| 1 | 1 | | 87R7988 SCL-D |
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| 2 | 2 | | By: Howard H.B. No. 4037 |
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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 county authority to balance bill for county air |
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| 8 | 8 | | ambulance services. |
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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. Section 113.902(a), Local Government Code, is |
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| 11 | 11 | | amended to read as follows: |
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| 12 | 12 | | (a) Except as provided by Section 113.9025, the [The] county |
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| 13 | 13 | | treasurer shall direct prosecution for the recovery of any debt |
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| 14 | 14 | | owed to the county, as provided by law, and shall supervise the |
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| 15 | 15 | | collection of the debt. |
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| 16 | 16 | | SECTION 2. Subchapter Z, Chapter 113, Local Government |
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| 17 | 17 | | Code, is amended by adding Section 113.9025 to read as follows: |
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| 18 | 18 | | Sec. 113.9025. BALANCE BILLING FOR COUNTY AIR AMBULANCE |
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| 19 | 19 | | SERVICES. (a) "Balance billing" means the practice of charging an |
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| 20 | 20 | | enrollee in a health benefit plan to recover from the enrollee the |
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| 21 | 21 | | balance of a health care provider's fee for a service received by |
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| 22 | 22 | | the enrollee from the health care provider that is not fully |
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| 23 | 23 | | reimbursed by the enrollee's health benefit plan. |
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| 24 | 24 | | (b) A county may elect to consider a health benefit plan |
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| 25 | 25 | | payment towards a claim for air ambulance services provided by the |
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| 26 | 26 | | county as payment in full for those services regardless of the |
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| 27 | 27 | | amount the county charged for those services. |
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| 28 | 28 | | (c) A county may not practice balance billing for a claim |
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| 29 | 29 | | for which the county makes an election under Subsection (b). |
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| 30 | 30 | | SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 2021. |
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