‘An Act To Establish the Maine Health Care Reform Implementation Advisory Committee’
Amend the bill by striking out the title and substituting the following:
Amend the bill by striking out all of section 1 and inserting the following:
‘Sec. 1. 5 MRSA §12004-I, sub-§50-B is enacted to read:
50-B.
’
| Insurance: Health Care Reform | Maine Health Care Reform Implementation Advisory Committee | Legislative Per Diem and Expenses for Legislators and Expenses Only for Other Members upon Demonstration of Financial Hardship | 24-A MRSA §4320-K |
Amend the bill in section 2 in §4320-K in the first line (page 1, line 13 in L.D.) by striking out the following: " Exchange" and inserting the following: ' Care Reform Implementation'
Amend the bill in section 2 in §4320-K by striking out all of the first paragraph (page 1, lines 14 to 19 in L.D.) and inserting the following:
‘
The Maine Health Care Reform Implementation Advisory Committee, referred to in this section as "the advisory committee" and established pursuant to Title 5, section 12004-I, subsection 50-B, is created to advise the Governor and the Legislature with respect to any federal health care legislation.’
Amend the bill in section 2 in §4320-K in subsection 1 by striking out all of paragraph J (page 2, lines 15 to 30 in L.D.) and inserting the following:
‘ J. Four members representing individuals and small businesses, including:
(1) One person, appointed by the President of the Senate, who can reasonably be expected to represent the interests of individuals purchasing individual coverage;
(2) One person, appointed by the Speaker of the House of Representatives, who can reasonably be expected to represent the interests of employers that purchase small group coverage;
(3) One person, appointed by the President of the Senate, who represents an organization advocating for consumers of health care; and
’
(4) One person, appointed by the Speaker of the House of Representatives, who is employed by an employer that can reasonably be expected to purchase group coverage and who can reasonably be expected to represent the interests of such employees;
Amend the bill in section 2 in §4320-K by striking out all of subsection 4 (page 3, lines 4 to 39 and page 4, lines 1 to 20 in L.D.) and inserting the following:
‘ 4. Duties. The advisory committee shall:
A. Study any federal health care legislation enacted by the United States Congress to make changes to the federal Affordable Care Act as defined in section 14 or otherwise determine the State's opportunities for health care reform;
B. Determine the State's role in implementation of any federal health care legislation;
C. Determine the impact of federal health care legislation on existing state law and programs that provide access to health care to residents of this State;
D. Advise the Governor and the Legislature regarding the implementation of any federal health care legislation and the interests of residents of this State;
E. Serve as a liaison between the State Government and the Federal Government with regard to federal health care legislation;
F. Consider any issue related to the implementation of federal health care legislation agreed upon by the majority of the advisory committee; and
G. Make recommendations for any changes in policy or law to improve access to or affordability of health care for residents of this State.’
Amend the bill in section 2 in §4320-K by striking out all of subsection 8 (page 4, lines 28 to 29 in L.D.) and inserting the following:
‘ 8. Staffing. The Legislative Council shall provide staff support for the operation of the advisory committee, except that the Legislative Council staff support is not authorized when the Legislature is in regular or special session. In addition, the advisory committee may contract for administrative, professional and clerical services if funding permits.’
Amend the bill by adding after section 2 the following:
‘Sec. 3. Appropriations and allocations. The following appropriations and allocations are made.
LEGISLATURE
Maine Health Care Reform Implementation Advisory Committee N248
Initiative: Provides appropriations and allocations for the operating and support costs of the Maine Health Care Reform Implementation Advisory Committee.
| GENERAL FUND | 2017-18 | 2018-19 |
|
All Other
|
$12,000 | $12,000 |
 |
|
|
| GENERAL FUND TOTAL | $12,000 | $12,000 |
| OTHER SPECIAL REVENUE FUNDS | 2017-18 | 2018-19 |
|
All Other
|
$500 | $500 |
|
|
|
| OTHER SPECIAL REVENUE FUNDS TOTAL | $500 | $500 |
summary
This amendment is the minority report of the committee. The amendment changes the title of the bill and the name of the advisory committee established in the bill. The amendment broadens the scope of duties of the advisory committee to reflect that there may be changes in federal health care law. The amendment also clarifies that the Legislative Council may not provide staff support to the advisory committee during the legislative session and authorizes the advisory committee to contract for administrative, professional and clerical services if funding permits.
The amendment also adds an appropriations and allocations section.
FISCAL NOTE REQUIRED
(See attached)