Weekly Legislative Update: May 22, 2023


SPECIAL SESSION CALLED

The legislature has called a concurrent special session which started meeting Wednesday. It will allow lawmakers to finalize this year's budget and meet after when the current session was scheduled to adjourn on May 26 if necessary.

The special session will be limited to the consideration of the following topics:
  • Appropriation of funds for the annual state budget for Fiscal Year 2023 and 2024
  • Legislation related to implementing and administering budget-related funds
  • Expenditure of federal funds pursuant to the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021

The political maneuver also allows the legislature enough time to override any vetoes occurring this week.

HEALTH INFORMATION EXCHANGE

THANK YOU to all OSMA members actively participating in our recent ACTION CALL requesting full state funding for the Health Information Exchange (HIE). The is an UNFUNDED MANDATE and continues to be a major concern for all health care professionals across the state.

Data privacy is of utmost importance and must remain confidential between the patient and physician. Additionally, physicians and other health care professionals should NOT have to pay for participating in this UNFUNDED STATE-MANDATED program.

Currently, some physicians across the state have already received invoices up to $5K from the Oklahoma Health Care Authority (OHCA) compelling payment for required HIE participation. If this remains the case, Oklahoma would be the ONLY state in the nation requiring this UNFUNDED MANDATE be paid for by that state's medical practitioners and providers.

OSMA continues to question the Constitutionality of whether the HIE can require private payers and physicians to participate, however, CURRENT LAW STILL REQUIRES THE HIE TO BECOME EFFECTIVE ON JULY 1, 2023.

To help physicians better understand Oklahoma's HIE program, OSMA has developed a FAQ.

OHCA rules allow physicians to apply for an exemption from this mandate based on type of health care provider, financial hardship, size, or technological capability of a health care provider or organization.


LEGISLATIVE ISSUES IMPORTANT TO OSMA

SCOPE OF PRACTICE

SB458 (Stanley/McEntire) – Allows certain qualified and certified nurse practitioners, clinical nurse specialists, or certified nurse-midwives to apply to the Board of Nursing for Independent Prescribing Authority. (Passed Senate Floor with Title Off**; NOT heard on the House Floor House Floor; Dormant) OSMA OPPOSES

GENERAL GOVERNMENT

HB1688 (McEntire/Haste) – Creates the Health Care Transparency Initiative Act which provides for standards and guidelines related to the management of the state Health Information Exchange (HIE) under the Health Care Authority (Passed House; NOT heard on Senate Floor; Dormant) OSMA WAS IN NEGOTIATIONS

SB597 (Newhouse/Hasenbeck) – Allows physician members of the Board of Medical Licensure to have obtained training from foreign medical schools and retired physicians to serve, confidentiality of disciplinary actions, adjusts other related qualifications. (Passed Senate; NOT heard on House Floor; Dormant) OSMA SUPPORTS

INSURANCE

SB254 (Garvin/Boatman) – Requires insurers to charge no more for out-of-network care than they would for in-network care in cases where the insured is unable to obtain covered services in a timely manner. (Passed House as Amended; Passed Senate; to Governor) OSMA SUPPORTS

 SB442 (Montgomery/Sneed) – Requires health benefit plans to make available a directory of providers within their network plans. (Passed Senate; Passed House; Signed by Governor) OSMA SUPPORTS

SB513 (Rosino/Miller) – Requires insurers, including the state's Medicaid program, to cover biomarker testing in certain instances. (Passed House Floor; Passed Senate; to Governor) OSMA SUPPORTS
LEGAL REFORM

HB2154 (Roe/K. Thompson) – Extends certain protections against assault and battery against health care professionals to all health care facility personnel and directs health providers to share related data with the Dept. of Health. (Passed House; Passed Senate; Signed by Governor) OSMA SUPPORTS

MEDICAID

HB1657 (McEntire/Rosino) – Requires the Health Care Authority to streamline the process for Medicaid provider enrollment and credentialing for any fee-for-service and managed care delivery systems. (Passed Senate Floor as Amended; Passed House; Signed by Governor) OSMA SUPPORTS

SB563 (Haste/McEntire) – Includes that anesthesia is to continue to be reimbursed equal to or greater than the established Fee Schedule, with value-based payment arrangements possible for services furnished to Medicaid members. (Passed Senate; Passed House; VETOED by Governor) OSMA SUPPORTS

MENTAL HEALTH

HB1035 (Rosecrants/Pemberton) – Provides exemptions for school absence requirements to students missing class for mental health assessments and therapy sessions. (Passed House with Title Off**; Passed Senate with restored Title; to House for consideration of amendments) OSMA SUPPORTS

HB2746 (Kirt/Miller) – Creates the Courtney Smith Law, allowing for the transportation of a ward by county or municipal officials to an inpatient treatment facility under the direction of a guardian in certain circumstances. (Passed House; Passed Senate; Signed by Governor) OSMA SUPPORTS

SB254 (Garvin/Boatman) – Requires insurers to charge no more for out-of-network care than they would for in-network care in cases where the insured is unable to obtain covered services in a timely manner. (Passed House as Amended; passed Senate, to Governor) OSMA SUPPORTS

SB444 (Montgomery/Miller) – Requires health benefit plans that provide mental health or substance abuse disorder benefits to provide reimbursement for benefits that are delivered through certain collaborative care models. (Passed House as Amended; to Senate for consideration of amendments) OSMA SUPPORTS

SB844 (R. Thompson/Miller) – Places supervisory authority over the County Community Safety Investment Fund within LOFT and permits counties to submit requests for money from the fund to support certain programs and projects related to mental health and substance abuse. (Passed Senate; Passed House; Signed by Governor) OSMA SUPPORTS
PhRMA/PAIN MANAGEMENT/OPIOIDS

HB1987 (Dollens/Rader) – Clarifies that drug testing strips for the purposes of detecting fentanyl or related compounds are not considered drug paraphernalia. (Passed House; Passed Senate; SIGNED by Governor) OSMA SUPPORTS

HB2424 (May/Stephens) – Allows pharmacies to dispense and sell a wider variety of opioid antagonists to counteract overdoses. (Passed House; Passed Senate; SIGNED by Governor) OSMA SUPPORTS

SB711 (Rosino/Boatman) – Directs the Dept. of Mental Health to provide hospitals with opioid antagonists to be given to persons presenting to emergency departments with the symptoms of an opioid overdose or related disorder upon discharge from the hospital. (Passed Senate; Passed House; VETOED by Governor) OSMA SUPPORTS

WOMEN & CHILDREN HEALTH

SB292 (Stanley/Roe) – Requires testing for syphilis on women at various stages of pregnancy, as well as if there is a stillbirth or spontaneous miscarriage, such required testing to be covered by certain health benefit plans. (Passed Senate; Passed House; SIGNED by Governor) OSMA SUPPORTS

SB368 (Garvin replaced by Daniels/Hasenbeck) – Establishes that laws pertaining to abortion will not be construed to prohibit or otherwise affect the provision of contraceptive care by authorized healthcare providers. (Extremely restrictive language exempting rape, incest and saving the life of the mother has been drafted for consideration.) (Passed House as Amended; to Senate rejected House Amendments; to Conference Committee) OSMA SUPPORTS

SB382 (Garvin/Roe) – Provides for a sales tax exemption on feminine hygiene products to certain organizations which provide and distribute such products and appropriates $1MIL to a Feminine Hygiene Program for grants to local partners for women living in period poverty. (Passed Senate; Passed House Public Health; NOT heard on House Floor; Dormant) OSMA SUPPORTS

*OSMA continues to oppose measures which interfere with the patient/physician relationship.

**“Title Off” means the statutory reference is removed from the legislation to assure further negotiation.