Maryland 2025 Regular Session

Maryland House Bill HB1242 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.

Old	New	Differences
1	1
2	2
3	3	EXPLANATION: CAPITALS INDICATE MAT TER ADDED TO EXISTIN G LAW.
4	4	[Brackets] indicate matter deleted from existing law.
5	5	hb1242
6	6
7	7	HOUSE BILL 1242
8	8	F1, J1 5lr3433
9	9	HB 893/24 – W&M
10	10	By: Delegates Hill, Kaufman, Patterson, Taveras, and Woods
11	11	Introduced and read first time: February 7, 2025
12	12	Assigned to: Ways and Means
13	13
14	14	A BILL ENTITLED
15	15
16	16	AN ACT concerning 1
17	17
18	18	Primary and Secondary Students – Vision and Hearing Studies and Evaluations 2
19	19
20	20	FOR the purpose of requiring the State Department of Education, in collaboration with the 3
21	21	Maryland Department of Health, to convene a workgroup to study and make 4
22	22	recommendations on vision support treatments and services for students; requiring 5
23	23	the Maryland State School Health Council to evaluate certain issues regarding 6
24	24	vision and hearing difficulties in primary and secondary students; and generally 7
25	25	relating to primary and secondary student vision and hearing studies and 8
26	26	evaluations. 9
27	27
28	28	SECTION 1. BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF MARYLAND, 10
29	29	That: 11
30	30
31	31	(a) The State Department of Education, in collaboration with the Maryland 12
32	32	Department of Health, shall convene a workgroup that includes representatives of: 13
33	33
34	34	(1) county boards of education; 14
35	35
36	36	(2) local health departments; 15
37	37
38	38	(3) the Maryland Optometric Association; 16
39	39
40	40	(4) the Maryland Society of Eye Physicians & Surgeons; 17
41	41
42	42	(5) Vision for Baltimore; and 18
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44	44	(6) any other relevant State and local vision service providers, such as 19
45	45	public libraries that host eye exams and eyeglasses distribution events. 20
46	46
47	47	(b) The workgroup shall: 21
48	48	2 HOUSE BILL 1242
49	49
50	50
51	51	(1) study: 1
52	52
53	53	(i) the jurisdictional incidence and prevalence of: 2
54	54
55	55	1. primary and secondary students who fail vision screening 3
56	56	tests and the percentage of students who: 4
57	57
58	58	A. received the recommended follow–up comprehensive 5
59	59	vision testing, eyeglasses, or other vision support treatments or services to correct the 6
60	60	vision deficiency; 7
61	61
62	62	B. received the recommended follow–up comprehensive 8
63	63	vision testing but have not received recommended eyeglasses or other vision support 9
64	64	treatments or other services to correct the vision deficiency; and 10
65	65
66	66	C. did not obtain the recommended follow–up comprehensive 11
67	67	vision testing; 12
68	68
69	69	2. the correlation between having insurance coverage and 13
70	70	whether primary and secondary students receive recommended comprehensive vision 14
71	71	testing, eyeglasses, and other vision support treatments or services; and 15
72	72
73	73	3. other factors that contribute to primary and secondary 16
74	74	students not receiving the vision support treatments and services necessary for the 17
75	75	students to be visually equipped to learn; 18
76	76
77	77	(ii) the policies and programs each jurisdiction uses to identify 19
78	78	children who have or have not received recommended vision support treatments or services; 20
79	79
80	80	(iii) for each jurisdiction, the resources available for ensuring that 21
81	81	vision deficits are adequately addressed and primary and secondary students are visually 22
82	82	equipped to learn, including: 23
83	83
84	84	1. civic, nonprofit, and public organizations that provide 24
85	85	vision screening tests; 25
86	86
87	87	2. vouchers for purchasing eyeglasses; 26
88	88
89	89	3. prescription eyeglasses donations; and 27
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91	91	4. local eye care professionals who provide pro bono or 28
92	92	discounted services or supplies to members of the community; 29
93	93
94	94	(iv) the role and responsibilities of the local public health department 30
95	95	and school system in tracking and ensuring primary and secondary students are visually 31
96	96	equipped to learn, including the mechanisms and programs used to achieve that goal; 32
97	97	HOUSE BILL 1242 3
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99	99
100	100	(v) programs and policies in other states and local jurisdictions that 1
101	101	give priority to ensuring that school children are visually equipped to learn, including 2
102	102	funding options such as: 3
103	103
104	104	1. insurance; 4
105	105
106	106	2. third–party cost coverage; 5
107	107
108	108	3. grants; 6
109	109
110	110	4. philanthropy; and 7
111	111
112	112	5. public funding; and 8
113	113
114	114	(vi) other factors the workgroup considers necessary to ensure all 9
115	115	primary and secondary students are visually equipped to learn; and 10
116	116
117	117	(2) evaluate and make recommendations regarding: 11
118	118
119	119	(i) whether additional mandatory school vision screening tests are 12
120	120	necessary and, if so, how the additional tests might be funded; 13
121	121
122	122	(ii) to better identify and track whether students are receiving 14
123	123	recommended eye exams and other vision support treatments and services, the feasibility 15
124	124	and benefits of developing a mechanism to facilitate reporting eye exam findings to the local 16
125	125	school system or public health department in a manner that is similar to how eye exam 17
126	126	results are reported to the Motor Vehicle Administration; 18
127	127
128	128	(iii) how to better educate families about the importance of 19
129	129	diagnosing and treating vision deficits; 20
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131	131	(iv) how to better partner with community eye professionals to 21
132	132	address the needs of the community; 22
133	133
134	134	(v) the feasibility and necessity of a vision support program that: 23
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136	136	1. would identify and assist only primary and secondary 24
137	137	students who have vision needs and are: 25
138	138
139	139	A. being missed under the current system; or 26
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141	141	B. identified under the current system but are not receiving 27
142	142	the necessary vision support treatments and services; 28
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144	144	2. would not provide vision screening tests, eye exams, or 29
145	145	other vision support treatments and services to all primary and secondary students; 30
146	146	4 HOUSE BILL 1242
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149	149	3. would connect students identified by the program to: 1
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151	151	A. local vision service providers for ongoing and long–term 2
152	152	care; 3
153	153
154	154	B. insurance benefits; and 4
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156	156	C. philanthropic resources; and 5
157	157
158	158	4. would emphasize education and increased awareness 6
159	159	around vision needs and services; 7
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161	161	(vi) how the State can assist local jurisdictions to ensure all students 8
162	162	are visually equipped to learn; 9
163	163
164	164	(vii) annual funding levels for vision support programs and options 10
165	165	for sustaining the funding; and 11
166	166
167	167	(viii) how a vision support program would give priority to: 12
168	168
169	169	1. referring primary and secondary students initially 13
170	170	identified and treated through the program to community providers for their ongoing and 14
171	171	long–term vision support needs; 15
172	172
173	173	2. partnering with community providers to provide primary 16
174	174	and secondary students with initial vision assessments and treatments and long–term care; 17
175	175	and 18
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177	177	3. ensuring vision support treatment and services are 19
178	178	provided to primary and secondary students regardless of insurance status, with 20
179	179	consideration given to whether insurance companies can provide annual contributions, 21
180	180	capitation, or other methods to underwrite the cost of the programs either in part or in 22
181	181	whole. 23
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183	183	(c) A member of the workgroup: 24
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185	185	(1) may not receive compensation as a member of the workgroup; but 25
186	186
187	187	(2) is entitled to reimbursement for expenses under the Standard State 26
188	188	Travel Regulations, as provided in the State budget. 27
189	189
190	190	(d) On or before December 31, 2026, the workgroup shall submit a report of its 28
191	191	findings and recommendations, in accordance with § 2–1257 of the State Government 29
192	192	Article, to: 30
193	193
194	194	(1) the Senate Committee on Education, Energy, and the Environment; 31
195	195	HOUSE BILL 1242 5
196	196
197	197
198	198	(2) the Education, Business and Administration Subcommittee of the 1
199	199	Senate Budget and Taxation Committee; 2
200	200
201	201	(3) the House Health and Government Operations Committee; 3
202	202
203	203	(4) the House Ways and Means Committee; and 4
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205	205	(5) the Education and Economic Development Subcommittee of the House 5
206	206	Appropriations Committee. 6
207	207
208	208	SECTION 2. AND BE IT FURTHER ENACTED, That: 7
209	209
210	210	(a) The Maryland State School Health Council shall evaluate: 8
211	211
212	212	(1) how the Council can partner with interested parties to address issues 9
213	213	that may arise when primary and secondary students are inadequately equipped to learn 10
214	214	due to vision or hearing difficulties; 11
215	215
216	216	(2) the number of school primary and secondary students with hearing 12
217	217	difficulties who have not received the auditory aids necessary for them to learn; and 13
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219	219	(3) whether statutory support programs similar to programs studied under 14
220	220	Section 1 of this Act would assist public school primary and secondary students who have 15
221	221	hearing difficulties. 16
222	222
223	223	(b) On or before December 31, 2026, the Maryland State School Health Council 17
224	224	shall submit a report of its findings, in accordance with § 2–1257 of the State Government 18
225	225	Article, to: 19
226	226
227	227	(1) the Senate Committee on Education, Energy, and the Environment; 20
228	228
229	229	(2) the Education, Business and Administration Subcommittee of the 21
230	230	Senate Budget and Taxation Committee; 22
231	231
232	232	(3) the House Health and Government Operations Committee; 23
233	233
234	234	(4) the House Ways and Means Committee; and 24
235	235
236	236	(5) the Education and Economic Development Subcommittee of the House 25
237	237	Appropriations Committee. 26
238	238
239	239	SECTION 3. AND BE IT FURTHER ENACTED, That this Act shall take effect July 27
240	240	1, 2025. It shall remain effective for a period of 2 years and, at the end of June 30, 2027, 28
241	241	this Act, with no further action required by the General Assembly, shall be abrogated and 29
242	242	of no further force and effect. 30
243	243