by Devon Green, Sr. Vice President of Policy & Strategy, VAHHS
We’re bumping up against May of an election year, which usually means legislators want to high tail it out of town to hit the campaign trail. The work going on in education this year, however, likely puts us in session a bit longer, providing more time for committees to look at new proposals as they pass out all the other bills.
See below for the latest:
Data Privacy: The House Commerce Committee unveiled a new 54-page data privacy bill on Friday. The bill is a patchwork of the Senate-passed version, S.71, Connecticut law, S.69, and other language. It does not contain a private right of action, but it includes HIPAA-covered entities such as hospitals, entangling them into two different privacy frameworks. VAHHS supports S.71 as passed by the Senate.
Elimination or Reduction of Hospital Services: VAHHS supported a public process and asked for greater clarity in S.189 around the elimination or reduction of hospital services in House Health Care.
Artificial Intelligence: Both H.814 and H.816 are on the move this week. The Senate Health and Welfare Committee passed out H.814 without changes from the House version. The bill establishes “neurological rights” to protect freedom of thought and expands the Artificial Intelligence Advisory Council to include a health care voice.
The Senate Health and Welfare Committee also reviewed H.816, which ensures oversight of AI use in mental health care by a mental health provider. Practicing mental health services without intervention by a mental health provider would result in unprofessional conduct for the provider and violation of the Consumer Protection Act for non-providers.
Adult Protective Services: The Senate Health and Welfare Committee advanced H.582 which is agreed-upon language after a stakeholder process that brings Vermont into compliance with federal regulations.
Primary Care: The House Health Care Committee heard further testimony on primary care last week from Elliott Fisher, MD, MPH and Zirui Song, MD, PhD. Dr. Song presented the idea of primary care as a public utility and the idea of a common fund for primary care. Ethan Parke, from Vermont Health Care for All, proposed a Universal Primary Care Advisory Group and a primary care spending report. The House Health Care Committee will be holding a public hearing on primary care on Thursday from 5:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. in Room 11 of the State House.
H.R. 1 Impacts: The House Health Care Committee heard from the Joint Fiscal Office about current and upcoming federal changes that impact premium subsidies and the Medicaid program.
Prescription Drug Discount Card Program: H.577, which has the Treasurer’s Office establishing a statewide prescription drug discount program, is on its way to the governor’s desk after passing out of the Senate.
APRN and PA Roles in Hospitals: Also on its way to the governor’s desk is S.163, which passed out of the Senate and allows both APRNs and PAs to provide attending coverage and have admitting and discharging privileges at hospitals.
Non-Compete Clauses: The House General and Housing Committee advanced S.230, which prohibits the use of non-compete and non-solicitation agreements and limits the use of non-disparagement clauses. It also addresses staffing agencies and certain contract restrictions.
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