm owners displaced as a result of an eminent domain
action.
HB 208� Consumer Protection - Personal Information Protection Act
This act requires a business that owns or
licenses personal information of a
On discovery or notification of a “breach of the security of
a system,” a business that owns or licenses computerized data that
includes personal information of a
Notification must include: a description of the categories of
information that may have been acquired by an unauthorized person; contact
information for the business making the notification; contact information for
the major consumer reporting agencies; and contact information for the Federal
Trade Commission and the Office of the Attorney General.� If a business is required to give notice to
1,000 or more individuals, the business must also notify all nationwide
consumer reporting agencies of the timing, distribution, and content of the
notices.
A violation of this act is an unfair or deceptive trade practice
under the Maryland Consumer Protection Act.
Effective Date:�
Signed by the Governor on
For more information, please contact:� Tom Lewis
HB 430� State Procurement Contracts - Living Wage
This act requires state contractors and subcontractors to pay
employees a minimum “living wage”:�
$11.30/hour for contract services in which at least half of the total
value of the contract is performed in
An employer with a state contract valued at less than $100,000, or
an employer with a state contract valued at less than $500,000 and ten or fewer
employees, is exempt from paying the living wage.� Further, this act does not apply to an
employee who is under the age of eighteen or works for less than thirteen
consecutive weeks, or to a contract for emergency services or a contract with a
nonprofit organization.
The act establishes procedures for investigating complaints and
penalizing the noncompliant.� Uncodified language requires several studies to evaluate
the effects of the living wage provisions in the public and private sectors.
Effective Date:�
October 1, 2007
Signed by the Governor on
For more information, please contact:� Matt Greenwood
HB 1197� Business and Economic Development -
This act clarifies that
the Maryland Research and Development Tax Credit will continue to be available
even if the federal Research and Development Tax Credit is repealed or
terminated.
Effective Date:�
Signed by the Governor on
For more information, please contact:� Tom Lewis
HB 1320� Joint Committee on Base Realignment and Closure
This act creates a Joint
Committee on Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC) comprised of six members of
the House of Delegates and six members of the Senate and charged with
overseeing the state’s response to BRAC-related opportunities and
challenges.� The joint committee must
also oversee and participate, in cooperation with local and state units, in
developing systems and processes that fast track the approval of: BRAC-related
transportation infrastructure; water and sewer infrastructure; state and local
planning processes; affordable housing options; education facilities, including
public school and community college construction; and health care facilities
and infrastructure.
Effective Date:�
Signed by the Governor on
For more information, please contact:� Tom Lewis
HB 1379� Voice Over Internet Protocol Service
This act deregulates Voice over Internet Protocol Service (VoIP), removing it from the jurisdiction of the Public
Service Commission (
The
In addition, the
Effective Date:�
Signed by the Governor on
For more information, please contact:� Tom Lewis
SB 3� Real Property - Condemnation - Procedures and Compensation
This act increases the cap on compensation for homeowners,
tenants, and business and farm owners who are displaced as a result of a
condemnation action:
�
$22,500 to $45,000 for a displaced homeowner;
�
$5,250 to $10,500 for a displaced tenant for a comparable
replacement dwelling;
�
$10,000 to $60,000 for a displaced farm, nonprofit, or small
business for actual reasonable reestablishment expenses; and
�
$20,000 to $60,000 as an alternative payment that may be elected
by a displaced business or farm operation in lieu of relocation.
When any part of the private property to be acquired in a
condemnation action includes a business or farm operation, a representative of
the displacing agency must contact the owner of the business or farm operation
at least thirty days before filing the action and negotiate in good faith
regarding a relocation plan.
The state, its instrumentalities, or its political subdivisions
must file a condemnation action within four years after the date of the
specific administrative or legislative authorization to acquire the
property.� If an action is not filed
within that four-year period, the governmental unit may not proceed until it
first obtains a new authorization to acquire the property.� With regard to a condemnation authorization
granted before the effective date of the act, the state must file an action for
condemnation within four years of the act's effective date.
Effective Date:�
Signed by the Governor on
For more information, please contact:� Tom Lewis
SB 104�
This act establishes the Maryland Life Sciences Advisory Board in
the Department of Business and Economic Development charged with developing a
comprehensive strategic plan for the life sciences in
Effective Date:�
Signed by the Governor on
For more information, please contact:� Tom Lewis
SB 110� Base Realignment and Closure Subcabinet
This act creates a Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC) subcabinet in state government to coordinate andoversee the implementation of all state action to support
the mission of the military installations affected by BRAC.� Chaired by the Lieutenant Governor, the
ten-member subcabinet will also include the State
Superintendent of Schools and the Secretaries of Budget and Management,
Business and Economic Development, Environment, Higher Education, Housing and
Community Development, Labor, Licensing and Regulation, Planning, and
Transportation.
The subcabinet is charged with several
tasks, including:
�
coordinating and overseeing the development of BRAC-related initiatives
in education; workforce readiness; business development; community
infrastructure and growth; health care facilities, services, and workforce
infrastructure; workforce housing; environmental stewardship; and
transportation;
�
working with local jurisdictions affected by BRAC to facilitate
planning, coordination, and cooperation with the state;
�
working with
�
collaborating with and reviewing the recommendations of the
Maryland Military Installation Council; and
�
making policy and budget recommendations to the
Governor and General Assembly to strengthen state support of military
installations.
The subcabinet must meet regularly and
report to the Governor and General Assembly annually.� Subcommittees of the subcabinet
may be established to deal with particular issues and may include other cabinet
members and individuals such as state and local officials and private citizens.
Effective Date:�
Signed by the Governor on
For more information, please
contact:� Tom Lewis
Passage of the Maryland
Clean Cars Act was a major win for environmentalists this session.�
Despite its passage in the House, the Chesapeake Bay green fund bill, which would have supported bay
restoration with a projected $100 million in funding raised annually from a fee
assessed on “new impervious surface” development, could not
overcome concerns about its cost and fiscal sustainability in the Senate.� Nevertheless, Senate President Miller has
indicated that the legislation has a promising future.
HB 488� Environment - Statewide Electronics Recycling Program
This act expands the current computer recycling
program to include computer or video display devices that measure more than
four inches diagonally and are not part of a motor vehicle, household
appliance, or commercial, industrial, or medical equipment.
The act requires all manufacturers producing more than an average
of 1,000 covered electronic devices (rather than simply computers) per year to
register with the Maryland Department of the Environment (MDE) and increases
the initial registration fee from $5,000 to $10,000.� MDE is required to keep a list of the
registered manufacturers of covered electronic devices.� Retailers are barred from selling covered
electronic devices which were made by unregistered manufacturers.�
The Comptroller is authorized to asses a penalty of $500 per
violation, up to $5,000 total.�� All
fines and penalties will go to the State Recycling Trust Fund, and the act
provides that the first $2 million of unspent or unencumbered funds would not
revert to the General Fund.
Effective Date:�
Signed by the Governor on
For more information, please contact:� Matt Greenwood
SB 103�
This act requires the Maryland Department of the Environment
(MDE), in consultation with the Motor Vehicle Administration (MVA), to
establish by regulation a Low Emissions Vehicle (LEV) Program applicable to
vehicles of the 2011 model year and each model year thereafter.
The act authorizes MDE to: (1) adopt
The act also defines a zero emission vehicle (ZEV) and requires
the MVA and the Secretary of the Environment to adopt regulations as to which
vehicles constitute ZEVs.� In addition, it extends the exemption from
Vehicle Emissions Inspection Program (VEIP) testing for qualified hybrid
vehicles that have a fuel economy rating of 50 miles per gallon from
The act establishes the Maryland Clean Car and Energy Policy Task
Force, with a senator and a delegate as co-chairs, to:
�
study the activities of neighboring states with respect to vehicle
emissions standards;
�
study regulatory actions by
�
study emerging energy technologies;
�
review state energy policies and consider proposals and strategies
to develop alternative fuels and efficiency measures to improve the
state’s air quality; and
�
make legislative recommendations.
The task force must report its recommendations and findings to the
Governor and General Assembly annually by December 31, until the task force
terminates
Effective Date:� June 1, 2007
Signed by the Governor on
For more information, please contact:� Matt Greenwood
SB 674�
This act adds several new products to the Maryland Energy
Efficiency Standards Act.� The Maryland
Energy Administration (MEA) must set minimum efficiency standards for the
following new products by
MEA is authorized to establish minimum efficiency standards for
products not specifically listed under the Act and to increase the efficiency
standards for listed products.� MEA may
apply for a waiver of federal preemption for any product regulated by the
federal government.� Also, the Public
Service Commission must adopt regulations governing the purchase of
liquid-immersed distribution transformers by electric companies.
Effective Date:�
Signed by the Governor on
For more information, please
contact:� Matt Greenwood
SB 784� Stormwater Management Act of 2007
This act requires the Department of the
Environment (MDE) to adopt regulations regarding stormwater
management practices in
MDE’s regulations also must specify that all stormwater management plans be designed to prevent soil
erosion, prevent an increase in nonpoint pollution,
maintain the integrity of stream channels (both for drainage and their
biological function), and protect public safety through the proper design and
operation of stormwater management facilities.� MDE’s
regulations must also establish a comprehensive process for approving grading
and sediment control plans and stormwater management
plans that takes into account the cumulative impact of both plans.� MDE must evaluate options for a Stormwater Fee System to improve enforcement and report its
findings by
Effective Date:� October 1, 2007
Signed by the Governor on
For more information, please
contact:� Matt Greenwood
Bills passed reauthorizing and
revising the regulatory activities of two of
The General
Assembly asserted regulatory control of discount
medical plan organizations and discount drug plan organizations with
legislation that gives the Maryland Insurance Administration (MIA) oversight of
these organizations.� Currently, MIA has
no regulatory authority over these discount plans because they are not
technically engaged in the business of insurance.
HB 214� Health Care Decisions Act - "Patient's Plan of Care" Form –
Renaming
This act amends the Health Care Decisions Act by renaming
the "Patient's Plan of Care" form, which contains an individual's
advance directives, to the "Instructions on Current Life-Sustaining
Treatment Options" form.
Effective Date:� October 1, 2007
Signed by the Governor on
For more information, please
contact:� Sheila Higdon
HB 797� Study of Health Care Services for Children with Life-Threatening Medical
Conditions
This act requires the State Advisory Council on
Quality Care at the End of Life and the Maryland Health Care Commission to jointly
study the current services and potential care delivery alternatives for the
care of children with life-threatening medical conditions.� The study is to examine the availability of
palliative care services under the Maryland Medical Assistance Program and
privately-funded insurance for children diagnosed with life-threatening medical
conditions.� The study will also analyze
the impact in states that have adopted the Children’s Hospice
International Program for All-Inclusive Care for Children and their Families or
other palliative care demonstration projects, including whether such programs
may result in the reallocation of resources for more effective care within the
parameters of overall budget neutrality.�
Results of the study are due to the Governor and General Assembly by
Effective Date:� July 1, 2007
Signed by the Governor on
For more information, please
contact:� Sheila Higdon
HB 800�
This act implements several recommendations of
the October 2006 “sunset review” of the Maryland Health Care
Commission (MHCC) and moves forward the date of its next program evaluation to
Several changes are made to commission operations and funding,
such as standardizing quorum and voting requirements and authorizing MHCC to
collect data on payments to hospitals.�
This act also requires several studies and reports, including a report
on alternatives for individuals enrolled in the State’s Limited Health Benefit
Plan.
Effective Date:�
Signed by the Governor on
For more information, please contact:� Tom Lewis
HB 844� Health Services Cost Review Commission - Sunset Extension and Program
Evaluation
This act implements several recommendations of the October 2006
“sunset review” of the Health Services Cost Review Commission
(HSCRC) and moves forward the date of its next program evaluation to July 1,
2017.� The cap on the user fees assessed
on hospitals is increased from $4 million to $5.5 million.� The Department of Health and Mental Hygiene
is authorized to continue to assess an administrative charge on HSCRC for
services provided to HSCRC, and user fees may be used to cover these costs.
HSCRC’s annual report must
include an update on the status of the state’s Medicare waiver, a summary
of its role in hospital quality of care activities, and fund balance
information.� This act also requires the
board of the Maryland Health Insurance Plan (MHIP) to annually report on the
number of MHIP enrollees, any increase or decrease in enrollees from the
previous year, actions taken by the board to increase enrollment or benefits,
and the amount of any fund surplus.�
Several one-time reports are also required.
Effective Date:�
Signed by the Governor on
For more information, please contact:� Tom Lewis
HB 847� Discount Medical Plan Organizations and Discount Drug Plan Organizations -
Registration and Regulation�
This
act requires discount medical plan (DMP) organizations and discount drug plan
(DDP) organizations to register with the Maryland Insurance Administration
(MIA) before selling, marketing, or soliciting a DMP or DDP in the state.� MIA has the right to deny registration or
refuse to renew, suspend, or revoke the registration.
The act also provides for limitations on advertising, plan access,
payment to medical providers, termination of plan membership, and disclosure
and notification requirements.� MIA may
examine the affairs, transactions, accounts, records, and assets of a DMP or
DDP organization; issue a cease and desist order for �� violations; require corrective action, including
restitution; and impose penalties.
Effective Date:�
Signed by the Governor on
For more information, please contact:� Tom Lewis
There was a great sense of urgency this session to find a
long-term, sustainable solution to the financial crisis facing
Lawmakers approved adding a second freestanding emergency
medical facility, located in Queen Anne’s County, to the “freestanding medical facility pilot project”
established in 2005.� Queen Anne’s
County does not have a hospital, so the project will be established and
operated by
Legislation that would have required hospitals to establish health care-associated infection prevention
and control programs received an unfavorable report again this
session.� The bill would have mandated
that hospitals identify colonized or infected patients through active
surveillance cultures and report annually on incidents of Methicillin-resistant
Staphylococcus aureus
(
Legislation passed adding anaplasmosis and babesiosis to the list of sixty-six
invasive diseases that medical laboratories in
Lawmakers passed a bill establishing a Health Information Exchange Pilot Project to be operated by the
Maryland/DC Collaborative for Healthcare Information Technology for the
transmission of medication history, laboratory and radiology results, and
inpatient and emergency department discharge summaries to participating
providers.� The Maryland/DC Collaborative
is a non-profit corporation aimed at establishing a regional health information
organization (RHIO) that will link a broad range of health care providers.� The collaborative includes community
hospitals, CareFirst BlueCross BlueShield, Aetna,
A bill passed removing the Executive Director of the Maryland Institute for Emergency Medical
Services Systems (MIEMSS) from the Board of Directors of the University of Maryland Medical System (UMMS).� Legislators were concerned about the
potential conflict of interest created by having the MIEMSS Executive Director
simultaneously serve as a voting member of the UMMS board.� Although MIEMSS became an independent state
agency in 1993, this dual relationship was a remnant of its historical
relationship with UMMS’ R Adams Cowley Shock Trauma Center.
HB 119� Health - Laboratory Examination Reports - Invasive Diseases
This act adds anaplasmosis
and babesiosis, which are both caused by ticks, to
the list of invasive diseases orconditions that
medical laboratories must report to the local health department.� In addition, the Department of Health and
Mental Hygiene must pursue epidemiologic follow-up and laboratory confirmation
of anaplasmosis and babesiosis
and, by
Effective Date:�
Signed by the Governor on
For more information, please contact:� Sheila Higdon
HB 343� Department of Health and Mental Hygiene - Laboratories - Letter of Exception
This act alters the requirement that limited medical laboratory
tests or examinations must be simple procedures for the laboratory to receive a
letter of exception to the state’s licensing requirement by repealing the
word “simple.”� The act
allows the Secretary of Health and Mental Hygiene to grant a letter of
exception to out-of-state laboratories performing rare and unusual tests in
order to enhance access to these tests by
Effective Date: ��October
1, 2007
Signed by the Governor on
For more information, please contact:� Sheila Higdon
HB 640� Mental Hygiene Facilities - Patient Rights
This act prohibits locked door seclusions and certain types of
physical restraints or holds for a mentally ill individual in a mental health
facility; it does not include acute general hospitals that do not have a
separately identified inpatient psychiatric service.
The act restricts the use of seclusions and restraints for use
only during an emergency in which the behavior of the individual places the
individual or others at serious threat of violence or injury.� The act requires that each individual in a
facility be free from physical restraint or hold that places the individual
face down with pressure applied to the back; obstructs the individual’s
airway or impairs the individual’s ability to breathe; obstructs a staff
member’s view of the individual’s face; or restricts the
individual's ability to communicate distress.�
An individual may be placed face down momentarily to transition the
individual to a restraint position.
A facility must have a written policy on the method used to ensure
that an individual whose primary method of communication is nonverbal is able
to communicate distress during physical restraint or hold and ensure that all
staff authorized to participate in physical restraint are trained
appropriately.
Effective Date:�
Signed by the Governor on
For more information, please contact:� Sheila Higdon
HB 979� Health Information Exchange Pilot Project
This act establishes a Health Information Exchange Pilot Project
to be operated by the Maryland/DC Collaborative for Healthcare Information
Technology for the transmission of medication history, laboratory and radiology
results, and inpatient and emergency department discharge summaries to
participating health care providers.
The Maryland Health Care Commission and the Health Services Cost
Review Commission must ensure that the collaborative addresses privacy,
security, economic, and interoperability issues.� To receive partial compensation for the cost
of developing a data interface necessary for participation in the project,
hospitals may apply to the HSCRC for a one-time award through rate
adjustment.� The act terminates
Effective Date:�
Signed by the Governor on
For more information, please contact:� Sheila Higdon
HB 1137� Hospitals - Safe Patient Lifting
This act requires hospitals to establish a safe lifting committee
by
1 - developing
or enhancing patient handling hazard assessment processes;
2 - enhanced use
of mechanical lifting devices;
3 - developing
specialized lift teams;
4 - training
programs for safe patient lifting required for all patient care personnel;
5 - incorporating
physical space and construction design for mechanical lifting devices in any
architectural plans for hospital construction or renovation; and
6 - developing
an evaluation process to determine the effectiveness of the policy.
Effective Date:�
Signed by the Governor on
For more information, please contact:� Sheila Higdon
SB 750� Queen Anne's County - Health Care Facilities Regulation - Licensing of
Freestanding Medical Facilities� This emergency act requires the Department of
Health and Mental Hygiene to add a second project, located in Queen
Anne’s County, to the freestanding medical facility pilot project.� Although the pilot project is not required to
have a certificate of need (CON) and is exempt from Maryland Health Care
Commission (MHCC) regulations, the facility’s capital expenditure must
meet CON requirements and information must be submitted to MHCC on the
project’s configuration, location, operation, and utilization.
Third-party payors must reimburse the
pilot project facility at a rate consistent with the contract between the
carrier and the freestanding medical facility. Medicaid must reimburse at a
rate at least equal to the rate paid by Medicare.
Uncodified language specifies that the act does not
exempt a health care facility in
Effective Date:� Emergency measure
Signed by the Governor on
For more information, please contact:� Tom Lewis
SB 882� Medical System Corporation - Board of Directors – Membership
This act removes the Executive Director of the Maryland Institute
for Emergency Medical Services Systems (MIEMSS) as a voting member of the Board
of Directors of the
Effective Date:�
Signed by the Governor on
For more information, please contact:� Sheila Higdon
Several bills aimed at eliminating health insurance “cramdown”
provisions were unsuccessful this session.�
A bill introduced at the request of the Maryland State Medical Society (MedChi) would have prohibited carriers from requiring
providers, as a condition of participation in some insurance products, to
participate in other insurance products.�
The bill was prompted by an unfavorable ruling of the Maryland Insurance
Administration that was upheld by a circuit court in October 2006.� Another “cramdown”
bill passed the House on the final day of session, but the clock ran out of
time before the Senate could take a concurring vote.� This bill would have prohibited carriers from
requiring providers, as a condition of participation with the carrier, to
participate with a different carrier.�
Although these bills failed, “cramdown”
provisions are among the areas to be studied by the Task Force on Health Care
Access and Reimbursement.
A bill failed that would have changed the HMO reimbursement rate for
non-participating health care providers from the current statutory rate of
125% of the average rate paid to a similar type of participating provider to
the rate equal to the 50th percentile charge for the service
according to the physician payment database of the Maryland Health Care
Commission.� Under the current law, there
is no transparent or objective fee schedule on which to base the 125%, making
it hard to enforce or even determine correct reimbursement amounts.� This topic will also be among the study areas
of the Task Force on Health Care Access and Reimbursement.
The final
version of the legislation reauthorizing the State Board of Physicians did not include a number of earlier
provisions opposed by MedChi, including mandatory
fingerprinting and criminal background checks, a pilot program to assess
clinical competency, and open public hearings.�
Stakeholders were also successful in amending the bill to revise the
requirement that medical malpractice case settlement information be posted as
part of a licensee’s profile on the board’s website and in adding
language to require that peer reviewers, to the extent practicable, be licensed
and engaged in the practice of medicine in Maryland.
A bill
passed requiring the Secretary of Health and Mental Hygiene and the
Governor’s Workforce Investment Board to examine and recommend ways to
overcome barriers to licensing returning
military personnel as health care providers in the state.� The focus of the study will be on meeting
employment needs in acute hospital emergency departments.
HB 236� Health Occupations - Nurses - Dispensing Methadone
This act authorizes RNs or LPNs
working in a methadone clinic licensed by the Department of Health and Mental
Hygiene to dispense methadone in accordance with regulations developed jointly
by the State Board of Nursing and the State Board of Pharmacy.
Effective Date:�
Signed by the Governor on
For more information, please contact:� Sheila Higdon
HB 315� State Board of Nursing - Licensing, Certification, and Reinstatement
Requirements
This act makes various changes to the Maryland Nurse Practice Act
relating to the revocation, reinstatement, and renewal of licenses and
certificates issued by the State Board of Nursing.� It also repeals provisions allowing for an
unlicensed individual to perform acts of registered nursing or licensed
practical nursing while supervised by an individual authorized by the state to
practice medicine or dentistry.
A license or certificate that is suspended or revoked for more
than one year may be reinstated if the licensee or certificate holder submits
to a criminal history records check, in addition to meeting the reinstatement
requirements.� A temporary license or
temporary certificate must be revoked if the individual was convicted or pled
guilty or nolo contendere
to a felony or to a crime involving moral turpitude.
A certified medicine aide seeking certification renewal must have
practiced 100 hours as a certified medicine aide in the two years prior to
renewal and successfully completed a board-approved medicine aide continuing
education program.
A student performing nursing assistant tasks is not required to be
board-certified if the student is enrolled in a board-approved nursing
assistant training program and is practicing under the direct supervision of
qualified faculty or preceptors.� Current
law requires that the student meet one of those requirements.
Effective Date:�
Signed by the Governor on
For more information, please contact:� Sheila Higdon
HB 326� Maryland Audiologists, Hearing Aid Dispensers, and Speech-Language Pathologists
Act – Revision� This act makes revisions
to the statue governing audiologists, hearing aid dispensers, and
speech-language pathologists.� No changes
are made to the scope of practice.
Speech-Language Pathology Assistants
Speech-language pathology assistants must
be licensed by the board; the act clarifies that this requirement does not
apply to federal employees performing the duties of that federal employment.
Audiology
Beginning
Hearing Aid Dispensing
As of
Speech-Language Pathology
An applicant for speech-language
pathology licensure must pass an examination approved under the board’s
regulations, and demonstrate oral competency.�
It addition, the act expands the conditions under which the board can
waive any qualifications required for licensure.
The act also addresses issues related to
license renewal and reinstatement, disciplinary actions and appeals procedures,
and board duties and membership.
Effective Date:�
Signed by the Governor on
For more information, please contact:� Sheila Higdon
HB 358� Certified Social Workers-Clinical - Practice – Definition
This act expands the scope of practice for an individual licensed as
a certified social worker-clinical to allow the evaluation, diagnosis, and
treatment of mental and emotional conditions and impairments including mental
retardation.
Effective Date:� October 1, 2007
Signed by the Governor on
�For more
information, please contact:� Sheila Higdon
HB 445� State Board of Nursing - Advanced Nurse Practitioners - Membership and
Qualifications
This act requires the State Board of Nursing to include one
advanced practice nurse among the seven� registered nurses in its
membership.� The Governor will appoint
the advanced practice nurse, with advice�
from the Secretary of Health and Mental Hygiene, from a list of
qualified individuals jointly developed, in accordance with a rotating list of
specialties as set forth in statue, by the following:
�
�
Nurse Practitioners Association of
�
�
�
Psychiatric Advance Practice Nurses of
The other registered nurse members will also be appointed by the
Governor, with advice from the Secretary, from a list of qualified individuals
submitted by the Maryland Nurses Association.
Effective Date:�
Signed by the Governor on
For more information, please contact:� Sheila Higdon
HB 515� Health Insurance - Credentialing Intermediaries and Uniform Credentialing Form
This act exempts hospitals or academic medical centers that serve
as credentialing intermediaries from the requirement to use the uniform
credentialing form and from complying with the carrier deadlines for making
credentialing decisions.� This act also
authorizes, rather than requires, the Maryland Insurance Commissioner to adopt
credentialing regulations.
Effective Date:�
Signed by the Governor on
For more information, please contact:� Sheila Higdon
HB 682� Health Care Decisions Act - Emergency Medical Services "Do Not Resuscitate
Orders" – Health Care Providers� This act authorizes health care providers, other
than emergency medical services (EMS) personnel, who see, in a valid form, an
EMS “do not resuscitate order” (
Effective Date:�
Signed by the Governor on
For more information, please contact:� Sheila Higdon
HB 947� Health Insurance - Health Care Providers - Reimbursement and Charges
This act prohibits a health insurance carrier from requiring a
provider in a group practice or facility who participates under a contract on
the carrier’s provider panel to accept the reimbursement fee schedule
applicable under the contract when providing services to enrollees of the
carrier through a noncontracting practice or facility
and billing for services provided to enrollees of the carrier with a different
federal tax identification number.�
Nonparticipating providers must notify an enrollee of total anticipated
charges for the health care services, given that the provider does not
participate on the provider panel of the enrollee’s carrier.
Effective Date:�
Signed by the Governor on
For more information, please contact:� Tom Lewis
HB 949� Military Health Care Personnel - Staffing Initiative
This act requires the Secretary of Health and Mental
Hygiene—in conjunction with the Governor’s Workforce Investment
Board, and in consultation with the Maryland Hospital Association, MedChi, the Maryland Nurses Association, and
others—to study and make recommendations regarding the barriers to
licensing or certifying individuals who have training and experience in
providing health care through military service.�
The review will focus on meeting employment needs in acute hospital
emergency departments and community–based health care settings.
Effective Date:�
Signed by the Governor on
For more information, please contact:� Sheila Higdon
SB 255� State Board of Physicians - Sunset Extension and Program Evaluation
This act extends the sunset date of the State Board of Physicians
(
Physician Rehabilitation Program
The act broadens eligibility for
rehabilitation services by including other health professionals regulated by
the board.� In addition, it abolishes the
Physician Rehabilitation Committee and requires
Disciplinary Actions in Other States
The act allows
Licensee Profiles
The act repeals the requirement that
certain medical malpractice settlement information must be posted as part of a
licensee’s profile on
Board Disciplinary Actions and Procedures
Office-based, Medication-assisted Opioid Addiction Therapy
The act repeals the requirement that the
board must establish or designate a program to train
Self-referral Investigations
The appropriate regulatory health
occupations boards may investigate a self-referral claim.� The Department of Health and Mental Hygiene
and the Office of Attorney General must review the process for investigation of
self-referral cases, recommend a revised investigative process, and report its
finding and recommendations to the Governor and General Assembly by
Peer Review Decisions
Specialized Administrative Hearings and
Training
The Chief Administrative Law Judge must
designate a pool of administrative law judges in the Office of Administrative
Hearings (OAH) to hear
Administrative Changes
The act also makes various administrative
and technical changes, including codifying
Effective Date:�
Signed by the Governor on
For more information, please contact:� Sheila Higdon
SB 262� Consent Provisions - Minors - Mental or Emotional Disorder
This act authorizes a psychologist, or medical staff of a hospital
or public clinic under the psychologist’s advice or direction, to be
added to those health care professionals who may—without the
minor’s consent or over the minor’s express objection—give a
parent, guardian, or custodian of a minor or the spouse of the parent,
information about treatment for a mental or emotional disorder needed by the
minor or provided to the minor.
If a psychologist is on a treatment team for a minor that is
headed by a physician, the physician must decide whether a parent, guardian, or
custodian of the minor or the spouse of the parent should receive information
about treatment needed by the minor or provided to the minor.
Effective Date:�
Signed by the Governor on
For more information, please contact:� Sheila Higdon
SB 472� Mental Hygiene Law - Court Records Relating to a Petition for Emergency
Evaluation -� Confidentiality� This act specifies that on or after
Effective Date:�
October 1, 2007
Signed by the Governor on 5/17/2007; Chapter #557
For more information, please contact:� Sheila Higdon
SB 851� Physicians - Unauthorized Practice of Medicine – Penalty
This act increases the penalty for the unauthorized practice of
medicine, changing the offense from a misdemeanor to a felony.� Upon conviction, an individual is subject to
a fine of up to $100,000 or imprisonment of up to five years, or both.� The act does not apply to a physician
licensee in
Effective Date:� October 1, 2007
Signed by the Governor on 5/8/2007; Chapter #359
For more information, please contact:� Sheila Higdon
Health
Insurance/Health
Early in
the session, the Governor and the House leadership each introduced substantial
proposals to address the rising number of
Despite the
failure of any significant action to expand health care access, progress was
made not only in bringing the issue to the forefront of debate but also in the
passage of several limited reforms:
One measure
requires the Maryland Health Care Commission (MHCC) to study the issue of personal responsibility for obtaining
health care coverage, including incentives for individuals to purchase health
insurance such as a tax credit or income tax surcharge.� MHCC has announced that they will also study
the feasibility and desirability of establishing a health insurance exchange to expand health coverage in the state,
a component of the failed access bills.
The Family Coverage Expansion Act requires
insurers to allow dependents to remain on their parents’ policy until the
age of 25 and requires insurance policies that allow family coverage to provide
the same benefits and eligibility that apply to other covered dependents to a
domestic partner or the child of a domestic partner.� There were also several bills promoting participation in wellness programs,
including a bill authorizing insurers in the small group market to provide
discounts of up to 20% for participation in a wellness program and another authorizing carriers to provide incentives for
participation in a wellness program.
The General
Assembly also approved an administration initiative to establish a Task Force on Health Care Access and
Reimbursement to review health care provider reimbursement and the impact
of reimbursement rates on access to care.�
Unlike hospitals, physicians do not recoup any uncompensated care
expenses through
In the area
of Medicaid, a bill was passed clarifying that MCOs
are subject to state laws governing the retroactive
denial of claims.� Another bill was
passed requiring the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene to provide
individuals transitioning between Maryland’s HealthChoice
Medicaid Program and the Maryland Primary Adult Care Program (which gives
low-income individuals access to primary care, mental health services, and
prescription drugs), with continuity of
care by enrolling them in the same
HB 157� Health Insurance - Prohibited Discrimination and Rebates - Incentives for
Participation in Wellness Programs and Other Exceptions� This act authorizes a health insurance
carrier to provide reasonable incentives to enrollees for participation in a
bona fide wellness program offered by the carrier.� A bona fide wellness program is a program
designed to prevent or detect disease or illness, reduce or avoid poor clinical
outcomes, prevent complications from medical conditions, or promote healthy
behaviors and lifestyle choices.
A carrier may not make participation in a wellness program a
condition of coverage or impose a penalty on enrollees for
nonparticipation.� A carrier also may not
require enrollees to achieve specific outcomes in order to receive an incentive
for participation in a wellness program.�
Any incentive offered for participation must be reasonably related to
the program and may not have a value that exceeds any limit established in
regulations adopted by the Maryland Insurance Commissioner.
Effective Date:� October 1, 2007
Signed by the Governor on 5/17/2007; Chapter #591
For more information, please contact:� Tom Lewis
HB 339� Health Insurance - Small Group Market - Health Benefit Plans – Rates
This act authorizes a health insurance carrier in the small group
market to charge a rate that is 50% below or 40% above the community rate.� Currently, the rate may be adjusted (for age
and geographical location) to 40% below or 40% above the community rate.
This act also authorizes a health insurance carrier to offer a
discount of up to 20% to a small employer for participation in a wellness
program.� A wellness program is a program
or activity designed to improve health status and reduce health care costs,
including programs and activities for smoking cessation, reduction of alcohol
misuse, weight reduction, nutrition education, and automobile and motorcycle
safety.
The Maryland Health Care Commission (MHCC) must adopt regulations
by October 1, 2007 that require carriers to collect and report on
participation, by rate band, in health benefit plans issued, delivered, or
renewed under this act.� By January 1,
2011, MHCC must report to the Governor and General Assembly on the effect of
the 50% rate adjustment authorized under this act.
Effective Date:� October 1, 2007
Signed by the Governor on 5/17/2007; Chapter #600
For more information, please contact:� Tom Lewis
HB 0367�
Maryland Medical Assistance Program - Primary Adult Care Program -
Enrollment in a Managed Care Organization� This act requires the Department of Health and
Mental Hygiene to provide continuity of care for individuals transitioning
between the Maryland Primary Adult Care Program (MPAC) and HealthChoice,
Maryland’s Medicaid managed care program, by adopting regulations that
establish a process through which individuals enrolled in Medicaid within 120
days of becoming eligible for MPAC are automatically enrolled in the same MCO
in which the individual was enrolled under HealthChoice.� The act further provides that if an
individual was enrolled in MPAC within 120 days of becoming eligible for
Medicaid, the individual must be automatically enrolled in the same MCO in
which the individual was enrolled under MPAC.
Effective Date:� October 1, 2007
Signed by the Governor on 4/10/2007; Chapter #75
For more information, please contact:� Tom Lewis
HB 487� Nonprofit Health Service Plans - Boards of Directors - Term Limits and
Compensation
This act extends the term limit for board members of a nonprofit
health service plan from two to three years, or from a total of six to nine
years.�
Board members may receive reimbursement for ordinary and necessary
expenses, compensation for attendance at meetings, and an amount of base
compensation to be proposed by the Compensation Committee of the board and
annually reviewed by the Insurance Commissioner.� The Compensation Committee must develop
proposed guidelines for compensation of board members that is reasonable in
comparison to compensation for board members of similar nonprofit health
service plans.� A copy of the approved
guidelines must be provided to each board member and the Insurance
Commissioner.�
The Insurance Commissioner must annually review board member
compensation and may issue an order prohibiting payment if the Commissioner
finds that the compensation exceeds the amount authorized under the approved
guidelines.� By June 30 of every year,
each nonprofit health service plan must submit a report to the Commissioner on
the total amount of reimbursement for ordinary and necessary expenses,
compensation for attendance at meetings, and base compensation paid to each
board member in the preceding calendar year and the proposed annual
compensation to be paid to board members in the next calendar year.
Effective Date:� October 1, 2007
Signed by the Governor on 4/10/2007; Chapter #609
For more information, please contact:� Tom Lewis
HB 519� Health Insurance - Carrier Provider Panels - Nonphysician
Specialists
This act requires health insurance carriers to establish and
implement a procedure by which a member may request a referral to a nonphysician specialist who is not part of the
carrier’s provider panel if the carrier cannot provide reasonable access
to a nonphysician specialist with the expertise
needed to treat a condition or disease.
Effective Date:� October 1, 2007
Signed by the Governor on 4/24/2007; Chapter #142
For more information, please contact:� Tom Lewis
HB 572� Health Insurance - Personal Responsibility – Study
This act requires the Maryland Health Care Commission (MHCC), in
consultation with other agencies, to study the issue of personal responsibility
for obtaining health care coverage.�
The study must consider:
•����� the affordability of health insurance;
•����� the need to subsidize health insurance for certain
individuals;
•����� the use of incentives to encourage
individuals to purchase health insurance and what the level of the incentives
would have to be to result in increased purchase of health insurance;
•����� strategies to educate individuals and employers about the
importance of health coverage;
•����� whether individual responsibility should be accompanied by
some form of employer responsibility;
•����� enforcement issues;
•����� potential reductions in uncompensated care and government
expenditures from personal responsibility provisions; and
•����� the need for religious exemptions from any proposed coverage
requirement.
MHCC must report its findings by December 1, 2007.
Effective Date:� Various
Signed by the Governor on 5/17/2007; Chapter #613
For more information, please contact:� Tom Lewis
HB 579 �Health Insurance - Authorization of Additional Products and Small Group
Administrative Discounts and Study� This act authorizes health insurance carriers to
offer a preferred provider insurance policy so long as the policy does not
restrict payment for covered services provided by nonpreferred
providers for emergency services.�
Carriers that offer this type of product must also offer an option to
include preferred and nonpreferred providers as an
additional benefit which may require a greater premium.
The act also authorizes carriers to offer a limited benefit policy
to employees who do not qualify for group coverage, such as temporary employees
or employees who work less than 30 hours a week.� Carriers that sell a limited benefit policy
may require the employer to: collect premiums through payroll deduction,
contribute to premium payments, and offer coverage to dependents.�
The act also authorizes small group carriers to offer an
administrative discount to small employers that purchase for their employees
other insurance products, such as life insurance or disability insurance, sold
by the carrier, provided that the discount is offered under the same terms and
conditions for all qualifying small employers.
Effective Date:� October 1, 2007
Signed by the Governor on 4/24/2007; Chapter #243
For more information, please contact:� Tom Lewis
HB 1057� Health Insurance - Family Coverage Expansion Act
This act requires individual and group health insurance policies
and contracts that allow family coverage to provide, at the request of an
insured or group policy holder, the same benefits and eligibility guidelines
that apply to other covered dependents for a domestic partner or the child
dependent of a domestic partner of the insured.
The act also requires insurers, nonprofit health service plans,
and HMOs to allow a child dependent to remain on an insured’s plan until
age 25.� Each health insurance policy or
contract issued in
The act further requires the Maryland Health Care Commission
(MHCC), in consultation with the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene and
the Maryland Insurance Administration, to study the high rate of uninsurance among young adults ages 19 to 29 and recommend
ways to increase health insurance coverage for this population.� MHCC must report its findings to the General
Assembly by November 1, 2007.
Effective Date:� October 1, 2007
Signed by the Governor on 5/17/2007; Chapter #639
For more information, please contact:� Tom Lewis
HB 1082� Managed Care Organizations - Retroactive Denial of Claims and Applicability of
State Laws
This act provides that Medicaid MCOs are
subject to the same restrictions governing retroactive denial of claims that
apply to commercial insurance companies and clarifies that MCOs
are not subject to state insurance laws with the exception of provisions that
are specifically applied to all MCOs.� The act also permits an MCO to retroactively
deny a claim submitted for services provided to a Medicaid enrollee during a
time period for which Medicaid has permanently retracted the capitation payment
for the recipient from the MCO.
Effective Date:� July 1, 2007
Signed by the Governor on 5/8/2007; Chapter #452
For more information, please contact:� Tom Lewis
HB 1283�
This act authorizes the Maryland Health Insurance Plan (MHIP) to
offer members an optional endorsement to remove a preexisting condition
limitation placed on the policies of individuals who have not maintained
continuous health insurance coverage.�
MHIP may charge an actuarially justified additional premium amount for
the endorsement, subject to approval by the Insurance Commissioner.� The act also permits MHIP to charge different
premiums based on the cost-sharing arrangement when more than one cost-sharing
arrangement is offered.
Effective Date:� October 1, 2007
Signed by the Governor on 4/10/2007; Chapter #467
For more information, please contact:� Tom Lewis
HB 1313� Department of Health and Mental Hygiene - Maryland Medical Assistance Program -
Information from and Liability of Health Insurance Carriers� This act requires health insurance
carriers to provide the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene with
information about individuals eligible for or enrolled in Medicaid so the
department may determine whether an individual or the individual’s spouse
or dependent is receiving health care coverage from a carrier and the nature of
that coverage.� Carriers must accept
Medicaid’s right of recovery and the assignment to Medicaid of any right
of an individual or other entity to payment from the carrier for an item or
service for which payment has been made under Medicaid.
Carriers may not reject, deny, limit, cancel, refuse to renew,
increase the rates of, affect the terms or conditions of, or otherwise affect a
health insurance policy or contract for a reason based wholly or partly on the
eligibility of the individual for receiving Medicaid benefits or the receipt by
an individual of Medicaid benefits.
Effective Date:� June 1, 2007
Signed by the Governor on 5/17/2007; Chapter #646
For more information, please contact:� Tom Lewis
SB 107� Task Force on Health Care Access and Reimbursement
This act establishes a fourteen-member Task Force on Health Care
Access and Reimbursement staffed by the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene
(DHMH) and chaired by the DHMH Secretary.�
The fourteen-member task force will include state government officials,
two senators, two delegates, and six individuals appointed by the Governor.
The task force must examine:
�
reimbursement rates and total payments to health care providers by
specialty and geographic area and trends in such reimbursement rates and total
payments;
�
the impact of changes in reimbursement on access to health care,
health care disparities, volume of services, and quality of care;
�
the effect of competition on payments to health care providers;
�
trends for health care provider shortages by specialty and
geographic area and any impact on access and quality caused by such shortages;
�
the amount of uncompensated care being provided by health care
providers and trends in uncompensated care;
�
the extent to which current reimbursement methods recognize and
reward higher quality of care;
�
methods used by large purchasers of health care to evaluate
adequacy and cost of provider networks; and
�
the practice by certain health insurance carriers
of requiring health care providers who join a provider network of a carrier to
also serve on a provider network of a difference carrier and the effect of this
practice on health care provider payments and willingness to serve on provider
networks of health insurance carriers.
The task force must develop recommendations regarding:� (1) specific options available to change
physician reimbursements, if needed; (2) the sufficiency of present statutory
formulas for the reimbursement of noncontracting
physicians by health maintenance organizations; (3) whether the Maryland
Insurance Administration and the Attorney General have sufficient authority to
regulate rate setting and market-related practices of health insurance
carriers; (4) whether there is a need to enhance the ability of physicians and
other health care providers to negotiate reimbursement rates with health
insurance carriers; (5) whether there is a need to establish a rate-setting
system for health care providers; (6) the advisability of the use of payment
methods linked to quality of care or outcomes; and (7) the need to prohibit a
health insurance carrier from requiring health care providers who join a
provider network of the carrier to also serve on a provider network of a
different carrier.� A report of findings
and recommendations is due by December 31, 2007.
Effective Date:� July 1, 2007.
Signed by the Governor on 5/17/2007; Chapter #505
For more information, please contact:� Tom Lewis
SB 952� Health Insurance - Small Group Market - Choice of Policies for Sole Proprietors
This act permits self-employed individuals and sole proprietors
enrolled in the small group market on September 30, 2005 to remain covered
under any policy issued by the carrier to small employers and selected by the
enrollee at renewal.
Legislation in 2005 made self-employed individuals and sole
proprietors ineligible for health insurance coverage in the small group
market.� However, self-employed
individuals and sole proprietors who were enrolled in the small group market on
September 30, 2005 were permitted to remain covered with the same carrier on
the same policy.
Effective Date:� July 1, 2007
Signed by the Governor on 4/10/2007; Chapter #59
For more information, please
contact:� Tom Lewis
Higher Education
The legislature passed a bill again this year prohibiting an increase in resident
undergraduate tuition at public institutions of higher education in
Another unsuccessful controversial measure would have
allowed
A bill was introduced and failed that would have required
nonpublic institutions of higher education to submit annual reports on their
respective programs to promote and
enhance cultural diversity on their campuses.� This measure easily passed the Senate but
stalled in the House.� Another bill
establishes an Instructional Materials
Access Guidelines Committee to facilitate the distribution of instructional
materials for blind and print disabled students.
A bill which would have prevented senators and delegates
from awarding scholarships to their relatives was introduced but failed;
however, a bill passed increasing the annual maximum award for senatorial scholarships from $2,000 to
the equivalent of annual tuition and fees at a
HB 19� Task Force to Implement Holocaust, Genocide, Human Rights, and Tolerance
Education –Membership�
This
act alters the membership of the Task Force to Implement Holocaust, Genocide,
Human Rights, and Tolerance Education.�
Rather than having two delegates and two senators, the membership of the
task force will have one member from each chamber and two additional
Effective Date:� June 1, 2007
Signed by the Governor on 5/82007; Chapter #373
For more information, please contact:� Matt Greenwood
HB 134� Higher Education - Tuition Affordability Act of 2007
This act prohibits the Board of Regents of the
Effective Date:� July 1, 2007
Signed by the Governor on 5/8/2007; Chapter #294
For more information, please contact:� Tom Lewis
HB 279� Higher Education - Workforce Shortage Student Assistance Grants
This act provides more guidance to the Maryland
Higher Education Commission (MHEC) and the Advisory Council on Workforce
Shortage by defining a “public good or benefit,” which the advisory
council must consider when making recommendations for workforce shortage fields
that merit grant assistance.� It also
clarifies that students must earn at least twelve undergraduate credit hours or
nine graduate credit hours per year to qualify for Workforce Shortage Student
Assistance grants and authorizes MHEC to make awards to qualifying students
during summer sessions.
Effective Date:� June 1, 2007
Signed by the Governor on 5/17/2007; Chapter #594
For more information, please contact:� Tom Lewis
HB 318� Higher Education - Edward T. Conroy Memorial Scholarship Program –
Eligibility
This act expands eligibility for the Edward T. Conroy Memorial
Scholarship Program by eliminating the program’s
Effective Date:� June 1, 2007
Signed by the Governor on 4/24/2007; Chapter #232
For more information, please contact:� Tom Lewis
HB 538� Higher Education - Dual Enrollment Grant Program
This act rescinds dually-enrolled students'
eligibility for the Part-time Grant Program and establishes a new Dual
Enrollment Grant Program to provide assistance to
By November 1, 2007, the Maryland Partnership for Teaching and
Learning PreK-16 Council must provide the Governor and General Assembly with a
comprehensive list of recommendations for overcoming barriers to dual enrollment
and facilitating dual-enrollment opportunities.
Effective Date:� June 1, 2007
Signed by the Governor on 5/8/2007; Chapter #297
For more information, please contact:� Tom Lewis
HB 1056� Higher Education - Blind and Print Disabled Students - Instructional Materials
This act requires the Maryland Library for the
Blind and Physically Handicapped (LBPH) to convene an Instructional Materials
Access Guidelines Committee in order to assist LBPH in developing guidelines to
facilitate the distribution of instructional materials to blind and other print
disabled students.� At least two members
of the committee are to be blind or print disabled.� Beginning in fiscal year 2009, the Governor
must include $200,000 for LBPH in the annual state budget to implement the
act's requirements.
Effective Date:� June 1, 2007
Signed by the Governor on 5/18/2007; Chapter #318
For more information, please contact:� Tom Lewis
SB 604� Higher Education - Senatorial Scholarships
This act increases the maximum annual award under the Maryland
Senatorial Scholarship Program from $2,000 to the equivalent annual tuition and
mandatory fees for a full-time resident undergraduate student at the University
System of Maryland institution with the highest annual expenses, excluding the
University of Maryland University College and the
Effective Date:� October 1, 2007
Signed by the Governor on 5/8/2007; Chapter #339
For more information, please contact:� Tom Lewis
In the area
of aging, a number of bills establishing summer studies were passed this
session.� Specifically, these studies
concern: the state’s options for increasing access to long-term care services for individuals at high risk of
institutionalization because of cognitive or functional impairments; review of state regulation of nursing homes,
including consideration of issues such as electronic monitoring,
resident-directed care, and family councils; and the feasibility of developing urban senior care communities in
Baltimore City.
An
administration bill passed establishing a quality
assessment fee on nursing facilities, which will be matched by federal
funds and then returned to nursing facilities through increased Medicaid
payments.� As a result, nursing homes
will receive an additional $26 million annually through their reimbursement
rates.� Thirty-two other states have
established similar fee programs.
A bill to
extend the termination of the pilot CommunityChoice
Program, a managed care system for Medicaid enrollees receiving long-term
care services, failed when the newly-appointed Secretary of Health and Mental
Hygiene announced that it was anticipated that the federal government would
deny the state’s waiver application as submitted and that the department
would discontinue its efforts to implement the program.
HB
594� Department of Health
and Mental Hygiene - Long-Term Care Services for Cognitive and Functional
Impairments - Study and Analysis�
This act
requires the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, in consultation with
stakeholders, to conduct a comprehensive study and analysis of the options
available to the state to increase access to long-term care services.� These services include home and
community-based services such as adult medical day care for individuals at high
risk of institutionalization because of cognitive impairments, mental illness,
traumatic brain injury or other conditions, and who meet financial eligibility
criteria.�
The
study must include:�
�
review
of the provision of long-term care services in other states;
�
determination
of the feasibility of developing criteria for an alternative level of care and
increasing access to long-term care services through the Federal Deficit
Reduction Act, the State Plan Amendments, the Older Adults Waiver, and other
options available to the state; and
�
a cost-benefit analysis of the options examined, including the projected
long-term savings to the state realized by the delay or reduction in need for
the provision of care in hospitals or other institutional settings.
Effective Date:�
June 1, 2007
Signed by the Governor on 5/8/2007; Chapter #244
For more information, please contact:� Sheila Higdon
HB
837� Department of Health
and Mental Hygiene - Regulation of Nursing Homes – Review
This
act requires the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (DHMH), in
consultation with the Maryland Board of Nursing, the Maryland Board of Pharmacy,
Mid-Atlantic LifeSpan, the Health Facilities
Association of Maryland, the Oversight Committee on the Quality of Care in
Nursing Homes and Assisted Living Facilities, and other interested parties to
review current state laws and regulations, best practices, and experiences in
other states regarding regulation of nursing homes in the state.� By January 1, 2008, DHMH must report to the
General Assembly on their review.�
The report must include discussion of the following:
�
status
of and demand for electronic monitoring;
�
resident-directed
care and whether specific state regulations may be barriers to culture change
and patients' rights;
�
status
and rights of family councils;
�
communication
between residents or their legal representatives and nursing homes; and
�
whether specific state regulations should be changed to provide
nursing homes with greater flexibility while maintaining safety.
Effective Date:�
October 1, 2007
Signed by the Governor on 5/8/2007; Chapter #436
For more information, please contact:� Sheila Higdon
SB
101� Nursing
Facilities - Quality Assessment - Medicaid Reimbursement
This
act authorizes the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (DHMH) in fiscal
years 2008-12 to impose a quality assessment on freestanding nursing homes with
45 or more beds.� The assessment may not
exceed 2% of the net operating revenues for all nursing homes, and the
aggregate annual assessment may not exceed the amount necessary to fully fund
the nursing home reimbursement system.�
All amounts collected by the state will be used to supplement nursing
home reimbursement under the Medicaidprogram.� These funds will be additional reimbursement
to those facilities and may not supplant funds already appropriated for this
purpose.
Beginning
July 1, 2008, up to 25% of revenues from the quality assessment will be
distributed to nursing homes based on accountability measures developed by DHMH
in consultation with stakeholders.� The
measures should be objective, measurable, and when considered in combination
with each other, deemed to have a correlation to residents’ quality of
life and care.
DHMH
must report annually to the General Assembly on the following:
�
percentage
and amount of the assessment charged to each nursing facility;
�
the
number of nursing facilities subject to this section with a net loss; and
�
a comparison of the total amount provided in the Medicaid budget for
nursing home reimbursement in the current fiscal year to the amount proposed
for the upcoming fiscal year.
Effective Date:� July 1, 2007
Signed by the Governor on 5/17/2007; Chapter #503
For more information, please contact:� Sheila Higdon
SB
861� Task Force -
Urban Senior Care Communities in
This
act establishes the Task Force to Study the Feasibility of Developing Urban
Senior Care Communities in
Effective Date:� July 1, 2007
Signed by the Governor on 5/17/2007; Chapter #510
For more information, please contact:� Sheila Higdon
Medical Liability
& Tort Reform
In a November 2006 decision in the
case of Walzer v. Osborne, the Maryland Court of
Appeals held that
Several bills that would have authorized the establishment
of, or studied the feasibility of establishing, separate medical liability divisions in state circuit courts failed this
session.� Another failed bill would have
required medical liability actions to be referred to a medical malpractice review board before being heard in court.� A measure that would have established a no-fault cerebral palsy insurance fund
also failed, in part because of the flaws found in
The General Assembly approved an
increase in the medical malpractice
insurance subsidy for family practitioners who provide obstetrical services at
For the first time since 2002, legislation was introduced
aiming to replace
HB 372� Medical Malpractice Liability
Insurance - Garrett County Memorial Hospital - Subsidy for Family� Practitioners Who Also Perform Obstetrical
Services� This act increases the
subsidy from the Rate Stabilization Account for medical malpractice liability
insurance policies issued to family practitioners who have staff privileges and
provide obstetrical services at Garrett County Memorial Hospital.� The amount of the increase in the subsidy is
equal to 75% of the difference between the policyholder's premium for calendar
year 2007, 2008, and 2009 and the premium that otherwise would be payable in
those years if the policyholder was not providing obstetrical services.� Under this act, funds necessary to pay for
the increased subsidy must remain in the Rate Stabilization Account.� This act terminates June 30, 2010.
Effective Date:� July 1, 2007
Signed by the Governor on 4/24/2007; Chapter #175
For more information, please contact:� Tom Lewis
HB 387� Torts - Release of Claim for Damages – Voidable
This act increases from five days to 30 days the time period
during which the signing of a tort claim release or a contract of employment with
an attorney by an injured individual makes the release or contract voidable.� According
to this act, such a release or contract is voidable
at the option of the injured individual within 60 days after the document is
signed if it was signed by that individual within 30 days of sustaining the
injuries, without the assistance of an attorney.� Notice that a release is being voided by the
injured individual must be in writing and accompanied by the return of any money
paid to the injured individual.� The release
is void from the date the notice is mailed.
Effective Date:� October 1, 2007
Signed by the Governor on 4/24/2007; Chapter #149
For more information, please contact:� Tom Lewis
SB 309� Civil Actions - Dismissal – Limitations
This act authorizes a party to commence a new health care
malpractice action or claim for the same cause against the same party or
parties if the original action or claim was dismissed for failure to file an
attesting expert's report.� The new
action or claim must be commenced before the later of: 1) the expiration of the
statue of limitations; 2) 60 days from the date of dismissal of the original
action or claim; or 3) August 1, 2007, if the action or claim was dismissed on
or after November 17, 2006 but before June 1, 2007.� This does not apply to a voluntary dismissal
of a civil action or claim by the party who commenced the action or claim.
Effective Date:� October 1, 2007
Signed by the Governor on 5/8/2007; Chapter #324
For more information, please contact:� Tom Lewis
SB 389� Civil Actions - Liability of Insurer - Failure to Act in Good Faith
This act provides that, in a first-party property and casualty
insurance claim, an insured who proves in a civil action that an insurer did
not act in good faith may recover expenses and litigation costs in addition to
actual damages under the policy.� An
insurer may not be found to have failed to act in good faith solely because of
the time taken to investigate a claim so long as it is within the time
specified in statue of regulation.
A complaint filed with Maryland Insurance Administration (MIA)
must be accompanied by all documents that the insured has submitted to the
insurer for proof of loss; specify the applicable insurance coverage and the
amount of the claim; and state the amount of actual damages.� The MIA must issue a decision within 90 days
from the date of filing.� Any party
within 30 days after an adverse decision by MIA, may
request a hearing conducted by the Office of Administrative Hearings or appeal
to a circuit court.
Failure to act in good faith constitutes an unfair claim
settlement practice for which the Insurance Commissioner may impose a fine up
to $125,000.� MIA may proceed with more
severe sanctions against property and casualty insurers currently available under
its enforcement authority if an insurance company’s failure to act in
good faith in settling first-party claims is committed with the frequency to
indicate a general business practice.
MIA is required to report annually to the General Assembly on the
number and type of claims filed and their dispositions at the administrative
and judicial levels.
Effective Date:� October 1, 2007
Signed by the Governor on 4/24/2007; Chapter #150
For more information, please contact:� Tom Lewis
Like many
other legislative initiatives this session, a bill to establish a health disparities grant program failed
due to lack of funding.� This bill would
have required that $2.6 million from the Cigarette Restitution Fund annually be
directed to the Office of Minority Health and Health Disparities.� Established by the legislature in 2004, the
office currently does not have a dedicated source of revenue.� Legislation did pass ending Maryland’s
status as one of only four states that prohibits health insurance carriers from
collecting racial and ethnic data.
A bill was introduced again this
year that have would required the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene to
convene a workgroup to develop recommendations for requiring individuals
licensed by health occupations boards to receive instruction in cultural competency as part of the
licensure or license renewal process.�
This bill was withdrawn by its sponsor.�
Lawmakers did, however, pass a bill convening a Workgroup on Cultural Competency and Workforce Development for Mental
Health Professionals that will study the advantages and disadvantages of
adding cultural competency training to the licensing and certification
requirements for mental health professionals.�
Also among its duties, the workgroup will develop recommendations on how
best to facilitate the licensure or certification of foreign–born and
foreign–trained mental health professionals.
To implement some of the
recommendations of Department of Health and Mental Hygiene’s study of
Sickle Cell Disease (SCD) in
HB 524� Workgroup on Cultural Competency and Workforce Development for Mental Health
Professionals This act requires the Mental Health Transformation Working Group,
in collaboration with the Mental Hygiene Administration and the Office of
Minority Health and Health Disparities, to convene a Workgroup on Cultural
Competency and Workforce Development for Mental Health Professionals.� Representatives on the workgroup will include
members of the General Assembly, representatives from relevant professional
licensing boards, mental health care providers, advocacy and consumer groups,
representatives from the Statewide Commission on the Shortage in the Healthcare
Workforce and the Governor’s Workforce Investment Board, and other
stakeholders including organizations that represent minority health
professionals.
The workgroup is directed to address barriers to
access to appropriate mental health services provided by health care
professionals who are culturally competent to address the needs of the
state’s diverse population.� In
addition, the workgroup is charged with examining: mental health workforce
shortages and potential strategies to alleviate shortages; barriers to
licensure and certification of foreign-born and foreign-trained mental health
professionals; and the advantages and disadvantages of changing current
licensing and certification requirements.�
Recommendations are due to the Governor, General Assembly, and the Joint
Committee on Access to Mental Health Services by November 1, 2007.
Effective Date:� July 1, 2007
Signed by the Governor on
5/8/2007; Chapter #412
For more information, please
contact:� Sheila Higdon
HB 788� Health Insurance - Collection of Racial and Ethnic Data –
Nondiscrimination
This act authorizes health insurance carriers to
inquire about race and ethnicity in an insurance form, questionnaire, or other
manner requesting general information, provided the information is used solely
for the evaluation of quality of care outcomes and performance measurements,
such as annual hospital report cards.�
The act prohibits these carriers from using race or ethnicity data to in
any way affect the terms or conditions of a health insurance policy or
contract.� The Insurance Commissioner may
refuse to renew, suspend, or revoke a certificate of authority or issue a cease
and desist order to a carrier that uses racial or
ethnic variations data in a prohibited manner.
Effective Date:� October 1, 2007
Signed by the Governor on
4/10/2007; Chapter #26
For more information, please
contact:� Sheila Higdon
HB 793� Sickle Cell Disease - Statewide Steering Committee on Services for Adults with
Sickle Cell Disease� This act establishes the
Statewide Steering Committee on Services for Adults with Sickle Cell Disease
(SCD) to implement some of the recommendations of the Department of Health and
Mental Hygiene's study of SCD in
Effective Date:� October 1, 2007
Signed by the Governor on
5/8/2007; Chapter #435
For more information, please
contact:� Sheila Higdon
The General
Assembly approved pedigree requirements for wholesale distributors of
prescription drugs to record each distribution of a certain drug.� The Wholesale
Distributor Permitting and Prescription Drug Integrity Act also requires
that a workgroup be convened to recommend to the State Board of Pharmacy a
target date, which can be no sooner than
Lawmakers
extended the termination date for the Senior
Prescription Drug Assistance Program (SPDAP) and authorized subsidies to be
paid only on behalf of eligible individuals enrolled in a Medicare Part D
prescription drug plan or Medicare Advantage Plan that agrees to coordinate
state subsidies in accordance with federal requirements.� The $14 million in funding for SPDAP is
provided by CareFirst as a condition of earning its premium tax exemption as a
nonprofit health service plan.
The
legislature approved another measure authorizing up to $425,000 of the $3.2
million remaining from the now-defunct Senior Prescription Drug Program be
given as a grant to the Maryland MedBank Program in FY 2008.� The MedBank Program
administers patient assistance programs for low-income individuals and is
sponsored by pharmaceutical drug manufacturers.�
In the last five years, the program has received over $8 million in
state appropriations.
HB 1004�
This act authorizes a transfer of up to $425,000
in funds remaining from the now-defunct Senior Prescription Drug Program to be
transferred to the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene for a grant to the
Maryland MedBank Program in fiscal year 2008.
Effective Date:� July 1, 2007
Signed by the Governor on
5/17/2007; Chapter #636
For more information, please
contact:� Sheila Higdon
HB 1030� Wholesale Distributor Permitting and Prescription Drug Integrity Act
This act expands the requirements for a
wholesale distributor of prescription drugs or devices to obtain a State Board of
Pharmacy permit, repealing the existing statutory requirements.� Permits are valid for two years, instead of
the current one year, and may be renewed for an additional two years.� The act also requires prescription drugs
distributed outside the “normal distribution channel” to have a
pedigree that records each distribution.
Before issuing a permit, the board must inspect
the applicant’s place of business; find that board requirements are met;
and determine that the applicant’s representative and the representative’s
supervisor meet specified requirements.�
Permit applications must include fingerprints necessary to conduct a
criminal background check.
The board may accept the accreditation of a
wholesale distributor by an accreditation organization that has standards equal
to or more stringent than state requirements.�
A warehouse distributor permit applicant must submit a surety bond of at
least $100,000.� Any person knowingly violating
any provision of the act may be subject to a board-imposed fine of up to
$500,000.� By January 1, 2008, and each
subsequent year, the board must report to the Governor and General Assembly on
the act’s implementation.�
The Secretary of Health and Mental Hygiene, in conjunction with
the board, must convene a workgroup of manufacturers, distributors, and
pharmacies that sell and distribute prescription drugs in Maryland to recommend
to the board a target date for implementing electronic track and trace pedigree
technology, which can be no sooner than July 1, 2010.
Effective Date:� July 1, 2007
Signed by the Governor on 5/8/2007; Chapter #353
For more information, please contact:� Tom Lewis
HB 1033� Health Insurance - Prescription Drugs and Devices - Copayment
or Coinsurance
This act prohibits insurers, nonprofit health service plans, and
HMOs that provide coverage for prescription drugs and devices from imposing a copayment or coinsurance requirement that exceeds the
retail price of the prescription drug or device.
Effective Date:� October 1, 2007
Signed by the Governor on 5/17/2007; Chapter #638
For more information, please contact:� Tom Lewis
SB 824� Senior Prescription Drug Assistance Program - Modifications and Sunset
Extension
This act extends the termination date for the Senior Prescription
Drug Assistance Program (SPDAP) from December 31, 2007 to December 31,
2009.� The current $14 million cap on
CareFirst's subsidy of SPDAP is extended through fiscal year 2010.� SPDAP is authorized to pay the subsidy only
on behalf of eligible individuals enrolled in a Medicare Part D prescription
drug plan or Medicare Advantage Plan that coordinates with SPDAP in accordance
with federal requirements.� The act also
corrects obsolete statutory references.
Effective Date:� June 1, 2007
Signed by the Governor on 5/17/2007; Chapter #508
For more information, please contact:� Tom Lewis
Passage of
the Clean Indoor Air Act was one of
the big victories this session in the area of public health.� Following action in February 2007 by the City
Council to ban smoking in
A bill passed requiring the AIDS
Administration to convene a workgroup to study
the CDC’s revised guidelines on HIV testing, including test
counseling and informed consent.� Revised
in September 2006, the guidelines recommend routine screening and the
elimination of statutory requirements for informed consent and pre-test
counseling.� The legislature also passed
emergency legislation repealing
In 2006 the CDC’s Advisory
Committee on Immunization Practice recommended that Gardasil,
a vaccine to protect against HPV, be routinely given to girls at ages 11 and
12.� Legislation was introduced mandating
that all sixth grade girls receive the HPV vaccine but was withdrawn by its
sponsor.� Instead, a bill passed creating
the HPV Vaccine Subcommittee in the
Cervical Cancer Committee, on which it is stipulated that a Johns Hopkins
representative will be a member.� Also in
the area of student health, two separate bills were adopted requiring the
Department of Education and the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene to
provide awareness and training on inhalant
abuse and self-mutilation for
directors of student services in local education agencies.
The legislature established a Charles County Prostate Cancer Pilot Program to increase access to prostate
cancer screening and services in
An
administration bill was passed requiring the Statewide Advisory Commission on
Immunizations to make recommendations on the viability of establishing a universal vaccine purchasing system.� Hoping to build on the precedent established
by the recent action of the New York City Board of Health to ban artificial trans fat in restaurants, lawmakers introduced several bills
to establish an artificial trans fat ban
in
HB 30� Oral Health Safety Net Program
This act establishes an Oral Health Safety Net
Program within the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene's Office of Oral
Health (OOH) to provide start-up funding to expand oral health capacity for
underserved low-income and disabled individuals, including individuals enrolled
in the Medical Assistance Program and the Children's Health Program.� The OOH will solicit proposals from local
health departments, FQHCs, and entities providing
dental services within state facilities for the purpose of issuing grants to
support collaborative and innovative ways to increase dental provider capacity
for the underserved.�
Subject to the limitations of the state budget, OOH will award
grants, placing priority on those that target regions of the state where oral
health services are most scarce for low-income, disabled, and Medicaid
populations and that outline how the potential grantee will maximize
resources.� Also subject to the state
budget, OOH will contract with a licensed dentist who will provide expertise in
dental public health issues and provide for appropriate continuing education
courses for providers that offer oral health treatment to the underserved.�
By December 1, 2007, the Secretary of Health is required to report
to the Governor and General Assembly on the annual cost to provide
comprehensive oral health services in all programs funded by the Maryland� Medical Assistance Program, the amount of
state revenues spent on somatic health services related to the lack of
comprehensive oral health care, and the number of dental providers in each
jurisdiction providing care to the uninsured/underinsured, the number of
residents served, and the dental providers' capacity to provide additional
services.
The OOH will evaluate the program annually and report its findings
to the Governor and General Assembly.� The act sunsets in four years.
Effective Date:� October 1, 2007
Signed by the Governor on 5/17/2007; Chapter #528
For more information, please contact:� Sheila Higdon
HB 216� HIV Testing - Exposure - Forensic Scientist
This act adds a forensic scientist working under the direction of
a law enforcement agency to the definition of a "public safety
worker" under disease prevention provisions providing a right to HIV
testing in the event of an exposure.
Effective Date:� October 1, 2007
Signed by the Governor on
5/17/2007; Chapter #227
For more information, please contact:� Sheila Higdon
HB 781� Human Immunodeficiency Virus - Test Counseling and Informed Consent –
Review
This act requires the AIDS Administration to convene a workgroup
of HIV infected individuals, HIV/AIDS advocacy organizations, HIV service
providers, and other stakeholders to review and make recommendations regarding
the CDC guidelines on HIV/AIDS, including pre- and post-test counseling and
written informed consent.� The workgroup
must consider best practices, research, and data regarding treatment for
HIV/AIDS and report on its recommendations to the Governor and General Assembly
by January 1, 2008.
Effective Date:� June 1, 2007
Signed by the Governor on 4/24/2007; Chapter #183
For more information, please contact:� Jessica Best
HB 850� Alcohol and Drug Abuse Administration - Needs Assessment
This act requires the Alcohol and Drug Abuse Administration to
conduct a needs assessment every three years that identifies the financial and
treatment needs of each jurisdiction and of each drug treatment program
operated by the state.
Effective Date:� October 1, 2007
Signed by the Governor on 4/10/2007; Chapter #82
For more information, please contact:� Sheila Higdon
HB 1253� HIV Testing - Prohibited Exposure - Forensic Scientists
This act includes a forensic scientist, working under the
direction of a law enforcement agency, who is exposed to HIV while acting in
the performance of duty to the definition of a "victim" under
provisions providing a right to HIV testing.
Effective Date:� October 1, 2007
Signed by the Governor on 4/10/2007; Chapter #97
For more information, please contact:� Sheila Higdon
HB 1270�
This act repeals
A physician who has diagnosed a patient with HIV must immediately
submit a report to the local health officer that includes the name, age, race,
sex, and residence address of the patient on a form provided by the Department
of Health and Mental Hygiene.� A
physician must also submit such a report within 48 hours of the birth of an
infant whose mother has tested positive for HIV.� If the infant does not become HIV positive
within 18 months of submission of the report, the Secretary of Health and
Mental Hygiene must remove the infant’s name from the HIV registry.
A hospital that has an individual in its care with a diagnosis of
HIV or AIDS must submit a report to the local health officer within 48 hours
that includes the name, age, race, sex, residence address of the patient, name
of the administrative head of the institution, and address of the
institution.� The director of a medical
laboratory must submit a report to the Health Secretary within 48 hours of a
specimen showing evidence of any CD 4+ count or HIV.
All HIV and AIDS reports from physicians, hospitals, or
laboratories are not medical records and are confidential, not discoverable,
and not admissible in evidence in any civil actions.�
Any person who knowingly and willfully discloses personal
identifying health information acquired for the purposes of HIV and AIDS
reporting is guilty of a misdemeanor and on conviction is subject to a $1,000
fine for a first offense and a $5,000 fine for each subsequent conviction.� Any person who knowingly and willfully
requests or obtains information on HIV and AIDS under false pretenses or
through deception on conviction is subject to a maximum of five years in prison
and/or a $100,000 fine.� If the offense
is committed with intent to sell, transfer, or use individually identifiable
information for commercial advantage, personal gain, or malicious harm, a
violator on conviction is subject to a maximum of ten years in prison and/or a
$250,000 fine.�
A physician, hospital, or laboratory that in good faith submits a
report or discloses information in accordance with the act is not liable in any
action arising from the disclosure of the information.
Effective Date:� Emergency
Signed by the Governor on 4/24/2007; Chapter #213
For more information, please contact:� Jessica Best
SB 9�
State Department of Education and Department of Health and Mental
Hygiene - Student Surveys Workgroup� This act requires the Maryland State Department
of Education (MSDE) and the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (DHMH) to
establish a workgroup to evaluate and reduce the impact on schools of
administering, and on students of taking, various health-related risk surveys
with similar or overlapping content, while still collecting valid data that
meet the legal data collection responsibilities of the two departments.� The workgroup will include representatives
from MSDE, DHMH, local school districts of varying size, local health
departments of varying size, at least one parent with a child in public school,
and an epidemiologist.� The workgroup
must study the feasibility of coordinating the administration of multiple
health-related surveys or of administering a single survey by incorporating the
Maryland Adolescent Survey and the Youth Tobacco Survey into the CDC Youth Risk
Behavior Surveillance System Survey.� The
workgroup must submit a report of its findings and recommendations to the
Governor and General Assembly by September 1, 2008.
Effective Date:� October 1, 2007
Signed by the Governor on 5/8/2007; Chapter #306
Forr more information, please contact:� Sheila Higdon
SB 91� Clean Indoor Air Act of 2007
This act expands the state's indoor smoking ban to bars and
restaurants beginning February 1, 2008.�
It does not apply to research or educational laboratories conducting
research into the health effects of tobacco smoke.�
Local health officials may grant waivers to businesses that can
demonstrate undue financial hardship, but all waivers will terminate January
31, 2011 and will not be renewable.� The
act also allows counties and municipalities to enact more stringent measures.
Penalties for violation are as follows: for a first violation, a
written reprimand; for a second violation, a $100 civil penalty; and for each
subsequent violation, a penalty not less than $250.� Any funds collected from the civil penalties
will go to the Cigarette Restitution Fund.�
The act also stipulates penalties for employers that discharge or
discriminate against any employees that have taken action against an employer
suspected of violating the smoking ban.
Effective Date:� October 1, 2007
Signed by the Governor on 5/17/2007; Chapter #501
For more information, please contact:� Sheila Higdon
SB 105� Statewide Advisory Commission on Immunizations - Duties and Sunset Extension
This act extends the termination date for the Statewide Advisory
Commission on Immunizations from May 31, 2008 to May 31, 2010, adds an additional
member who is a representative from a health insurance carrier, and specifies
that in addition to the commission’s existing duties, it must consider
the development of a universal vaccine purchasing program and provide an update
on the use of thimerosal in vaccines.
In the commission’s annual evaluation of and report on
vaccines that is due on December 15, 2007, the commission must make
recommendations on whether the state should consider implementing a universal
vaccine purchasing system, or some similar action.� In developing its recommendations, the
commission must:
�
consult with stakeholders;
�
review the structure, cost, scope, success, and implementation
issues of similar programs in other states;
�
consider any existing state or federal programs or funds, or any
other sources of funds, that could be used for any proposed new program;
�
provide a range of policy, structure, cost, and scope options to
be considered in any proposed new program;
�
consider the feasibility and advisability of requiring the
Department of Health and Mental Hygiene to reimburse vaccine administration on
a per-antigen basis as an alternative to reimbursing on a per-dosage basis;
�
consider all options for requiring carriers to reimburse providers
adequately for the full cost of immunizations, including acquisition and
overhead; and
�
consider the feasibility of publicizing a list of
wholesale vendors and the prices charged by each vendor for vaccines.
Effective Date:� July 1, 2007
Signed by the Governor on
5/17/2007; Chapter #504
For more information, please
contact:� Sheila Higdon
SB 283�
This act establishes the Charles County Prostate
Cancer Pilot Program to fund prostate cancer screening, treatment, and
education services for uninsured and economically challenged men.� The program will be open to men who are at
least 50 years of age, and to men who are at least 35 years of age and are at
high risk for prostate cancer on the advice of a physician or at the request of
the individual.� It will be funded as
provided in the state budget and through grants distributed by the Department
of Health and Mental Hygiene (DHMH) to the local health department or an FQHC
in
Effective Date:� October 1, 2007
Signed by the Governor on
5/17/2007; Chapter #541
For more information, please
contact:� Sheila Higdon
SB 339� Drug Treatment - Maryland State Drug and Alcohol Abuse Council - Study of the
State's Approach to Drug Treatment� This act requires the Maryland State Drug and
Alcohol Abuse Council to include in its two-year strategic plan a review of the
state's approach to drug treatment, including a review of the appropriate
location of treatment services and the use of employment and housing services
for individuals in treatment.
Effective Date:� June 1, 2007
Signed by the Governor on
4/24/2007; Chapter #145
For more information, please
contact:� Sheila Higdon
SB 349� Disease Prevention - Sexually Transmitted Diseases - Expedited Partner Therapy
Pilot Program This act establishes the Expedited Partner Therapy Pilot Program
in the Baltimore City Health Department to provide antibiotic therapy to any
sexual partner of a patient diagnosed with chlamydia
or gonorrhea by a health care provider without making a personal clinical
assessment of the patient's partner.�
The Baltimore City Health Department must report
to the Governor and General Assembly on the operation and performance of the
program by December 31, 2007.� The act
terminates July 1, 2010.
Effective Date:� July 1, 2007
Signed by the Governor on
4/24/2007; Chapter #146
For more information, please
contact:� Sheila Higdon
SB 774� Cervical Cancer Committee - HPV Vaccine Subcommittee
This act establishes a subcommittee on the Human
Papillomavirus (HPV) Vaccine within the Department of
Health and Mental Hygiene’s existing Cervical Cancer Committee of the
Maryland Comprehensive Cancer Control Plan.�
The subcommittee, whose membership of fourteen includes a representative
from Johns Hopkins, must:
�
examine federal and state programs relating to the HPV vaccine;
�
develop a public awareness and education campaign about the
vaccine with an emphasis on parental education;
�
evaluate the availability and affordability of the vaccine;
�
identify barriers to the vaccine’s administration to all
recommended individuals;
�
identify and evaluate various resources to cover the
vaccine’s costs; and
�
identify and evaluate appropriate mechanisms
Annually on September 1, the subcommittee must report its findings
and recommendations to the committee.�
These findings and recommendations must be included in the
committee’s findings and recommendations for the annual State Council on
Cancer Control report.
Effective Date:� July 1, 2007
Signed by the Governor on 5/17/2007; Chapter #190
For more information, please contact:� Sheila Higdon
SB 938� Public Health - Injury Reports – Workgroup
This act requires the Maryland Hospital Association, the Maryland
State Medical Society, the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, the
Maryland State Police, and other interested stakeholders to convene a workgroup
to develop recommendations regarding the reporting requirements for injuries
caused or showing evidence as having been caused by an automobile accident or a
lethal weapon.� The recommendations must
include whether reporting requirements, currently limited to ten counties
within the state, should be applicable statewide; what injuries should be
reported; who should be required to report and when; and what penalties should
be imposed for failing to report.� The
workgroup must report its recommendations to the General Assembly by December
1, 2007.
Effective Date:� October 1, 2007
Signed by the Governor on 5/17/2007; Chapter #206
For more information, please contact:� Sheila Higdon
Several
measures were introduced pertaining to workers’ compensation in
HB 184� Joint Committee on Workers' Compensation Benefit and Insurance Oversight
– Membership
This act increases the membership of the Joint
Committee on Workers’ Compensation Benefit and Insurance Oversight from
fourteen to fifteen members.� The
additional member will be appointed jointly by the Senate President and the
Speaker of the House of Delegates and must be certified by the Workers’
Compensation Commission as a
Effective Date:� October 1, 2007
Signed by the Governor on
4/24/2007; Chapter #225
For more information, please
contact:� Tom Lewis
HB 1006� Workers' Compensation - Benefits - Cost of Living Adjustment
This act requires the Injured Workers’ Insurance
Fund (IWIF) to provide a cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) for permanent total
disability payments arising from events occurring before January 1, 1988.� Nongovernmental units, counties, and
municipal corporations are authorized to provide a COLA for pre-1988 events at
their discretion.
The act applies retroactively to affect compensation paid by IWIF
on or after October 1, 2006.
Effective Date: October 1, 2007
Signed by the Governor on 5/8/2007; Chapter #446
For more information, please contact:� Tom Lewis
SB 600� Workers' Compensation Commission -
Authorization for Release of Medical Information - Work-Related Injury or
Occupational Disease�
This
act requires a health care provider to disclose a medical record on receipt of
an authorization for the release of relevant medical information that is
included with a claim application filed with the Workers' Compensation
Commission.�
A claim application filed with the Commission must include an
authorization by the claimant for the release of medical information, including
information on the member of the body that was injured and a description of how
the injury occurred.� An authorization
for the release of medical information includes the release of information
relating to the history, findings, patient charts, files, examination and
progress notes, and physical evidence.�
The authorization is effective for one year from the date the claim is
filed and does not restrict the redisclosure of
medical information to a medical manager, health care professional, or
certified rehabilitation practitioner.�
If the medical provider determines that information being requested is
not relevant to the injured body part, the requestor will need to obtain a
subpoena from the Workers' Compensation Commission in order for the information
to be provided by the medical provider.
Effective Date:� October 1, 2007
Signed by the Governor on 4/24/2007; Chapter #167
For more information, please contact:� Tom Lewis
SB 765� Workers' Compensation Insurance - Notice – Premiums
This emergency act extends commercial insurance policy renewal
notification requirements to workers’ compensation insurance
policyholders.� Insurers must notify
workers’ compensation insurance policyholders of increases in renewal
premiums of 20% or more at least 45 days prior to the expiration of a
policy.� Notification must include
telephone contact information for reaching the insurer.�
If an insurer requests information from a worker’s
compensation insurance policyholder to determine the renewal policy premium,
the insurer is required to provide a reasonable estimate of the renewal premium
if the insurer does not receive the requested information.� In determining the amount of a premium
increase, an insurer is not required to include premium resulting from change
in exposure, application of an experience or retrospective rating plan, or an
audit of the insured.
Effective Date:� Emergency measure
Signed by the Governor on 5/17/2007; Chapter #575
For more information, please contact:� Tom Lewis
A bill passed requiring voter-verified
paper voting records for
Legislation failed that would have established a summer learning pilot program in public
elementary schools.� The
The General Assembly established a Baby Boomer Initiative Council
consisting of state officials and members of the business, education, and aging
communities.� As amended, the council
will include the director of the
HB 18� Election Law - Voting Systems - Voter-Verified Paper Records
This act adds new certification requirements,
including the creation of a voter-verifiable paper record (contingent upon the
inclusion of sufficient funding in the fiscal year 2009 budget), increased
accessibility for people with disabilities, and training for election judges.
A voter-verifiable paper record includes paper ballots prepared by
a voter: to be read by an optical scan machine, to be mailed to a local board,
or through the use of a ballot marking device.�
It must be an individual document physically separated from any other
similar document and not part of a continuous roll.
The State Board of Elections must conduct an evaluation of the
voting system to assess its accessibility and usability by voters with
disabilities, including a public demonstration of the system and an evaluation
by individuals representing a cross-section of voters with disabilities.� At least one voting system in each polling
place must provide access to voters with disabilities, and the board must ensure
that adequate backup equipment is available and contingency plans are
established.
Election judges must be provided with uniform statewide training
on the voting system, including all features that allow access to voters with
disabilities and the rights of voters with disabilities.
Effective Date:� July 1, 2007
Signed by the Governor on
5/17/2007; Chapter #548
�
For more information, please
contact:� Matt Greenwood
HB 599� The Baby Boomer Initiative Act
This act establishes a Baby Boomer Initiative Council
consisting of representatives of the Departments of Aging, Education, Business
and Economic Development, Health and Mental Hygiene; the dean (or designee) of
the University of Maryland’s College of Health and Human Performance;
representatives of United Seniors of Maryland and the AARP of Maryland; and the
director (or designee) of the Johns Hopkins University Center on Aging and
Health.� The Governor will designate the
chair.
The council is charged with the following:
�
developing recommendations for addressing the needs of the baby
boomer population;
�
making recommendations for using baby boomers as a source of
social capital and developing multigenerational civic activities for baby
boomers following their exit from career-track work;
�
making recommendations to the Maryland Department of Aging on
outreach to business, nonprofit organizations, and state agencies; and
�
studying and documenting health benefits derived
from baby boomers’ active engagement in intergenerational civic
activities.
The representatives from the
Effective Date:� October 1, 2007
Signed by the Governor on
5/17/2007; Chapter #507
For more information, please
contact:� Tom Lewis
HB 1071� Child Fatality Review Teams - Access and Disclosure of Information
This act allows a local child fatality review
team to investigate the information and records of a child convicted of a crime
or adjudicated as having committed a delinquent act that caused a death or near
fatality.� Upon request, information and
records, including information on prenatal care, maintained by a health care
provider regarding such a child or a child whose death is being reviewed must
be provided.
A local team must also have access to all information and records
maintained by state and local government entities that provided services to
such a child or the child’s family.�
However, information identifying such a child, deceased or not, or a
member of a child’s family or an alleged or suspected perpetrator of
abuse or neglect upon a child may not be disclosed during a public
meeting.� Information regarding the
involvement of any agency with such a child also may not be disclosed during a
public meeting.
Effective Date:� October 1, 2007
Signed by the Governor on 4/24/2007; Chapter #264
For more information, please contact:� Tom Lewis
HB 1425� Insurance Producers - Use of Trade Name
This act prohibits a licensed insurance producer from using any
name other than the name in which the license is issued or a trade name filed
with the Maryland Insurance Commissioner to engage in any activity for which a
license is required.� Licensees are
required to file name changes with the Commissioner.� Under this act, "trade name" means
a name, symbol, word, or combination thereof that a person uses to identify its
business, occupation, or self in a business capacity and to distinguish itself
from another business, occupation, or person.
Effective Date:� October 1, 2007
Signed by the Governor on 4/10/2007; Chapter #109
For more information, please contact:� Tom Lewis
HB 1432� Insurance - Analyses and Examination Reports - Use and Sharing of Documents,
Materials, and� Information �This act authorizes the Maryland
Insurance Commissioner to conduct an analysis of insurance entities and adds an
entity’s financial condition to the list of items that the Commissioner
may examine or analyze.� It also revises
requirements for the disclosure of a preliminary examination report,
investigation report, or any other matter related to an examination.
Under the act, a document, material, or
information that is obtained during specified examinations or analyses by the
Commissioner is: (1) confidential and privileged; (2) not subject to the public
records provisions of the Public Information Act; (3) not subject to a
subpoena; and (4) not subject to discovery or admissible in evidence in any
private civil action.� The Commissioner
may use any document, material, or information obtained during an examination
or analysis to further any regulatory or legal action brought as part of the
Commissioner’s duties.
If the recipient agrees to maintain the confidentiality
and privileged status, the Commissioner may share a document, material, or
information obtained during an examination or analysis with other state,
federal, or international regulatory agencies; the National Association of
Insurance Commissioners or its affiliates or subsidiaries; or state, federal,
or international law enforcement authorities.
The Commissioner may also receive a document,
material, or information from these entities but must maintain as confidential
and privileged any document, material, or information received with notice or
the understanding that it is confidential or privileged under the laws of the
jurisdiction that is its source.
Effective Date: �October 1, 2007
Signed by the Governor on
4/10/2007; Chapter #110
For more information, please
contact:� Tom Lewis
SB 6� Human Services
This act adds a new Human Services Article to
the Annotated Code of Maryland and is part of a long-term project to revise and
update
Effective Date:� October 1, 2007
Signed by the Governor on
3/22/2007; Chapter #3
For more information, please
contact:� Tom Lewis
SB 7� Human Services Article - Cross-References and Corrections
This act corrects cross-references to the
Annotated Code of Maryland to reflect the structure of the new Human Services
Article, as established by Senate Bill 6.
Effective Date:� October 1, 2007
Signed by the Governor on
4/10/2007; Chapter #8
For more information, please
contact:� Tom Lewis
SB 57� Education - Teachers - State and
Local Aid Program for Certification by the National Board for Professional
Teaching Standards� This act extends the
termination date of the State and Local Aid Program for Certification by the
National Board for Professional Teaching Standards (NBPTS) from May 31, 2008 to
June 30, 2013, and makes the following program enhancements: eligibility is extended
to teachers who are seeking recertification; the annual participation limit is
increased from 750 to 1,000 teachers; and the State Board of Education is
authorized to fund, through the program, up to one retake of an unsuccessful
entry on the NBPTS assessment.� The act
also requires the Maryland State Department of Education to include in its
annual budget request the total amount of money needed to fund the full number
of eligible program participants.
Effective Date:� October 1, 2007
Signed by the Governor on
5/8/2007; Chapter #309
For more information, please
contact:� Tom Lewis
SB 1022� Group Life Insurance - Additional Insureds -
Domestic Partners
This act authorizes an insurer to extend
insurance coverage under a group life insurance policy to the domestic partner
of an insured employee or member who elects to obtain that coverage.� Such coverage is treated in the same manner
as coverage for a spouse or dependent child.�
Under the act, “domestic partner” has the meaning stated in
the policy.
Effective Date:� October 1, 2007
Signed by the Governor on
5/17/2007; Chapter #586
For more information, please
contact:� Tom Lewis
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