| 1 | 1 | | 24 LC 52 0407 |
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| 2 | 2 | | Senate Bill 500 |
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| 3 | 3 | | By: Senators Dixon of the 45th, Watson of the 1st, Albers of the 56th, Hufstetler of the 52nd |
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| 4 | 4 | | and Still of the 48th |
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| 5 | 5 | | A BILL TO BE ENTITLED |
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| 6 | 6 | | AN ACT |
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| 7 | 7 | | To amend Title 31 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to health, so as to |
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| 8 | 8 | | 1 |
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| 9 | 9 | | provide certain requirements relating to subclasses of ground ambulance services; to revise2 |
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| 10 | 10 | | definitions; to provide for related matters; to repeal conflicting laws; and for other purposes.3 |
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| 11 | 11 | | BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF GEORGIA:4 |
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| 12 | 12 | | SECTION 1.5 |
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| 13 | 13 | | Title 31 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to health, is amended by revising6 |
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| 14 | 14 | | Code Section 31-11-31.2, relating to ambulance service provider matching payments,7 |
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| 15 | 15 | | segregated account, appropriations from segregated account, audits, and rules and8 |
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| 16 | 16 | | regulations, as follows:9 |
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| 17 | 17 | | "31-11-31.2.10 |
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| 18 | 18 | | (a) As used in this Code section, the term:11 |
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| 19 | 19 | | (1) 'Ambulance service' means an entity licensed by the Department of Public Health12 |
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| 20 | 20 | | pursuant to this chapter.13 |
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| 21 | 21 | | (2) 'Board' means the Board of Community Health.14 |
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| 22 | 22 | | (3) 'Department' means the Department of Community Health.15 |
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| 23 | 23 | | S. B. 500 |
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| 24 | 24 | | - 1 - 24 LC 52 0407 |
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| 25 | 25 | | (4) 'Ground ambulance service' means an ambulance service that operates motor vehicles16 |
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| 26 | 26 | | registered with the Department of Public Health that are specially constructed and17 |
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| 27 | 27 | | equipped and are intended to be used for emergency transportation of patients.18 |
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| 28 | 28 | | (4)(5) 'Provider matching payment' means a payment assessed by the board pursuant to19 |
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| 29 | 29 | | this Code section on providers which operate an ambulance service.20 |
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| 30 | 30 | | (b)(1) The board shall be authorized to establish and assess, by board rule, one or more21 |
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| 31 | 31 | | provider matching payments on a subclass of ambulance services, as defined by the22 |
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| 32 | 32 | | board; provided, however, that, if any such provider matching payment is established and23 |
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| 33 | 33 | | assessed, the provider matching payment shall comply with the requirements24 |
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| 34 | 34 | | of 42 C.F.R. 433.68. Any provider matching payment assessed pursuant to this Code25 |
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| 35 | 35 | | section shall not exceed the amount necessary to obtain federal financial participation26 |
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| 36 | 36 | | allowable under Title XIX of the federal Social Security Act. In the event that the board27 |
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| 37 | 37 | | establishes a subclass that includes ground ambulance services that respond to emergency28 |
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| 38 | 38 | | calls under the 9-1-1 system, whether such ground ambulance services are designated29 |
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| 39 | 39 | | as 9-1-1 providers or provide services under a service delivery contract for a30 |
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| 40 | 40 | | designated 9-1-1 provider, ground ambulance services that do not respond to emergency31 |
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| 41 | 41 | | calls under or are not dispatched through the 9-1-1 system shall be given the option to be32 |
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| 42 | 42 | | included in such subclass.33 |
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| 43 | 43 | | (2) The board shall be authorized to discontinue any provider matching payment34 |
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| 44 | 44 | | assessed pursuant to this Code section. The board shall cease to impose any such35 |
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| 45 | 45 | | provider matching payment if:36 |
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| 46 | 46 | | (A) The provider matching payments are not eligible for federal matching funds under37 |
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| 47 | 47 | | Title XIX of the federal Social Security Act; or38 |
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| 48 | 48 | | (B) The department, as a direct result of the enactment of this Code section, reduces39 |
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| 49 | 49 | | or supplants Medicaid payment rates to ambulance providers as such rates are in effect40 |
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| 50 | 50 | | on June 30, 2021, or reduces or supplants the provider matching payment rate41 |
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| 51 | 51 | | S. B. 500 |
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| 52 | 52 | | - 2 - 24 LC 52 0407 |
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| 53 | 53 | | adjustment factors utilized in developing the state Fiscal Year 2021 capitated rates for |
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| 54 | 54 | | 42 |
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| 55 | 55 | | Medicaid managed care organizations.43 |
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| 56 | 56 | | (c)(1) Any provider matching payments assessed pursuant to this Code section shall be44 |
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| 57 | 57 | | deposited into a segregated account within the Indigent Care Trust Fund created pursuant45 |
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| 58 | 58 | | to Code Section 31-8-152 and used solely for the purpose of obtaining federal financial46 |
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| 59 | 59 | | participation for medical assistance payments to providers on behalf of Medicaid47 |
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| 60 | 60 | | recipients pursuant to Article 7 of Chapter 4 of Title 49. Any funds deposited into such48 |
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| 61 | 61 | | segregated account pursuant to this Code section shall be subject to appropriation by the49 |
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| 62 | 62 | | General Assembly.50 |
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| 63 | 63 | | (2) The department shall be authorized to impose a penalty of up to 6 percent on the51 |
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| 64 | 64 | | amount of any owed provider matching payments for any ambulance service that fails to52 |
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| 65 | 65 | | pay a provider matching payment within the time required by the department for each53 |
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| 66 | 66 | | month, or fraction thereof, that such provider matching payment is overdue. If a required54 |
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| 67 | 67 | | provider matching payment has not been received by the department in accordance with55 |
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| 68 | 68 | | department timelines, the department shall withhold an amount equal to the provider56 |
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| 69 | 69 | | matching payment and penalty owed from any medical assistance payment due such57 |
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| 70 | 70 | | ambulance service under the Medicaid program. Any provider matching payment58 |
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| 71 | 71 | | assessed pursuant to this Code section shall constitute a debt due the state and may be59 |
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| 72 | 72 | | collected by civil action and the filing of tax liens in addition to such methods provided60 |
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| 73 | 73 | | for in this Code section. Any penalty that accrues pursuant to this subsection shall be61 |
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| 74 | 74 | | credited to the applicable segregated account.62 |
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| 75 | 75 | | (d)(1) Notwithstanding any other provision of Chapter 8 of this title, the General63 |
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| 76 | 76 | | Assembly is authorized to appropriate as state funds to the department for use in any64 |
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| 77 | 77 | | fiscal year all revenues dedicated and deposited into one or more segregated accounts.65 |
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| 78 | 78 | | Such appropriations shall be authorized to be made for the sole purpose of obtaining66 |
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| 79 | 79 | | federal financial participation for medical assistance payments to providers on behalf of67 |
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| 80 | 80 | | Medicaid recipients pursuant to Article 7 of Chapter 4 of Title 49. Any appropriation68 |
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| 81 | 81 | | S. B. 500 |
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| 82 | 82 | | - 3 - 24 LC 52 0407 |
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| 83 | 83 | | from a segregated account for any purpose other than such medical assistance payments |
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| 84 | 84 | | 69 |
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| 85 | 85 | | shall be void.70 |
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| 86 | 86 | | (2) Revenues appropriated to the department pursuant to this Code section shall be used71 |
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| 87 | 87 | | to match federal funds that are available for the purpose for which such funds have been72 |
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| 88 | 88 | | appropriated.73 |
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| 89 | 89 | | (3) Appropriations from a segregated account to the department shall not lapse to the74 |
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| 90 | 90 | | general fund at the end of the fiscal year.75 |
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| 91 | 91 | | (e) The department shall have the authority to inspect and copy the records of an76 |
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| 92 | 92 | | ambulance service for purposes of auditing the calculation of the provider matching77 |
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| 93 | 93 | | payment. All information obtained by the department pursuant to this Code section shall78 |
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| 94 | 94 | | be confidential and shall not constitute a public record.79 |
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| 95 | 95 | | (f) The board shall be authorized to establish rules and regulations to assess and collect80 |
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| 96 | 96 | | any such provider matching payments, including, but not limited to, payment frequency81 |
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| 97 | 97 | | and schedules, required information to be submitted, and record retention."82 |
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| 98 | 98 | | SECTION 2.83 |
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| 99 | 99 | | All laws and parts of laws in conflict with this Act are repealed.84 |
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| 100 | 100 | | S. B. 500 |
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| 101 | 101 | | - 4 - |
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