Inside Olympia: Bills still alive following opposite chamber committee cutoff

February 22, 2024

The most recent cutoff of session was Wednesday, Feb. 21, when most bills needed to pass from committees in the opposite chamber (with the exception of fiscal committees) to continue advancing. The next deadline is Monday, Feb. 26, when most bills need to pass from fiscal committees.

A few of WSHA’s high-priority issues have been scheduled for upcoming hearings in the House Committee on Appropriations, including:

  • SSB 5920: Lifting certificate of need requirements for psychiatric hospitals and beds.

  • 2SSB 5825: Guardianship and conservatorship.

  • ESB 5241: Material changes to the operations and governance structure of participants in the health care marketplace.

  • 2SSB 6228: Treatment of substance use disorders. (This bill was amended earlier this week to include several concerning requirements for hospitals that would be confusing to patients and operationally challenging.)

Bills still alive after cutoff

Bills WSHA supports

2SHB 1929 Supporting young adults following inpatient behavioral health treatment.
2SHB 1941 Home health services for Medicaid-eligible children with medically complex conditions.
SHB 2015 Incentivizing adult family homes to increase bed capacity.
SHB 2295 (Passed the Legislature) Hospital at-home services.
SHB 2347 Adult family home information.
HB 2476/SB 6309 Assessment to increase Medicaid professional payment.
SSB 5802 Providing flexibility in calculation of skilled nursing facility rates.
SB 5184 Licensure of anesthesiologist assistants.
2SSB 5825 Guardianship and conservatorship.
E22SSB 5853 Extending the crisis relief center model to provide behavioral health crisis services for minors.
SSB 5920 Lifting certificate of need requirements for psychiatric hospitals and beds.
E2SSB 5937 Supporting crime victims and witnesses by promoting victim-centered, trauma-informed responses.
SSB 5940 Creating a medical assistant-EMT certification.
SB 5982 Updating the definition of “vaccine” in RCW 70.290.010 to include all federal food and drug administration-approved immunizations recommended by the centers for disease control and prevention.
SSB 5986 Protecting patients out of network ground ambulance balance billing.

Bills on which WSHA is neutral

2ESHB 1508 (per floor amendment) Health care cost transparency board.
SHB 2061 Defining an employee of a health care facility for purposes of mandatory overtime provisions.
SHB 2102 Establishing requirements for the disclosure of health care information for qualifying persons to receive paid family and medical leave benefits.
E2SHB 2128 Modernizing certificate of need.
ESSB 5481 Uniform law commission’s uniform telehealth act.
ESSB 5788 Accessibility for service animals in training.
E2SSB 5838 Establishing an artificial intelligence task force.
SSB 5935 Noncompetition covenants.
E2SSB 6092 Disclosure of greenhouse gas emissions.
ESSB 6110 Modernizing the child fatality statute.

ESSB 6127

Increasing access to human immunodeficiency virus postexposure prophylaxis drugs or therapies.

Bills WSHA opposes

ESHB 1893 Unemployment insurance benefits for striking or lockout workers.
ESB 5241 Material changes to the operations and governance structure of participants in the health care marketplace.
SB 5821 Establishing a uniform standard for creating an established relationship for the purposes of coverage of audio-only telemedicine services.
2SSB 6228 Concerning treatment of substance use disorders.

Notable bills that are no longer moving forward

Bills WSHA supported

HB 2184/SB 6167 Authorizing payment for parental caregivers of minor children with developmental disabilities.
SB 6210 Unlawful detainer actions and expanding superior court capacity.
SB 6257 Defining Washington state residency requirements for purposes of hospital charity care.

Bills WSHA opposed, had concerns with or amended

HB 1859 Rights of residents in long-term care facilities.
HB 1951 Promoting ethical artificial intelligence by protecting against algorithmic discrimination
HB 2066 Provider contracting.
HB 2119 Prohibiting garnishment related to medical debt.
HB 2122 Wellness programs for certain health care professionals.
HB 2149 Protecting consumer personal information.
2SHB 2319 Substance use disorder treatment.
HB 2378 Facility fees.
HB 2466 Ambulance wait times.
SB 5059 Prejudgment interest.
SSB 5924 Access to personnel records.

ESSB 5995

Creating a professional license for spoken language interpreters and translators.

SSB 6134 Preventing overdose and illicit use of opioids in Washington state.

Save the date for WSHA’s Legislative Summary Webcast March 26

Please save the date to join us for our 2024 Legislative Summary Webcast from 12-1 p.m. Tuesday, March 26! The Government Affairs Team will provide you with important information from this legislative session, including action you will need to take to comply with newly adopted state law. Please contact Tim Pfarr at timp@wsha.org with questions about the webcast.

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