Wednesday, Feb. 19, marked the cutoff for bills to pass out of their chamber of origin – a Senate bill must have passed the Senate and vice versa. We are pleased to announce our high-priority bills are still in good shape as we advance to the next phase of this year’s legislative session — consideration in the opposite chamber. We are also pleased to report that several bills WSHA worked hard to oppose died Feb. 19, most notably HB 1965 – Qui Tam.
The budget forecast has also been released, with $300 million of additional revenue for lawmakers to utilize. We expect the first of the legislative budgets to be released later this week or early next week.
Below is the status of WSHA’s top-priority bills that are continuing to move:
2SSB 6275: Increasing patient access rights to timely and appropriate post-acute care
WSHA strongly supports 2SSB 6275 to expedite hospital discharge for Medicaid patients in need of post-acute care. This is part of WSHA’s work to address the challenge of difficult-to-discharge patients stuck in our hospitals due to barriers in accessing post-acute care. WSHA’s input played a key role in crafting this legislation. 2SSB 6275 unanimously passed the Senate now advances to the House Committee on Health Care & Wellness. Read more from the Jan. 27 Inside Olympia. (Zosia Stanley)
ESSB 6404: Establishing a prior authorization work group and creating recommendations
WSHA strongly supports ESSB 6404, which would help create uniform recommendations for when prior authorization is used. The bill has been modified since its initial introduction. It would require carriers to provide the Office of the Insurance Commissioner with information regarding the number and approval rates of prior authorizations. It would also create a prior authorization work group to annually select and review services requiring prior authorization and make recommendations to create more consistency for patients. WSHA’s input played a key role in crafting this legislation. ESSB 6404 passed the Senate and now awaits consideration by the House. (Andrew Busz)
SSB 6358: Requiring Medicaid managed care organizations to provide reimbursement details of health care services provided by substitute providers
WSHA strongly supports SSB 6358, which would require Medicaid managed care organizations (MCOs) to follow Medicare policy in how substitute providers are reimbursed when they fill in at a facility for longer than 60 days. It would also expand the instances in which substitute providers could be used. WSHA’s input played a key role in crafting this legislation. The bill moves to the House where we expect it to be scheduled for a hearing next week. Read more from the Jan. 27 Inside Olympia. (Lauren McDonald)
SB 6359: Creating regulation exemptions for rural health clinics providing services in a designated home health shortage area
WSHA strongly supports SB 6359, which would allow Rural Health Clinics in shortage areas to offer a limited scope of services — including home nursing visits — to homebound patients, increasing access to critical services in underserved communities. WSHA’s input played a key role in crafting this legislation. Both bills have passed their respective chambers and now await consideration in the opposite chambers. Read more from the Jan. 27 Inside Olympia. (Jacqueline Barton True)
ESHB 2036: Health system transparency
WSHA opposes ESHB 2036, which institutes burdensome and excessive reporting requirements on hospitals and ambulatory surgical facilities. ESHB 2036 passed the House and has a hearing scheduled in the Senate for Feb. 24. WSHA negotiated heavily on the version that passed the House. Read more from the Jan. 13 Inside Olympia. (Zosia Stanley)
ESSB 5385: Concerning telemedicine payment parity
WSHA strongly supports ESSB 5385, which allows telemedicine services to be paid for at the same rate as in-person visits. It also removes the requirement that a patient must first have an in-person visit with a provider before the use of store-and-forward technology will be reimbursed. ESSB 5385 passed the Senate and will be heard on Feb. 21 in the House Committee on Health Care & Wellness. Read the Feb. 12 Inside Olympia for more information. (Shirley Prasad)
SHB 2426: Increasing oversight of freestanding psychiatric hospitals
WSHA is working to address remaining concerns with SHB 2426, which would implement new and considerable oversight by DOH on freestanding psychiatric hospitals. SHB 2426 passed out of the House and will be heard on Feb. 21 in the Behavioral Health Subcommittee of the Senate Committee on Health & Long Term Care. Read more from the Jan. 20 Inside Olympia. (Shirley Prasad)
2SHB 2457: Establishing a cost transparency board
WSHA has concerns with 2SHB 2457, which would establish a cost transparency board to analyze the total health care expenditures in Washington, identify trends in health care cost growth and establish a health care growth benchmark. 2SHB 2457 passed the House and now awaits consideration from the Senate Committee on Health & Long Term Care. Read more from the Jan. 20 Inside Olympia. (Zosia Stanley)
2E2SSB 5720: Concerning the Involuntary Treatment Act
WSHA has concerns with SB 2E2SSB 5720, which makes significant changes to the Involuntary Treatment Act by increasing the initial detention period and making it easier to detain a patient through definitional changes. 2E2SSB 5720 passed the Senate and is scheduled for a public hearing Feb. 21 in the House Committee on Civil Rights & Judiciary. Read the Feb. 12 Inside Olympia for more information. (Jaclyn Greenberg)
2SSB 6281: Concerning the management and oversight of personal data
WSHA supports 2SSB 6281, which would create a general data privacy framework in Washington State and recognizes the existing universe of health privacy laws at the state and federal levels. WSHA has worked to ensure health care privacy laws are not disrupted by this bill by crafting appropriate exemption language for regulated health care information. 2SSB 6281 passed the Senate and is scheduled for a public hearing Feb. 21 in the House Committee on Innovation, Technology & Economic Development. Read the Feb. 12 Inside Olympia for more information. (Jaclyn Greenberg)
ESHB 2318: Sexual assault kits
WSHA supports ESHB 2318, which is a comprehensive bill that optimizes the storage and handling of evidence gathered during sexual assault examinations. ESHB 2318 passed the House and had a public hearing Feb. 20 in the Senate Committee on Law & Justice. Read more from the Jan. 13 Inside Olympia. (Lauren McDonald)
ESHB 1608: Protecting patient care
HB 1608 would prohibit hospitals and health care facilities from appropriately managing the types and quality of services provided by health care providers. WSHA actively negotiated with the bill sponsor and stakeholders to narrow the bill to ensure patients receive information about treatment options. WSHA supports the narrowly tailored language in ESHB 1608. The bill passed the House and is scheduled for a public hearing Feb. 21 in the Senate Committee on Health & Long Term Care. Read the Feb. 12 Inside Olympia for more information. (Zosia Stanley)
SHB 1826: Concerning the disclosure of certain information during the discharge planning process
WSHA has concerns with SHB 1826, which would require hospitals that provide long-term commitment services under the Involuntary Treatment Act to collect and disclose criminal and forensic records of certain patients to managed care organizations and the like. WSHA strongly believes this bill would compromise the role of hospitals as treatment providers. SHB 1826 passed the House and is scheduled for a public hearing Feb. 21 in the Senate Subcommittee on Behavioral Health. (Jaclyn Greenberg)
High-priority bills still alive after cutoff
Bills WSHA Supports
| HB 1552 | Concerning health care provider credentialing by health carriers. |
| HB 1590 | Allowing the local sales and use tax for affordable housing to be imposed by a councilmanic authority. |
| ESHB 1608 | Protecting patient care. Support current language. |
| SHB 2318 | Advancing criminal investigatory practices (sexual assault kits). |
| SHB 2326 | Reporting end-of-life care policies. |
| HB 2416 | Relating to disclosures of information and records related to forensic mental health services. |
| SHB 2419 | Studying barriers to the use of the Washington death with dignity act. |
| SHB 2448 | Concerning enhanced services facilities. |
| E2SSB 5483 | Improving services for individuals with developmental disabilities. |
| ESSB 6040 | Concerning the budgeting process for certain state waiver services for individuals with developmental disabilities. |
| SSB 6209 | Joining the nurse licensure compact. |
| SSB 6275 | Increasing patient access rights to timely and appropriate post-acute care. |
| 2SHB 6281 | Concerning the management and oversight of personal data. |
| 2SSB 6311 | Concerning persons with substance use disorder. |
| SSB 6358 | Requiring Medicaid managed care organizations to provide reimbursement of health care services provided by substitute providers. |
| SB 6359 (companion to SHB 2621) | Creating regulation exemptions for rural health clinics providing services in a designated home health shortage area. |
| SSB 6404 | Adopting prior authorization and appropriate use criteria in patient care. |
| SB 6588 | Updating the children’s mental health work group. |
| SSB 6591 | Establishing a work group to address mental health advance directives |
| SB 6634 | Expanding adolescent behavioral health care access. |
Bills on which WSHA is neutral
| SHB 2464 | Protecting patients from excess prescription medication charges. |
| HB 2710 | Modifying the uses, disclosure, and requirement dates of prescription drug price transparency data. |
| HB 2755 | Concerning transparency regarding the cost of air ambulance services. |
| SSB 6058 | Concerning fire district health clinic services. |
| SSB 6088 | Establishing a prescription drug affordability board. |
Bills with which WSHA has concerns or for which it is seeking amendments
| SHB 1826 | Concerning the disclosure of certain information during the discharge planning process. |
| SHB 2426 | Protecting patient safety in psychiatric hospitals and other health care facilities. |
| 2SHB 2457 | Establishing a cost transparency board |
| 2E2SSB 5720 | Concerning the Involuntary Treatment Act. |
Bills WSHA opposes
| SHB 2036 | Concerning health system transparency. |
| SHB 2409 | Concerning industrial insurance employer penalties, duties, and the licensing of third-party administrators. |
| SSB 6440 | Concerning industrial insurance medical examinations. |
WSHA Weighing In: February 17-21
WSHA is weighed in on the following bills this week:
Thursday, Feb. 20
- House Public Safety (8:00am)
- SSB 6158: Concerning model sexual assault protocols for hospitals and clinics. (Lauren McDonald)
- Senate Law & Justice (10am)
- ESHB 2318: Advancing criminal investigatory practices. (Lauren McDonald)
- House Finance (1:30pm)
- HB 2915: Increasing the relevant taxes to fully fund the foundational public health services account. (Andrew Busz)
Friday, Feb. 21
- House Civil Rights & Judiciary (10 am)
- 2E2SSB 5720: Concerning the Involuntary Treatment Act (Jaclyn Greenberg)
- House Innovation, Technology and Economic Development (10 am)
- 2SHB 6281: Concerning the management and oversight of personal data (10 am) (Jaclyn Greenberg)
- Senate Early Learning & K-12 Education (8am)
- SHB 2589: Requiring contact information for suicide prevention and crisis intervention organizations on student and staff identification cards. (Lauren McDonald)
- Senate Health & Long Term Care (8am)
- ESHB 1023: Allowing certain adult family homes to increase capacity to eight beds. (Zosia Stanley)
- SHB 1608: Protecting patient care. (Zosia Stanley)
- SHB 2554: Mitigating inequity in the health insurance market caused by health plans that exclude certain mandated benefits. (Andrew Busz)
- Behavioral Health Subcommittee to Senate Health & Long Term Care (1:30pm)
- SHB 1826: Concerning the disclosure of certain information during the discharge planning process. (Jaclyn Greenberg)
- ESHB 2099: Concerning the use of video technology under the involuntary treatment act. (Jaclyn Greenberg)
- SHB 2448: Concerning enhanced services facilities (Jaclyn Greenberg)
- 2SHB 2737: Updating the children’s mental health work group (Jaclyn Greenberg)
- SHB 2883: Expanding adolescent behavioral health care access (Jaclyn Greenberg)
- SHB 2426: Protecting patient safety in psychiatric hospitals. (Shirley Prasad)
- House Healthcare and Wellness (8:30 am)
- ESSB 5385: Concerning telemedicine payment parity. (Shirley Prasad)
