Tennessee 2025-2026 Regular Session

Tennessee House Bill HB0638 Compare Versions

Version 1 (Old)

Version 2 (New)

Old	New		Differences
1	1
2		-	SENATE BILL 1389
3		-	By Watson
	2	+	<BillNo> <Sponsor>
4	3
5	4		HOUSE BILL 638
6	5		By Carringer
7	6
8	7
9	8		HB0638
10	9		002021
11	10		- 1 -
12	11
13	12		AN ACT to amend Tennessee Code Annotated, Title 33;
14	13		Title 56; Title 63; Title 68 and Title 71, relative to
15	14		healthcare providers.
16	15
17	16		BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF TENNESSEE:
18	17		SECTION 1. Tennessee Code Annotated, Title 63, Chapter 1, Part 1, is amended by
19	18		adding the following as a new section:
20	19		(a) As used in this section:
21	20		(1) "Bureau" means the bureau of TennCare;
22	21		(2) "Director" means the director of TennCare;
23	22		(3) "Enrollee" means a person who is enrolled in a medical assistance
24	23		health benefit plan;
25	24		(4) "Healthcare provider" or "provider" means a person who is licensed,
26	25		certified, or otherwise authorized or permitted by the laws of this state to
27	26		administer health care in the ordinary course of business or practice of a
28	27		profession; and
29	28		(5) "Medical assistance health benefit plan" means a policy or contract
30	29		for health insurance coverage provided under:
31	30		(A) The TennCare program administered under the Medical
32	31		Assistance Act of 1968, compiled in title 71, chapter 5, part 1, or a
33	32		successor medicaid program; or
34	33		(B) The CoverKids Act of 2006, compiled in title 71, chapter 3,
35	34		part 11, or a successor program.
36	35
37	36
38	37		- 2 - 002021
39	38
40	39		(b) A healthcare provider who participates in a medical assistance health benefit
41	40		plan, including a provider participating in the provider network of a managed care
42	41		organization that contracts with the bureau of TennCare to provide services under a
43	42		medical assistance health benefit plan, shall not refuse to provide healthcare services to
44	43		an enrollee based solely on the enrollee's refusal or failure to obtain a vaccine or
45	44		immunization for a particular infectious or communicable disease.
46	45		(c) The bureau shall not provide reimbursement for a medical assistance health
47	46		benefit plan to a provider who violates this section unless and until the bureau finds that
48	47		the provider is in compliance with this section.
49	48		(d) Subsection (c) applies only with respect to an individual healthcare provider.
50	49		The bureau shall not refuse to provide reimbursement to a provider who did not violate
51	50		this section based on that provider's membership in a provider group or medical
52	51		organization with an individual physician who violated this section.
53	52		(e) This section does not apply to a provider who is a specialist in:
54	53		(1) Oncology; or
55	54		(2) Organ transplant services.
56	55		(f) The director shall adopt rules necessary to implement this section, including
57	56		rules establishing the right of a provider who is alleged to have violated this section to
58	57		seek administrative and judicial review of the alleged violation. The rules must be
59	58		promulgated in accordance with the Uniform Administrative Procedures Act, compiled in
60	59		title 4, chapter 5.
61	60		(g) The director may seek such federal waiver that the director deems necessary
62	61		to effectuate this section.
63	62		SECTION 2. This act takes effect July 1, 2025, the public welfare requiring it.