Texas 2011 - 82nd Regular

Texas Senate Bill SB1854 Compare Versions

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1	1	By: Deuell S.B. No. 1854
2	2	(In the Senate - Filed March 11, 2011; March 24, 2011, read
3	3	first time and referred to Committee on Health and Human Services;
4	4	May 6, 2011, reported adversely, with favorable Committee
5	5	Substitute by the following vote: Yeas 6, Nays 1; May 6, 2011,
6	6	sent to printer.)
7	7	COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR S.B. No. 1854 By: Deuell
8	8
9	9
10	10	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
11	11	AN ACT
12	12	relating to the women's health program.
13	13	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
14	14	SECTION 1. The legislature finds that:
15	15	(1) taxpayer money should not be used to directly or
16	16	indirectly support elective abortions or to pay for costs,
17	17	including overhead costs, rent, utilities, and operational costs,
18	18	of an entity that performs elective abortions;
19	19	(2) because money is fungible, taxpayer money is used
20	20	to support elective abortions when the state awards grant money to
21	21	an entity or the affiliate of an entity that performs or promotes
22	22	elective abortions, even if the money is designated exclusively for
23	23	purposes that are not related to elective abortions;
24	24	(3) an effort to separate an entity that performs
25	25	elective abortions from an affiliate of the entity is insufficient
26	26	to prevent taxpayer money from being used to support elective
27	27	abortions because, if taxpayer money is provided to the affiliate,
28	28	additional resources that would have been used by the affiliate are
29	29	available for use by the entity that performs elective abortions;
30	30	(4) prohibiting the distribution of taxpayer money to
31	31	entities that perform elective abortions and the affiliates of
32	32	those entities is the only way to ensure that taxpayer money is not
33	33	used to fund elective abortions; and
34	34	(5) no provision of 42 U.S.C. Section 300 et seq.,
35	35	Title XIX, Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. Section 1396 et seq.), or
36	36	Title XX, Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. Section 1397 et seq.), is
37	37	capable of preempting a state law that prohibits the use of taxpayer
38	38	money to support the performance or promotion of elective abortions
39	39	or that imposes a mandate or obligation on the state regarding the
40	40	use of state money to support the performance or promotion of
41	41	elective abortions because those laws only specify the conditions
42	42	under which the United States secretary of health and human
43	43	services may award grant money to or reimburse the expenses of a
44	44	state and they do not impose a mandate or obligation on this state.
45	45	SECTION 2. Section 32.0248, Human Resources Code, is
46	46	amended to read as follows:
47	47	Sec. 32.0248. [DEMONSTRATION PROJECT FOR] WOMEN'S HEALTH
48	48	PROGRAM [CARE SERVICES]. (a) In this section, "program" means the
49	49	women's health program provided under this section.
50	50	(a-1) Subject to Subsection (i), the [The] department shall
51	51	provide [establish] a women's health program [five-year
52	52	demonstration project] through the medical assistance program to
53	53	expand access to preventive health and family planning services for
54	54	women. A woman eligible under Subsection (b) to participate in the
55	55	program [demonstration project] may receive appropriate preventive
56	56	health and family planning services, including:
57	57	(1) medical history recording and evaluation;
58	58	(2) physical examinations;
59	59	(3) health screenings, including screening for:
60	60	(A) diabetes;
61	61	(B) cervical cancer;
62	62	(C) breast cancer;
63	63	(D) sexually transmitted diseases;
64	64	(E) hypertension;
65	65	(F) cholesterol; and
66	66	(G) tuberculosis;
67	67	(4) counseling and education on contraceptive methods
68	68	emphasizing the health benefits of abstinence from sexual activity
69	69	to recipients who are not married, except for counseling and
70	70	education regarding emergency contraception;
71	71	(5) provision of contraceptives, except for the
72	72	provision of emergency contraception;
73	73	(6) risk assessment; and
74	74	(7) referral of medical problems to appropriate
75	75	providers that are entities or organizations that do not perform or
76	76	promote elective abortions or contract or affiliate with entities
77	77	that perform or promote elective abortions.
78	78	(b) A woman is eligible to participate in the program
79	79	[demonstration project] if the woman is at least 18 years of age
80	80	and:
81	81	(1) has a net family income that is at or below 185
82	82	percent of the federal poverty level;
83	83	(2) participates in or receives benefits under any of
84	84	the following:
85	85	(A) the medical assistance program;
86	86	(B) the financial assistance program under
87	87	Chapter 31;
88	88	(C) the nutritional assistance program under
89	89	Chapter 33;
90	90	(D) the Supplemental Food Program for Women,
91	91	Infants and Children; or
92	92	(E) another program administered by the state
93	93	that:
94	94	(i) requires documentation of income; and
95	95	(ii) restricts eligibility to persons with
96	96	income equal to or less than the income eligibility guidelines
97	97	applicable to the medical assistance program;
98	98	(3) is presumed eligible for one of the programs
99	99	listed in Subdivision (2) pending completion of that program's
100	100	eligibility process; or
101	101	(4) is a member of a family that contains at least one
102	102	person who participates in or receives benefits under one of the
103	103	programs listed in Subdivision (2).
104	104	(c) The department shall ensure that the standards of care
105	105	provided to a woman participating in the program [demonstration
106	106	project] are consistent with the requirements of law and current
107	107	best practices for provision of public health services.
108	108	(d) The department shall develop procedures for determining
109	109	and certifying eligibility for services under the program
110	110	[demonstration project] at the point of service delivery using
111	111	integrated procedures that minimize duplication of effort by
112	112	providers, the department, and other state agencies. The
113	113	department may not use a procedure that would require a cost in
114	114	excess of 10 percent of the total costs of actual preventive health
115	115	and family planning services provided under the program
116	116	[demonstration project]. The eligibility procedure may provide for
117	117	expedited determination and certification using a simplified form
118	118	requiring only family income and family size.
119	119	(e) The department shall compile a list of potential funding
120	120	sources a woman participating in the program [demonstration
121	121	project] may be able to use to help pay for treatment for health
122	122	problems:
123	123	(1) identified using services provided under the
124	124	program [demonstration project]; and
125	125	(2) for which the woman is not eligible to receive
126	126	treatment under the program or otherwise under the medical
127	127	assistance program [or the demonstration project].
128	128	(f) Providers of services under the program [demonstration
129	129	project] shall comply with requests made by the department for
130	130	information necessary for the department to:
131	131	(1) make efficient use of money spent for the
132	132	operation and administration of the program [demonstration
133	133	project];
134	134	(2) report and provide information required by federal
135	135	law; and
136	136	(3) compile the report required by Subsection (g).
137	137	(g) Not later than December 1 of each even-numbered year,
138	138	the department shall submit a report to the legislature regarding
139	139	the department's operation of [progress in establishing and
140	140	operating] the program [demonstration project].
141	141	(h) The department shall ensure the money spent under the
142	142	program [demonstration project], regardless of the funding source,
143	143	is not used to perform or promote elective abortions. The
144	144	department, for the purpose of the program [demonstration project],
145	145	may not contract with entities that perform or promote elective
146	146	abortions or are affiliates of entities that perform or promote
147	147	elective abortions.
148	148	(i) The department shall cease the operation of the program
149	149	if a court holds that Subsection (h) or its application to any
150	150	person or entity is invalid or enjoins its enforcement. If the
151	151	department ceases the operation of the program under this
152	152	subsection but a court with binding authority subsequently
153	153	overrules the holding or injunction described by this subsection,
154	154	the department shall reinstate the operation of the program until a
155	155	court subsequently overrules the decision of the court that
156	156	resulted in the reinstatement of the program.
157	157	(j) If any provision of this section or its application to
158	158	any person or circumstance is held invalid, the entire section is
159	159	invalid. The provisions of this section are nonseverable to
160	160	achieve this purpose.
161	161	(k) An officer or employee of the department or an executive
162	162	or administrative official of the state may not refuse to comply
163	163	with Subsection (h) on the basis of the officer's, employee's, or
164	164	official's opinion that the provision is unconstitutional,
165	165	preempted by federal law, or invalid for any other reason unless a
166	166	court, in a final judgment that is not reversed on appeal, is no
167	167	longer subject to appeal, and is applicable to and binding on this
168	168	state, finds that Subsection (h) is unconstitutional, preempted by
169	169	federal law, or invalid for any other reason.
170	170	(l) This section expires September 1, 2016 [2011].
171	171	SECTION 3. If before implementing Section 32.0248, Human
172	172	Resources Code, as amended by this Act, a state agency determines
173	173	that an amendment to the existing waiver or other authorization is
174	174	necessary to extend the operation of the women's health program
175	175	under that section as amended, the agency affected by the provision
176	176	shall request the amendment to the waiver or authorization and may
177	177	delay implementing that section until the amendment or other
178	178	authorization is granted.
179	179	SECTION 4. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives
180	180	a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as
181	181	provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this
182	182	Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this
183	183	Act takes effect August 31, 2011.
184	184	* * * * *