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2023 Regular Session
HOUSE CONCURRENT RESOL UTION NO. 100
BY REPRESENTATIVE DUSTIN MILLER
HEALTH CARE: Continues the Health Inequities and Disparities in Rural Areas Task
Force
1 A CONCURRENT RESOL UTION
2To continue the Health Disparities in Rural Areas Task Force created in the 2022 Regular
3 Session of the Legislature of Louisiana pursuant to House Concurrent Resolution No.
4 44 to identify and study key health issues affecting rural areas and develop strategies
5 to improve health outcomes for rural and under-served communities and to submit
6 a written report to the House and Senate committees on health and welfare by March
7 1
st
, 2024.
8 WHEREAS, according to the United States Centers for Disease Control and
9Prevention, overall health outcomes for African Americans, Hispanic Americans, and
10American Indians in this country are far poorer than for white people; and
11 WHEREAS, vast health disparities persist in this country, particularly in rural areas,
12and many have worsened during the COVID-19 pandemic; and
13 WHEREAS, rural areas comprise roughly eighty percent of Louisiana's total
14geographic area; and
15 WHEREAS, nearly twenty-six percent of our state's population, totaling more than
16one million two hundred thousand Louisianans, live in rural communities; and
17 WHEREAS, sixty-three of Louisiana's sixty-four parishes are classified as health
18professional shortage areas according to the standards of the federal Health Resources and
19Services Administration; and
20 WHEREAS, approximately ninety-eight percent of this state's entire population lives
21in a federally designated health professional shortage area; and
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HCR NO. 100
1 WHEREAS, the vast majority of Louisiana's rural communities are medically under-
2served by all established measures, yet programs to address the healthcare needs of this
3population remain underfunded and few are guided by local stakeholders or locally
4conducted needs assessments; and
5 WHEREAS, in consideration of the findings set forth in this Resolution, the
6legislature hereby declares that improving health outcomes in rural communities is a critical
7public health priority of this state.
8 THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the Legislature of Louisiana does hereby
9create the Health Disparities in Rural Areas Task Force.
10 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the task force shall be composed of the
11following members:
12 (1) The president of the board of directors of the Louisiana State Nurses Association
13or his designee.
14 (2) One member who possesses postgraduate degrees in both nursing and business
15administration appointed by the director of clinical practice, health policy, and advocacy of
16the Louisiana State Nurses Association.
17 (3) The executive director of the Louisiana State Board of Nursing or his designee.
18 (4) The executive director of the Louisiana State Board of Medical Examiners or his
19designee.
20 (5) The dean of the Southern University School of Nursing or his designee.
21 (6) The president of the board of directors of the Louisiana Association of Nurse
22Practitioners or his designee.
23 (7) The chief executive officer of the Louisiana State Medical Society or his
24designee.
25 (8) The chief operating officer of the Rural Hospital Coalition, Inc. or his designee.
26 (9) The president of the Louisiana Hospital Association or his designee.
27 (10) The executive director of the Louisiana Rural Health Association or his
28designee.
29 (11) The executive director of the Louisiana Primary Care Association or his
30designee.
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HCR NO. 100
1 (12) The secretary of the Louisiana Department of Health or his designee.
2 (13) The president of the board of directors of the Louisiana Managed Medicaid
3Association or his designee.
4 (14) The state director of AARP Louisiana or his designee.
5 (15) A certified nurse midwife appointed by the executive director of the Louisiana
6State Board of Nursing.
7 (16) The president of the board of directors of the Louisiana Academy of Family
8Physicians or his designee.
9 (17) One primary care physician from each of the six Louisiana congressional
10districts appointed by the president of the board of directors of the Louisiana Academy of
11Family Physicians.
12 (18) The president of the Louisiana Council of Administrators in Nursing Education
13or his designee.
14 (19) The president of the Black Nurses Association of Acadiana or his designee.
15 (20) The president of the Louisiana Independent Pharmacies Association.
16 (21) One member of the Clinicians of Color Workgroup.
17 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the duties of the task force shall include, without
18limitation, all of the following:
19 (1) Identifying the key drivers of health disparities in rural areas.
20 (2) Considering social determinants of health in developing recommendations for
21delivering high-quality health care in rural areas.
22 (3) Studying practicable solutions for reducing healthcare provider shortages in rural
23communities of Louisiana.
24 (4) Collaborating with health professional licensing boards of this state to draft
25proposals for legislation that will foster greater access to care for rural residents.
26 (5) Developing proposals for healthcare workforce training initiatives which
27promote diversity in health professions.
28 (6) Studying the impact of access to broadband internet and other technologies that
29facilitate wider deployment of telehealth and telemedicine services and thereby improve
30access to care in rural areas.
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1 (7) Serving as a resource for parish governments to build partnerships for
2community outreach to address social determinants of health in rural communities.
3 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the task force shall be a subcommittee of the
4Statewide Health Equity Consortium within the Louisiana Department of Health.
5 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Statewide Health Equity Consortium shall
6convene the a meeting of the task force no later than August 15, 2023.
7 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that, at its first meeting, the task force shall select
8from among its members a chairperson and any other officers it deems necessary for the
9functioning of the group.
10 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the members shall be given reasonable notice
11of the meetings of the Health Disparities in Rural Areas Task Force.
12 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that any member that fails to attend two consecutive
13meetings shall subject to removal by a majority vote of the task force.
14 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED if a member of the task force is removed, the
15chairperson may nominate a new member, who will become a member by majority vote of
16the current members of the task force.
17 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the task force may adopt rules of procedure and
18any other policies as may be necessary to facilitate the work of the group.
19 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that on or before March 1, 2024, the task force shall
20submit to the House Committee on Health and Welfare, the Senate Committee on Health and
21Welfare, and the David R. Poynter Legislative Research Library a report of its findings and
22recommendations.
23 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that a copy of this Resolution be transmitted to the
24president of the board of directors and the director of clinical practice, health policy, and
25advocacy of the Louisiana State Nurses Association, the executive director of the Louisiana
26State Board of Nursing, the executive director of the Louisiana State Board of Medical
27Examiners, the dean of the Southern University School of Nursing, the president of the board
28of directors of the Louisiana Association of Nurse Practitioners, the chief executive officer
29of the Louisiana State Medical Society, the chief operating officer of the Rural Hospital
30Coalition, Inc., the president of the Louisiana Hospital Association, the executive director
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HCR NO. 100
1of the Louisiana Rural Health Association, the executive director of the Louisiana Primary
2Care Association, the secretary of the Louisiana Department of Health, the president of the
3board of directors of the Louisiana Managed Medicaid Association, the state director of
4AARP Louisiana, the president of the board of directors of the Louisiana Academy of
5Family Physicians, the president of the Louisiana Council of Administrators in Nursing
6Education, the president of the Black Nurses Association of Acadiana, and the president of
7the Louisiana Independent Pharmacies Association.
DIGEST
The digest printed below was prepared by House Legislative Services. It constitutes no part
of the legislative instrument. The keyword, one-liner, abstract, and digest do not constitute
part of the law or proof or indicia of legislative intent. [R.S. 1:13(B) and 24:177(E)]
HCR 100 Draft 2023 Regular Session Dustin Miller
Continues the 21-member Health Disparities in Rural Areas Task Force as a subcommittee
of the Statewide Health Equity Consortium within the La. Department of Health and
provides for the duties of the task force.
Requires the task force to report its findings and recommendations to the legislative
committees on health and welfare on or before March 1, 2024.
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