05.06.2019

Legislature in Full Swing with Healthcare Hearings, Bills

In addition to the State Senate releasing its proposed budget tomorrow, a series of committees with jurisdiction over the healthcare sector are holding hearings on Tuesday – and each has a slew of bills of interest to hospitals.
 
The Joint Committee on Health Care Financing is meeting in Gardner Auditorium at 10:30 a.m. Among the 30 bills before it are ones concerning price variation, funding for disproportionate share hospitals, the financial stability of the Health Safety Net, MassHealth reimbursement rates, transparency of facility fees, and administrative burdens.
 
The Joint Committee on Financial Services is meeting at 10:30 a.m. in Room A-2 to hear testimony on bills relating to surprise billing, out-of-network billing, retroactive insurer claw-backs for behavioral health services, and transparency of insurer provider networks, among many other topics.
 
The Joint Committee on Public Health, meeting at 1 p.m. in Room B-1, will hear testimony on, among other things, the establishment of a mid-level dental practitioner known as a dental therapist, reauthorization of the Prevention & Wellness Trust Fund, and a number of other bills that the committee has previously given favorable reports to.
 
And the Joint Committee on Revenue, meeting in Room B-2 at 1 p.m. will be looking at an MHA priority bill – H.2529, An Act to Promote Healthy Alternatives to Sugary Drinks, filed by Rep. Kay Khan (D–Newton).