Texas 2021 - 87th Regular

Texas House Bill HB131 Compare Versions

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

Old	New	Differences
1	1	By: Bernal H.B. No. 131
2	2
3	3
4	4	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
5	5	AN ACT
6	6	relating to the creation of a Medicaid buy-in program for certain
7	7	low-income individuals through the expansion of Medicaid under the
8	8	federal Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act.
9	9	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
10	10	Section 1. Chapter 32, Human Resources Code, is amended by
11	11	adding Subchapter H to read as follows:
12	12	SUBCHAPTER H. EXPANSION OF ELIGIBILITY FOR MEDICAL ASSISTANCE
13	13	Sec. 32.351. EXPANDED ELIGIBILITY FOR MEDICAL ASSISTANCE
14	14	UNDER PATIENT PROTECTION AND AFFORDABLE CARE ACT. (a)
15	15	Notwithstanding any other law, the commission shall provide medical
16	16	assistance to all persons who apply for that assistance and for whom
17	17	federal matching funds are available under the Patient Protection
18	18	and Affordable Care Act (Pub. L. No. 111-148), as amended by the
19	19	Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act of 2010 (Pub. L. No.
20	20	111-152), to provide that assistance.
21	21	(b) The executive commissioner shall adopt rules regarding
22	22	the provision of medical assistance as required by this section.
23	23	Sec. 32.352. ANNUAL REPORT ON EXPANDED ELIGIBILITY FOR
24	24	MEDICAL ASSISTANCE. Not later than December 1 of each year, the
25	25	commission shall report to the governor, the lieutenant governor,
26	26	the speaker of the house of representatives, and the standing
27	27	committees of the senate and the house of representatives having
28	28	primary jurisdiction over the medical assistance program on the
29	29	effects of expanding eligibility for medical assistance under
30	30	Section 32.351, including the effects on:
31	31	(1) the number of persons in this state who do not have
32	32	health benefits coverage;
33	33	(2) state health care costs, including costs relating
34	34	to programs funded with money appropriated out of the general
35	35	revenue fund;
36	36	(3) local health care costs; and
37	37	(4) charity care and uncompensated care costs for
38	38	hospitals.
39	39	SECTION 2. Subtitle I, Title 4, Government Code, is amended
40	40	by adding Chapter 540 to read as follows:
41	41	CHAPTER 540. PROGRAM TO ENSURE HEALTH BENEFIT PLAN COVERAGE FOR
42	42	CERTAIN CHILDREN THROUGH A MEDICAID BUY-IN PROGRAM
43	43	Sec. 540.0001. PROGRAM FOR HEALTH BENEFIT PLAN COVERAGE FOR
44	44	CHILDREN THROUGH A MEDICAID BUY-IN PROGRAM. The commission in
45	45	consultation with the commissioner of insurance shall develop and
46	46	implement a program that allows certain individuals to purchase
47	47	health benefit plan coverage from a managed care organization
48	48	enrolled in the state Medicaid program.
49	49	Sec. 540.0002. ENROLLMENT ELIGIBILITY. (a) A child is
50	50	eligible to enroll in a program designed and established under this
51	51	chapter if the child:
52	52	(1) is younger than 19 years of age; and
53	53	(2) does not have health benefit coverage under a
54	54	health benefit plan because the child's family does not have access
55	55	to or cannot afford a plan through the private marketplace,
56	56	including:
57	57	(A) an employer-sponsored health benefit plan;
58	58	or
59	59	(B) a health benefit plan for which an enrollee
60	60	receives a premium subsidy under the Patient Protection and
61	61	Affordable Care Act (Pub. L. No. 111-148) due to the amount of
62	62	family income.
63	63	Sec. 540.0003. MINIMUM PROGRAM REQUIREMENTS. A program
64	64	designed and established under this chapter must:
65	65	(1) provide children whose family's income is at or
66	66	below 200% of the federal poverty level the ability to buy into the
67	67	state Medicaid program; and
68	68	(2) create a sliding-scale premium for families whose
69	69	income is between 133% and 200% of the federal poverty level.
70	70	Sec. 540.0004. RULES. The executive commissioner may adopt
71	71	rules necessary to implement this chapter.
72	72	SECTION 3. Section 32.351, Human Resources Code, as added
73	73	by this Act, applies only to an initial determination or
74	74	recertification of eligibility of a person for medical assistance
75	75	under Chapter 32, Human Resources Code, made on or after the date
76	76	the section is implemented, regardless of the date the person
77	77	applied for that assistance.
78	78	SECTION 4. As soon as possible after the effective date of
79	79	this Act, the executive commissioner of the Health and Human
80	80	Services Commission shall take all necessary actions to expand
81	81	eligibility for medical assistance under Chapter 32, Human
82	82	Resources Code, in accordance with Section 32.351, Human Resources
83	83	Code, as added by this Act, including notifying appropriate federal
84	84	agencies of that expanded eligibility. If before implementing any
85	85	provision of this Act a state agency determines that any other
86	86	waiver or authorization from a federal agency is necessary for
87	87	implementation of that provision, the agency affected by the
88	88	provision shall request the waiver or authorization and may delay
89	89	implementing that provision until the waiver or authorization is
90	90	granted.
91	91	SECTION 5. As soon as practicable after the effective date
92	92	of this Act, the executive commissioner of the Health and Human
93	93	Services Commission shall develop and implement the program
94	94	required by Chapter 540, Government Code, as added by this Act.
95	95	SECTION 6. If before implementing any provision of this Act
96	96	a state agency determines that a waiver or authorization from a
97	97	federal agency is necessary for implementation of that provision,
98	98	the agency affected by the provision shall request the waiver or
99	99	authorization and may delay implementing that provision until the
100	100	waiver or authorization is granted.
101	101	SECTION 7. This Act takes effect September 1, 2021.