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NHA offers testimony at legislative and regulatory hearings
Click on each bill number to read the testimony.
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Support LB 795 – Provide appropriations for community health
centers
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Support
LB 812 – Provide for primary enforcement of occupant
protection system laws
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Support LB 825 – Require insurance
for cochlear implants as prescribed
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Support LB 842 – Appropriate funds to the DHHS for developmental
disability aid
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Support LB 940 – State legislative intent to increase payments for
pharmacy dispensing fees under the Medical Assistance Program
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Support LB 948 – Adopt the Volunteer Emergency Responders Job Protection Act
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Support LB 969 – Require insurance coverage for prosthetics as prescribed
Click on the title to read the hearing testimony.
Hearing schedule for Feb. 18 – 22
The following "bills of interest" to NHA members are being
heard in committees this week. Behind each bill number is the committee that
will hear testimony. If you would like to share your perspective on a particular
bill or are interested in testifying at the hearing, please contact Bruce
Rieker, vice president of advocacy, at 402/742-8146 or
brieker@nhanet.org, or Carly Runestad,
director of health policy at 402/742-8153 or
crunestad@nhanet.org.
Monday, February 18
– Holiday
Tuesday, February 19
LB 1002 (Banking) – Require disclosures by group health benefit plans
Wednesday, February 20
LB 966 (Appropriations) – Change provisions relating to Tobacco Prevention
and Control Cash Fund
LB 1018 (Appropriations) – Adopt the Children's Behavioral Health
Transformation and Prioritization Appropriations Act
LB 1108 (HHS) – Change licensure requirements for mental health
practitioners
LB 1169 (HHS) – Authorize health care assistance for certain veterans of
Operation Enduring Freedom and Operation Iraqi Freedom
Thursday, February 21
LB 983 (Revenue) – Change an income tax credit for planned gifts
LB 1121 (HHS) – Adopt the Medicaid Insurance for Workers with Disabilities
Act
LB 1122 (HHS) – Change dental coverage provisions under the medical
assistance program
LB 1176 (HHS) – Change provisions relating to Medicaid benefits and
departmental reports
Friday, February 22
LB 1015 (Judiciary) – Change contributory negligence provisions
LB 1104 (HHS) – Provide for unlawful billing practices under the
Uniform Credentialing Act
To see this week's complete schedule of committee hearings
click here. To search for a specific bill,
click here
to access the Unicameral's bill finder.
Register now for March 5 Advocacy Day
The Nebraska Hospital Association's annual Advocacy Day is scheduled for Wednesday, March 5, at the Cornhusker
Marriott Hotel in Lincoln. This half-day workshop will provide health care
advocates with important information about state legislative issues. Scheduled speakers include Speaker of the Legislature Sen. Mike Flood (Norfolk);
Sen. Deb Fischer (Valentine); Scot Adams, Nebraska Health and Human Services director of division of Behavioral
Health; NHA President, Laura J. Redoutey, FACHE; Bruce Rieker, NHA vice
president of advocacy; and Carly Runestad, NHA director of health policy. The
2007 Advocacy Team of the Year
will also be recognized.
Following the morning's educational programming, you will have an
opportunity to visit with your senator about how legislation will affect health
care in your community at a Legislative Luncheon. Registration is $30 per
person. To register online for Advocacy Day,
click here.
Sponsorships available — In 2007,
the Advocacy Day luncheon was attended by more than 150 from across the state, including 28 senators. If you
are interested in sponsoring Advocacy Day,
contact Bruce Rieker, vice president of advocacy at
brieker@nhanet.org or 402/742-8146.
Governor signs safe haven bill
Gov. Dave Heineman signed the state’s safe haven bill late
Wednesday morning, though he said he has some misgivings about the broad nature
of the Nebraska measure. A parent who leaves a child or infant at a local
hospital cannot be prosecuted for abandonment or child neglect under the measure
that gained legislative approval last week.
Other states have limited their safe haven laws to infants, but
the Nebraska bill eliminated any mention of age to satisfy opposition to the
proposal. “Yes, I am going to sign it. Yes, I have some concern,” Heineman said
during a Wednesday morning news conference. “We have decided to expand beyond
infants.”
But senators can make adjustments to the law in future years if
problems develop, he said. Health and Human Services will be developing common
sense rules and regulations as they apply to the safe haven law, Heineman said.
Nebraska became the 50th state to provide a place where parents can leave a
baby, no questions asked. Alaska’s governor signed that state’s safe haven bill
into law Monday, February 11.
— Lincoln Journal Star, February 13, 2008.
Senators signal support for strict Nebraska-wide smoking ban
(AP) — A strict, statewide smoking ban -- one that cities and
counties couldn't opt out of -- got strong support from lawmakers Thursday as
they moved one step closer to a final decision. On a 33-13 vote, the Legislature
approved an amendment that would bar cities and counties from opting out of a
ban on smoking in bars, restaurants and all other workplaces in the state except
for retail tobacco shops and places where smoking research is done. Hotel rooms
also would be exempted. A final vote is expected in the next two weeks. Should
Nebraska adopt a strict ban, it would join 21 other states. Opponents of a
strict ban have said it would amount to bullying by the state against businesses
that should be allowed to decide whether anyone can smoke on their properties.
— Nebraska Chamber of Commerce Daily Update, February 15, 2008.
Coverage of medical treatments discussed
The Banking, Commerce and Insurance Committee heard testimony on
two bills related to health insurance coverage Feb. 11.
LB 825, introduced by Lincoln Sen. DiAnna Schimek, would require
insurance companies to provide coverage for single or bilateral cochlear
implants for customers diagnosed with severe to profound hearing impairment.
Most insurance provides coverage for single cochlear implants, but companies are
less likely to provide coverage for both ears. But the better a child can hear,
Schimek said, the better they learn and the fewer special educational services
they need.
LB 969, sponsored by Louisville Sen. Dave Pankonin, would require
insurance companies to provide coverage for medically necessary prosthetics at a
level no less than that provided by Medicare. The bill defines prosthetics as
artificial legs and arms and associated components. It would not prevent the
application of deductibles or co-payment provisions contained in an insurance
plan. Pankonin said that many insurance companies cap the amount of coverage
they will provide, requiring the patient to pay the vast majority of the cost.
The bill would result in an overall cost savings, he said, because recipients of
the benefit could better participate in society if they have full access to the
prosthetics they need.
Read more.
— Nebraska Unicameral Update Online, February 11, 2008.
Bill would expand workers' comp coverage
(AP) — Employees with mental illnesses caused by witnessing
violent acts such as the Omaha mall killings in December could receive workers’
compensation benefits under a measure being considered by state lawmakers. State
officials estimate that expanding the list of injuries covered by workers’
compensation to include mental, and not just physical, harm could cost the state
$3.5 million to $26.7 million more a year in additional indemnity and medical
compensation for state employees.
But Sen. Abbie Cornett of Omaha, a former police officer who
introduced the measure, said it’s only fair mental illness be covered. She
described the trauma of having walked along a quarter-mile section of train
track after a wreck while a police officer, picking up body parts. “Mental
injuries are real,” Cornett told the Legislature’s Business and Labor Committee
on Monday. “They can be every bit as painful and debilitating as physical
injuries.”
Read the full article.
— Lincoln Journal Star, February 11, 2008.
Bill would require seat belts on school buses
The Transportation and Telecommunications Committee heard
testimony on a bill Feb. 12 that would require all school buses purchased after
Jan. 1, 2009, to be equipped with lap and shoulder seatbelts. LB 1092, sponsored
by Scottsbluff Sen. John Harms, also would require that students wear these
seatbelts while riding the bus.
Harms said he is preparing an amendment to the bill that would in
turn protect school officials, volunteers and bus drivers from liability for
injury or death resulting from students’ failure to wear the seatbelts provided.
Harms said he was shocked by the statistics he learned about bus accidents. In
2006, he said, there were 113 bus accidents in the state. “There are a lot of
accidents,” he said. “And we put our children at risk each time we put them on a
school bus without seatbelts.”
Read more.
— Nebraska Unicameral Update Online, February 12, 2008.
Legislature's speaker wants to ban credit history use in pricing insurance
(Lincoln Journal Star) — Sen. Mike Flood of Norfolk has
introduced a bill that would prohibit insurance companies from using credit
information in determining car insurance rates. On Tuesday, Flood testified
during a hearing before the Banking, Commerce and Insurance Committee. A
half-dozen insurance industry representatives opposed the bill (LB 900),
contending Nebraska already adequately regulates the use of credit information.
Flood countered that state leaders should pay attention to the use of credit
information, which can drive up insurance costs for lower-income people.
Although insurance companies can show a statistical relationship between poor
credit history and higher claims, they don’t know why that relationship exists,
Flood said. But insurance representatives said credit information reduces rates
for more than half of consumers and helps companies more accurately match
premiums to risk. In fact, there is a stronger correlation between credit
history and claims than between driving record and claims, said David Snyder,
with the American Insurance Association.
A Federal Trade Commission study showed 59 percent of consumers
pay less for insurance when credit history is part of the equation, Snyder said.
And an Arkansas study indicated 91 percent of consumers saw no impact or were
favorably impacted by the use of credit information. People who are responsible
about credit are responsible in other areas of their life, insurance
representatives said. Statistically, women have fewer claims and married people
have fewer claims. Nebraska law already requires companies to notify consumers
they are considering credit history when a consumer buys a policy, and to
provide notice when that history negatively affects the consumer — either
through higher rates or denial of coverage, said Coleen Nielssen, lobbyist for
the Nebraska Insurance Information Service. State law also requires companies to
give a neutral rating to people who have no credit history. Just four states
have banned the use of credit information — Maryland, Hawaii, California and
Massachusetts. So states have concluded it has market value, Snyder said.
— Nebraska Chamber of Commerce Daily Update, February 13, 2008.
Kearney banker eyes seat in Unicam
(Kearney Hub) — Jim George, a Kearney native and banking veteran,
plans to campaign for the legislative seat held by state Sen. Joel Johnson of
Kearney, who reaches his term limit this year. George, 54, is the senior vice
president and chief financial officer for Platte Valley State Bank. He has
served eight years on the Kearney Board of Education, including two years as
president. George is one of two declared candidates for the 37th Legislative
District seat. The other is former Kearney Mayor Galen Hadley. Friday is the
filing deadline for incumbents. New candidates have until March 3 to file.
— Nebraska Chamber of Commerce Daily Update, February 13, 2008.
For more information about health-related legislative bills or resolutions, contact: Bruce Rieker, vice president, advocacy at (402) 742-8146 or brieker@nhanet.org.
NHA Rotunda Review is published by the Nebraska Hospital Association, 3255 Salt
Creek Circle, Lincoln, NE 68504. Phone (402) 742-8140, Fax (402) 742-8191. Visit our Web site at
http://www.nhanet.org. Christy Rasmussen, editor, at
402/742-8151, or email, crasmussen@nhanet.org.
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