Tennessee 2025-2026 Regular Session

Tennessee Senate Bill SB0164 Compare Versions

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

Old	New	Differences
1	1
2	2	HOUSE BILL 18
3	3	By Baum
4	4
5	5	SENATE BILL 164
6	6	By Yarbro
7	7
8	8
9	9	SB0164
10	10	000491
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12	12
13	13	AN ACT to amend Tennessee Code Annotated, Title 71,
14	14	Chapter 5, relative to TennCare.
15	15
16	16	WHEREAS, it is the desire of the General Assembly to assist Tennesseans in times of
17	17	need; and
18	18	WHEREAS, such assistance should be provided in a manner that does not foster long-
19	19	term, chronic dependency on government assistance; and
20	20	WHEREAS, the temporary provision of high-quality healthcare coverage is one form of
21	21	that assistance; now, therefore,
22	22	BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STA TE OF TENNESSEE:
23	23	SECTION 1. Tennessee Code Annotated, Title 71, Chapter 5, Part 1, is amended by
24	24	adding the following as a new section:
25	25	(a) As used in this section:
26	26	(1) "CoverKids program" means the program established pursuant to the
27	27	CoverKids Act of 2006, compiled in chapter 3, part 11 of this title, to provide
28	28	health insurance coverage to children; and
29	29	(2) "Temporary TennCare benefits program" means medical assistance
30	30	provided on a temporary basis to an individual who is otherwise ineligible on the
31	31	basis of income for enrollment in medical assistance under this part or in the
32	32	CoverKids program.
33	33	(b) The bureau of TennCare shall submit by December 31, 2025, a waiver
34	34	application to the federal centers for medicare and medicaid services that establishes a
35	35	temporary TennCare benefits program.
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37	37
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40	40	(c) The temporary TennCare benefits program must include provisions for the
41	41	following:
42	42	(1) Medical assistance must be available for a period not to exceed
43	43	twelve (12) months in a period of twenty-four (24) months, up to a cumulative
44	44	maximum of sixty (60) months during the years prior to the individual's twenty-
45	45	first birthday, for an individual who:
46	46	(A) Is less than twenty-one (21) years of age;
47	47	(B) Is from a family that has income not greater than one hundred
48	48	thirty-eight percent (138%) of the federal poverty level; and
49	49	(C) Is not currently eligible for medical assistance under this part,
50	50	enrollment in the CoverKids program, or a successor program;
51	51	(2) Medical assistance must be available for a period not to exceed
52	52	twelve (12) months in a period of twenty-four (24) months, up to a cumulative
53	53	maximum of sixty (60) months during the individual's remaining lifetime, for an
54	54	individual who:
55	55	(A) Is twenty-one (21) years of age or older;
56	56	(B) Has an income not greater than one hundred thirty-eight
57	57	percent (138%) of the federal poverty level; and
58	58	(C) Is not currently eligible for medical assistance under this part;
59	59	(3)
60	60	(A) The temporary benefits provided in subdivisions (c)(1) and
61	61	(c)(2) do not replace or substitute for enrollment in medical assistance
62	62	under this part, the CoverKids program, or successor programs if the
63	63	individual becomes eligible for one (1) or more of those programs while
64	64	the individual is enrolled in the temporary TennCare benefits program;
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66	66
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69	69	(B) Receipt of the temporary benefits provided in this subsection
70	70	(c) does not preclude an individual who becomes eligible for medical
71	71	assistance, the CoverKids program, or a successor program from
72	72	applying for enrollment in those programs;
73	73	(C) If an individual becomes enrolled in medical assistance, the
74	74	CoverKids program, or a successor program while the individual is
75	75	receiving temporary benefits, then the temporary benefits are paused;
76	76	(D) For an individual contemplated in subdivision (c)(2), the sixty-
77	77	month limit resets upon the individual's twenty-first birthday. Any
78	78	remaining time does not carry forward from prior to the individual's
79	79	twenty-first birthday; and
80	80	(E) Enrollment in the temporary TennCare benefits program must
81	81	begin six (6) months following the date of federal approval of a necessary
82	82	waiver;
83	83	(4) The program is funded using ninety percent (90%) federal funds and
84	84	ten percent (10%) state funds; and
85	85	(5) The program and any federal waiver sought to enable the program
86	86	must leave unchanged the TennCare block grant financing agreement that was
87	87	negotiated pursuant to § 71-5-163 and subsequently approved by the federal
88	88	centers for medicare and medicaid services and by joint resolution of the general
89	89	assembly.
90	90	(d) The bureau of TennCare shall promulgate rules in accordance with the
91	91	Uniform Administrative Procedures Act, compiled in title 4, chapter 5, to administer the
92	92	temporary TennCare benefits program. The rules must include:
93	93	(1) An application system for new and returning beneficiaries;
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98	98	(2) A record of beneficiaries, including:
99	99	(A) A beneficiary who becomes eligible for medical assistance,
100	100	the CoverKids program, or a successor program while the beneficiary is
101	101	receiving temporary benefits; and
102	102	(B) A beneficiary who was previously enrolled in medical
103	103	assistance, the CoverKids program, or a successor program; and
104	104	(3) A time-tracking system that maintains a record of a beneficiary's use
105	105	of the program and that makes the record available to the beneficiary.
106	106	(e) The bureau shall strive to enable applicants for temporary benefits to access
107	107	benefits in a timely fashion.
108	108	(f) The temporary TennCare benefits program does not constitute an entitlement
109	109	to coverage for eligible individuals, and the availability of program benefits is subject to
110	110	appropriations made in the annual appropriations act for that purpose.
111	111	SECTION 2. Tennessee Code Annotated, Section 71-5-126, is amended by designating
112	112	the existing language as subsection (a) and adding the following as a new subsection:
113	113	(b) Subsection (a) does not apply to actions by the governor that are necessary
114	114	to establish the temporary TennCare benefits program pursuant to SECTION 1.
115	115	SECTION 3. This act takes effect upon becoming a law, the public welfare requiring it.