Texas 2017 - 85th Regular

Texas House Bill HB943 Compare Versions

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

Old	New	Differences
1	1	85R5051 JG-D
2	2	By: Howard H.B. No. 943
3	3
4	4
5	5	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
6	6	AN ACT
7	7	relating to the establishment of the Transgender Healthcare
8	8	Advisory Committee.
9	9	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
10	10	SECTION 1. (a) In this section:
11	11	(1) "Advisory committee" means the Transgender
12	12	Healthcare Advisory Committee.
13	13	(2) "Executive commissioner" means the executive
14	14	commissioner of the Health and Human Services Commission.
15	15	(b) The Health and Human Services Commission shall
16	16	establish the Transgender Healthcare Advisory Committee to develop
17	17	and provide recommendations on:
18	18	(1) the health care and insurance needs for persons
19	19	who identify as transgender; and
20	20	(2) the adverse health impacts for patients who do not
21	21	meet traditional gender standards under the Healthcare Common
22	22	Procedure Coding System adopted by the Centers for Medicare &
23	23	Medicaid Services of the United States Department of Health and
24	24	Human Services or the American Medical Association's Current
25	25	Procedural Terminology codes.
26	26	(c) The advisory committee is composed of 15 members
27	27	appointed by the executive commissioner, unless otherwise
28	28	provided, as follows:
29	29	(1) two representatives from a statewide or regional
30	30	lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender or gender-identity
31	31	advocacy organization;
32	32	(2) one physician with broad experience working with
33	33	persons who identify as transgender;
34	34	(3) one representative from a lesbian, gay, bisexual,
35	35	and transgender or gender-identity resource center;
36	36	(4) one representative from a statewide medical
37	37	association;
38	38	(5) one representative from a statewide physicians'
39	39	association;
40	40	(6) one representative from a statewide pediatric
41	41	physicians' association;
42	42	(7) one representative from a statewide insurance
43	43	association;
44	44	(8) one representative from the Health and Human
45	45	Services Commission;
46	46	(9) one representative from the Department of State
47	47	Health Services;
48	48	(10) one representative from the Department of Family
49	49	and Protective Services;
50	50	(11) one representative from the Texas Department of
51	51	Insurance, appointed by the commissioner of insurance;
52	52	(12) one representative from the Texas Department of
53	53	Criminal Justice, appointed by the executive director of the
54	54	department;
55	55	(13) one representative from The University of Texas
56	56	at Austin, Texas A&M University at College Station, or the
57	57	University of Houston; and
58	58	(14) one representative from The University of Texas
59	59	Health Science Center at Houston or The Texas A&M University Health
60	60	Science Center.
61	61	(d) The executive commissioner shall appoint a member of the
62	62	advisory committee to serve as presiding officer.
63	63	(e) A vacancy on the advisory committee shall be filled in
64	64	the same manner as the original appointment.
65	65	(f) A member of the advisory committee may not receive
66	66	compensation for service on the advisory committee, but is entitled
67	67	to reimbursement for actual and necessary expenses incurred in
68	68	performing advisory committee duties. The advisory committee may
69	69	accept gifts, grants, and donations to pay for those expenses.
70	70	(g) The advisory committee shall meet at least quarterly at
71	71	the call of the presiding officer and at other times as determined
72	72	by the presiding officer.
73	73	(h) The advisory committee shall develop recommendations to
74	74	address:
75	75	(1) the health care and insurance needs for persons
76	76	who identify as transgender;
77	77	(2) adverse health impacts for patients who do not
78	78	meet traditional gender standards under the Healthcare Common
79	79	Procedure Coding System adopted by the Centers for Medicare &
80	80	Medicaid Services of the United States Department of Health and
81	81	Human Services or the American Medical Association's Current
82	82	Procedural Terminology codes and continuing education for health
83	83	care professionals addressing those impacts; and
84	84	(3) the health care needs for inmates who identify as
85	85	transgender in jails and prisons in this state.
86	86	(i) The Health and Human Services Commission shall provide
87	87	administrative support for the advisory committee using existing
88	88	resources.
89	89	(j) Not later than August 31, 2018, the advisory committee
90	90	shall submit a final report to the governor, the lieutenant
91	91	governor, the speaker of the house of representatives, and the
92	92	executive commissioner with its findings and recommendations
93	93	described by Subsection (h) of this section.
94	94	(k) The advisory committee is abolished June 1, 2019.
95	95	SECTION 2. Not later than December 1, 2017, the executive
96	96	commissioner of the Health and Human Services Commission, the
97	97	commissioner of insurance, and the executive director of the Texas
98	98	Department of Criminal Justice shall appoint members to the
99	99	Transgender Healthcare Advisory Committee established under this
100	100	Act.
101	101	SECTION 3. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives
102	102	a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as
103	103	provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this
104	104	Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this
105	105	Act takes effect September 1, 2017.