| 1 | 1 | | 86R12178 KLA-D |
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| 2 | 2 | | By: Beckley H.B. No. 2313 |
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| 3 | 3 | | |
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| 4 | 4 | | |
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| 5 | 5 | | A BILL TO BE ENTITLED |
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| 6 | 6 | | AN ACT |
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| 7 | 7 | | relating to a Medicaid buy-in program for employees of small |
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| 8 | 8 | | businesses. |
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| 9 | 9 | | BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
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| 10 | 10 | | SECTION 1. Subchapter B, Chapter 531, Government Code, is |
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| 11 | 11 | | amended by adding Section 531.024442 to read as follows: |
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| 12 | 12 | | Sec. 531.024442. MEDICAID BUY-IN PROGRAM FOR EMPLOYEES OF |
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| 13 | 13 | | SMALL BUSINESSES. (a) In this section: |
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| 14 | 14 | | (1) "Program participant" means an employee of a small |
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| 15 | 15 | | business who receives health care services under Medicaid through |
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| 16 | 16 | | the buy-in program established under this section. |
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| 17 | 17 | | (2) "Small business" means a business with an annual |
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| 18 | 18 | | gross revenue of $850,000 or less. |
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| 19 | 19 | | (b) The commission shall operate a Medicaid buy-in program |
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| 20 | 20 | | under which a person who is an employee of a small business may |
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| 21 | 21 | | receive health care services under Medicaid. The executive |
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| 22 | 22 | | commissioner shall adopt rules for the program that: |
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| 23 | 23 | | (1) establish eligibility requirements for |
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| 24 | 24 | | participation in the program, including household income limits, |
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| 25 | 25 | | that ensure receipt of federal matching money for providing health |
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| 26 | 26 | | care services under Medicaid to a program participant; |
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| 27 | 27 | | (2) require financial participation by the program |
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| 28 | 28 | | participant, including a requirement that the program participant |
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| 29 | 29 | | pay, according to a sliding scale based on household income |
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| 30 | 30 | | determined in accordance with commission rules, a portion of any |
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| 31 | 31 | | premiums imposed or cost-sharing payments required under the |
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| 32 | 32 | | program; and |
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| 33 | 33 | | (3) require financial participation by a small |
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| 34 | 34 | | business that employs a program participant, including a |
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| 35 | 35 | | requirement that the small business pay a portion of any premiums |
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| 36 | 36 | | imposed or cost-sharing payments required under the program, in |
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| 37 | 37 | | amounts determined in accordance with commission rules. |
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| 38 | 38 | | (c) The executive commissioner shall ensure that the rules |
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| 39 | 39 | | adopted under Subsection (b) regarding the financial participation |
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| 40 | 40 | | required of a small business are not cost prohibitive to |
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| 41 | 41 | | participation by a small business in the program. |
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| 42 | 42 | | (d) The program under this section must be substantively |
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| 43 | 43 | | identical to the Medicaid buy-in programs for persons with |
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| 44 | 44 | | disabilities established under Section 531.02444, except to the |
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| 45 | 45 | | extent that programmatic differences are appropriate because of the |
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| 46 | 46 | | populations served by the programs. |
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| 47 | 47 | | (e) The commission shall prepare and make available to small |
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| 48 | 48 | | businesses information concerning the availability of and |
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| 49 | 49 | | application process for the program under this section. A small |
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| 50 | 50 | | business may provide that information to its employees and |
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| 51 | 51 | | prospective employees. |
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| 52 | 52 | | SECTION 2. Not later than January 1, 2020, the executive |
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| 53 | 53 | | commissioner of the Health and Human Services Commission shall |
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| 54 | 54 | | adopt the rules required by Section 531.024442, Government Code, as |
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| 55 | 55 | | added by this Act, and the commission shall implement the program |
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| 56 | 56 | | required by that section. |
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| 57 | 57 | | SECTION 3. If before implementing any provision of this Act |
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| 58 | 58 | | a state agency determines that a waiver or authorization from a |
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| 59 | 59 | | federal agency is necessary for implementation of that provision, |
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| 60 | 60 | | the agency affected by the provision shall request the waiver or |
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| 61 | 61 | | authorization and may delay implementing that provision until the |
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| 62 | 62 | | waiver or authorization is granted. |
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| 63 | 63 | | SECTION 4. This Act takes effect September 1, 2019. |
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