Texas 2021 - 87th Regular

Texas House Bill HB331 Compare Versions

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

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1	1	By: Talarico H.B. No. 331
2	2
3	3
4	4	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
5	5	AN ACT
6	6	relating to establishing a universal maternal home visiting
7	7	program.
8	8	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
9	9	SECTION 1. Chapter 32, Health and Safety Code, is amended
10	10	by adding subsection 32.156 to read as follows:
11	11	Sec. 32.156. UNIVERSAL MATERNAL HOME VISITING. (a)
12	12	Accordingly, within 100 days the Department is directed to produce
13	13	and post publicly a plan to make substantial progress annually over
14	14	five years toward offering evidence-based maternal home visiting
15	15	programs universally to eligible families.
16	16	(c) The plan may include (1) expansion of existing maternal
17	17	home visiting programs; (2) proposed applications for federal and
18	18	foundation grant funding; (3) "Pay for Success" social impact
19	19	bonds; and/or (4) any other programs the Department identifies
20	20	that would result in an efficient expansion of maternal home
21	21	visiting service offerings. The plan should target expansion of
22	22	maternal home visiting programs by at least 20% per year.
23	23	(d) The plan should detail which actions the Department can
24	24	pursue on its own without additional legislative action, and,
25	25	within 60 days of the plan's publication, the Department shall
26	26	commence those programs.
27	27	(e) For aspects of the plan that would require additional
28	28	action by the legislature, the Department shall include in the plan
29	29	specific requests and outlines of legislative action needed,
30	30	including budget requests.
31	31	(f) Definitions
32	32	(i) "maternal home visiting program" as defined in this
33	33	section means an evidence-based home visiting models that is proven
34	34	to improve child health and be cost effective, as measured by the
35	35	federal Home Visiting Evidence of Effectiveness (HomVEE) program.
36	36	(ii) "eligible families" means families who are eligible
37	37	for home visiting services under a service delivery model included
38	38	in the definition in (i).
39	39	(2) The authority shall design, implement and maintain a
40	40	voluntary statewide program to provide universal newborn nurse home
41	41	visiting services to all families with newborns residing in this
42	42	state to support healthy child development and strengthen
43	43	families. The authority shall design the universal newborn nurse
44	44	home visiting program to be flexible so as to meet the needs of the
45	45	communities where the program operates.
46	46	(3) In designing the program described in subsection (2) of
47	47	this section, the authority shall consult, coordinate and
48	48	collaborate, as necessary, with insurers that offer health benefit
49	49	plans in this state, hospitals, local public health authorities,
50	50	existing early childhood home visiting programs, community-based
51	51	organizations and social service providers.
52	52	(4) The program must provide nurse home visiting services
53	53	that are:
54	54	(a) Based on criteria established by the United States
55	55	Department of Health and Human Services for an evidence-based early
56	56	childhood home visiting service delivery model;
57	57	(b) Provided by registered nurses licensed in this state to
58	58	families caring for newborns up to the age of six months, including
59	59	foster and adoptive newborns;
60	60	(c) Provided in the family's home; and
61	61	(d) Aimed at improving outcomes in one or more of the
62	62	following domains:
63	63	(A) Child health;
64	64	(B) Child development and school readiness;
65	65	(C) Family economic self-sufficiency;
66	66	(D) Maternal health;
67	67	(E) Positive parenting;
68	68	(F) Reducing child mistreatment;
69	69	(G) Reducing juvenile delinquency;
70	70	(H) Reducing family violence; or
71	71	(I) Reducing crime.
72	72	(5) The services provided in the program must:
73	73	(a) Be voluntary and carry no negative consequences for a
74	74	family that declines to participate;
75	75	(b) Be offered in every community in this state;
76	76	(c) Include an evidence-based assessment of the physical,
77	77	social and emotional factors affecting the family;
78	78	(d) Be offered to all families with newborns residing in the
79	79	community where the program operates;
80	80	(e) Include at least one visit during a newborn's first
81	81	three months of life with the opportunity for the family to choose
82	82	up to three additional visits;
83	83	(f) Include a follow-up visit no later than three months
84	84	after the last visit; and
85	85	(g) Provide information and referrals to address each
86	86	family's identified needs.
87	87	(6) The authority shall collect and analyze data generated
88	88	by the program to assess the effectiveness of the program in meeting
89	89	the aims described in subsection (4)(d) of this section and shall
90	90	work with other state agencies to develop protocols for sharing
91	91	data, including the timely sharing of data with primary care
92	92	providers of care to the families with newborns receiving the
93	93	services.
94	94	(7) In collaboration with the Department of Insurance, the
95	95	authority shall adopt by rule, consistent with the provisions of
96	96	this section, criteria for universal newborn nurse home visiting
97	97	services that must be covered by health benefit plans in accordance
98	98	with section 2 of this Act.
99	99	SECTION 2. Chapter 1366, Insurance Code, is amended by
100	100	adding subsection 1366.060 to read as follows:
101	101	SECTION 1366.060. MATERNAL HOME VISITING COVERAGE. (a) A
102	102	health benefit plan offered in this state must reimburse the cost
103	103	of universal newborn nurse home visiting services as prescribed by
104	104	the Department of State Health Services by rule under section 1 (7)
105	105	of this 2019 Act.
106	106	(3) The coverage must be provided without any cost-sharing,
107	107	coinsurance or deductible applicable to the services.
108	108	(4) Carriers must offer the services in their health benefit
109	109	plans but enrollees are not required to receive the services as a
110	110	condition of coverage and may not be penalized or in any way
111	111	discouraged from declining the services.
112	112	(5) A carrier must notify an enrollee about the services
113	113	whenever an enrollee adds a newborn to coverage.
114	114	(6) A carrier may use in-network providers or may contract
115	115	with local public health authorities to provide the services.
116	116	(7) This section does not require a carrier to reimburse the
117	117	cost of the services in any specific manner. The services may be
118	118	reimbursed using:
119	119	(a) A value-based payment methodology;
120	120	(b) A claim invoicing process;
121	121	(c) Capitated payments;
122	122	(d) A payment methodology that takes into account the need
123	123	for a community-based entity providing the services to expand its
124	124	capacity to provide the services and address health disparities; or
125	125	(e) Any other methodology agreed to by the carrier and the
126	126	provider of the services.
127	127	(8) Carriers shall report to the authority, in the form and
128	128	manner prescribed by the authority, data regarding claims
129	129	submitted for services covered under this section to monitor the
130	130	provision of the services.
131	131	SECTION 3. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives
132	132	a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as
133	133	provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this
134	134	Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this
135	135	Act takes effect September 1, 2021.