85R13187 SCL-D
By: West S.B. No. 1618
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to billing and reimbursement for certain emergency and
health care services provided to a sexual assault survivor.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Chapter 64, Health and Safety Code, is amended by
adding Section 64.002 to read as follows:
Sec. 64.002. REIMBURSEMENT FOR HEALTH CARE SERVICES FOR
SEXUAL ASSAULT SURVIVORS. (a) In this section, "sexual assault"
and "sexual assault survivor" have the meanings assigned by Section
323.001.
(b) A health care facility, physician, or health care
practitioner that provides health care services associated with a
sexual assault, other than the initial forensic examination and
associated health care services, to a sexual assault survivor may
only seek payment for those services by:
(1) if the survivor is receiving assistance from the
medical assistance program under Chapter 32, Human Resources Code,
or enrolled in the child health plan program under Chapter 62 of
this code, submitting a bill to the commission and accepting the
amount paid under the survivor's program benefits as payment in
full;
(2) if the survivor is enrolled in a health benefit
plan, submitting:
(A) a bill to the health benefit plan issuer for
the portion of the charge that is the issuer's responsibility under
the plan; and
(B) a request for reimbursement to the department
for the portion of the charge that is the survivor's responsibility
under the plan; or
(3) if the survivor is not receiving assistance or
benefits as described by Subdivision (1) or (2), submitting a
request for reimbursement to the department.
(c) A health care facility, physician, or health care
practitioner may not submit a bill to a sexual assault survivor for
any health care service associated with a sexual assault and
provided to the survivor.
(d) The department shall provide reimbursement from the
sexual assault program fund established under Section 420.008,
Government Code, to a health care facility, physician, or health
care practitioner if the facility, physician, or practitioner
provides to the department a completed application for
reimbursement under this section in the form and manner provided by
the department.
SECTION 2. Chapter 323, Health and Safety Code, is amended
by adding Section 323.009 to read as follows:
Sec. 323.009. REIMBURSEMENT FOR EMERGENCY AND HEALTH CARE
SERVICES; FORM FOR CONTINUING HEALTH CARE. (a) A health care
facility may only seek payment for initial care following a sexual
assault, including ambulance, health care, and laboratory
services, provided to a sexual assault survivor:
(1) under Article 56.06 or 56.065, Code of Criminal
Procedure, if applicable; or
(2) if reimbursement under Subdivision (1) is
unavailable or declined wholly or partly:
(A) if the survivor is receiving assistance from
the medical assistance program under Chapter 32, Human Resources
Code, or enrolled in the child health plan program under Chapter 62
of this code, by submitting a bill to the Health and Human Services
Commission and accepting the amount paid under the survivor's
program benefits as payment in full;
(B) if the survivor is enrolled in a health
benefit plan, by submitting:
(i) a bill to the health benefit plan issuer
for the portion of the charge that is the issuer's responsibility
under the plan; and
(ii) a request for reimbursement to the
department for the portion of the charge that is the survivor's
responsibility under the plan; or
(C) if the survivor is not receiving assistance
or benefits described by Paragraph (A) or (B), by submitting a
request for reimbursement to the department.
(b) A health care facility may not submit a bill to a sexual
assault survivor for any care associated with a sexual assault and
provided to the survivor.
(c) A health care facility shall provide a sexual assault
survivor to whom the facility has provided care associated with a
sexual assault a form developed by the department that states the
survivor received care at the facility and is eligible for
reimbursement from the department for any future health care
services associated with the sexual assault.
(d) The department shall provide reimbursement from the
sexual assault program fund established under Section 420.008,
Government Code, to a health care facility that provides a
completed application for reimbursement under this section in the
form and manner provided by the department.
SECTION 3. Section 420.008(c), Government Code, is amended
to read as follows:
(c) The legislature may appropriate money deposited to the
credit of the fund only to:
(1) the attorney general, for:
(A) sexual violence awareness and prevention
campaigns;
(B) grants to faith-based groups, independent
school districts, and community action organizations for programs
for the prevention of sexual assault and programs for victims of
human trafficking;
(C) grants for equipment for sexual assault nurse
examiner programs, to support the preceptorship of future sexual
assault nurse examiners, and for the continuing education of sexual
assault nurse examiners;
(D) grants to increase the level of sexual
assault services in this state;
(E) grants to support victim assistance
coordinators;
(F) grants to support technology in rape crisis
centers;
(G) grants to and contracts with a statewide
nonprofit organization exempt from federal income taxation under
Section 501(c)(3), Internal Revenue Code of 1986, having as a
primary purpose ending sexual violence in this state, for programs
for the prevention of sexual violence, outreach programs, and
technical assistance to and support of youth and rape crisis
centers working to prevent sexual violence;
(H) grants to regional nonprofit providers of
civil legal services to provide legal assistance for sexual assault
victims;
(I) grants to prevent sex trafficking and to
provide services for victims of sex trafficking; and
(J) grants to carry out the purpose of this
chapter, including standardizing the quality of services provided,
preventing sexual assault, and improving services to survivors of
sexual assault;
(2) the Department of State Health Services, to
measure the prevalence of sexual assault in this state, [and] for
grants to support programs assisting victims of human trafficking,
and for reimbursement of certain emergency and health care services
provided to survivors of sexual assault;
(3) the Institute on Domestic Violence and Sexual
Assault or the Bureau of Business Research at The University of
Texas at Austin, to conduct research on all aspects of sexual
assault and domestic violence;
(4) Texas State University, for training and technical
assistance to independent school districts for campus safety;
(5) the office of the governor, for grants to support
sexual assault and human trafficking prosecution projects;
(6) the department, to support sexual assault training
for commissioned officers;
(7) the comptroller's judiciary section, for
increasing the capacity of the sex offender civil commitment
program;
(8) the Texas Department of Criminal Justice:
(A) for pilot projects for monitoring sex
offenders on parole; and
(B) for increasing the number of adult
incarcerated sex offenders receiving treatment;
(9) the Texas Juvenile Justice Department, for
increasing the number of incarcerated juvenile sex offenders
receiving treatment;
(10) the comptroller, for the administration of the
fee imposed on sexually oriented businesses under Section 102.052,
Business & Commerce Code;
(11) the supreme court, to be transferred to the Texas
Access to Justice Foundation, or a similar entity, to provide
victim-related legal services to sexual assault victims, including
legal assistance with protective orders, relocation-related
matters, victim compensation, and actions to secure privacy
protections available to victims under law;
(12) any state agency or organization for the purpose
of conducting human trafficking enforcement programs; and
(13) any other designated state agency for the purpose
of preventing sexual assault or improving services for victims of
sexual assault.
SECTION 4. The changes in law made by this Act apply only to
an emergency or health care service provided on or after the
effective date of this Act.
SECTION 5. This Act takes effect September 1, 2017.