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An Act To Create the Maine Health Card Program
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows:
Sec. 1. 22 MRSA §3194  is enacted to read:
§ 3194.  Maine Health Card program
There is established to assist qualifying individuals with the costs of paying for health care the Maine Health Card program, referred to in this section as “the program.”
 
1.  Definitions.     As used in this section, unless the context otherwise indicates, the following terms have the following meanings.
 
A.  “Health care practitioner” has the same meaning as in section 1711-C, subsection 1, paragraph F.
 
B.  “Program benefit” means a medically necessary health service provided by a health care practitioner who participates in the MaineCare program or a prescribed covered drug as defined in section 2681, subsection 2, paragraph A-1.
 
C.  “Qualifying person” means a person or family whose household income after taxes is equal to or below 350% of the nonfarm income official poverty level and who are without health care coverage.
 
2.  Operation of the program.     Under the program a qualifying person who has enrolled may use a Maine Health Card program card and be eligible to pay for a program benefit at the MaineCare rate of reimbursement. The health care practitioner who provides the health benefit to the enrolled person may not bill the person for any charge in addition to the amount payable with the Maine Health Card program card.
 
3.  Rules.     The department shall adopt rules to implement the program. Rules adopted under this subsection are routine technical rules as defined by Title 5, chapter 375, subchapter 2-A.
 
SUMMARY
This bill establishes the Maine Health Card program to enable uninsured persons to pay the MaineCare price for medically necessary health services and prescribed covered drugs.