As expected, this week blew through the Columbus Day holiday and into a flurry of legislative activity. Dozens of bills went back and forth between the chambers this week, and many have already landed on the governor’s desk. Additionally, the Corbett administration announced a resolution in the five-year dispute over Mcare fund transfers and assessments.
Despite the long days and daily – sometimes multiple – Rules Committee meetings, there still isn’t quite enough time to get everything crossed off the legislative to-do list. While big-ticket items like pension reform and liquor privatization have fallen into the dust heap of this session’s history, the two chambers are wrapping up other last minute details, some of which stand to have significant impact in the areas of health care and human services, economic development and tax credits. Both the House and the Senate added a voting session day. Originally, the House and Senate were both to have adjourned until after the November 4 election as of Wednesday, but the Senate added Thursday, October 16 as a voting day, and the House added Monday, October 20.
Instead of getting bogged down with the process, today we’re highlighting some of those bills that will soon become the law and provide a quick snapshot of what we expect out of the final House session day on Monday.
Over the finish line:
Health and Human Services: Bills to protect children, babies and patients expected to be signed in the coming days.
H.B. 435 (Moul, R-Adams/Franklin) is on the governor’s desk and must receive final action by October 25. This bill requires background checks for anyone who works in direct contact with children and increases the frequency of background checks from every 36 to every 24 months. Also on the governor’s desk is S.B 27 (Mensch, R-Berks/Bucks/Montgomery), which provides for increased communication between county children and youth agencies and medical practitioners when child abuse is being investigated. The last day for action is October 25. Both of these bills wrap up a package of bills passed in response to the Task Force on Child Protection report.
H.B. 1436 (Truitt, R-Chester) requires insurers to cover certain formulas for children who suffer from severe food allergies. The last day for action on this bill is October 25. H.B. 1567 (Scavello, R-Monroe) is also on the governor’s desk, with a last day for action of October 26. This bill would allow hospitals to provide pertussis education to parents of newborns. Pertussis, also known as whooping cough, is a highly contagious respiratory disease that most commonly affects infants and young children. It can be fatal, especially in babies less than one year of age.
A bill to address how hospitals notify patients as to time spent in observation status while in an emergency room, H.B. 1907 (Saylor, R-York), is also on the governor’s desk. While on “observation status,” patients are treated as if they have been admitted to the hospital.
Finally, expected to hit the desk any day is Senator Vance’s S.B, 1180, which enhances the Commonwealth’s statewide prescription drug monitoring program and database in order to identify bad doctors and pill mills that are feeding Pennsylvania’s prescription drug addiction crisis.
Environment and Energy: Regulation of carbon emissions and consumer protections
H.B. 2354 (Snyder, D-Greene) is on the governor’s desk. This bill requires the legislature to approve the Department of Environmental Protection’s plan to meet the federal EPA’s carbon emission reduction requirements.
H.B. 939 is also on the governor’s desk, with a last day for action of October 25. This bill would amend the Public Utilities Code to provide for additional consumer protection measures by requiring public utilities to provide notice to customers before terminating their service. It also provides customers with additional payment procedures and places collection and reporting duties on the public utility.
Economic Development: Funding programs, Act 47 and Business Entity Laws redesigned
H.B. 1550 (Milne, R-Chester) is on the governor’s desk. This bill would move certain programs now under the purview of the Commonwealth Financing Authority to the Pennsylvania Industrial Development Authority. The last day for action on this bill is October 25.
H.B. 1773 (Ross, R-Chester) makes comprehensive changes to the Municipalities Financial Recover Act, commonly called “Act 47.” The bill also allows distressed municipalities (except for Pittsburgh) to increase their local services tax from $52 to $156. It is expected to be before the governor soon.
Finally, H.B. 2234 (Turzai-R, Allegheny) could be signed by the governor in the coming days. This bill modernizes Pennsylvania’s business entity laws to enable business entities to change their organizational forms as businesses grow and change over time. If signed by the governor, businesses wishing to change their entity status will no longer be required to completely wind down their current business and dissolve before starting anew in the new entity form or merging with another entity.
In the home stretch:
Health and Human Services: Medication related bills poised for action in the House of Representatives
H.B. 803 (Stevenson, R- Butler/Mercer) is poised for House concurrence in Senate amendments. This bill would allow schools to keep epi-pens on hand and administer them to students in the event of an allergic reaction.
Additionally, H.B. 1846 (Quinn, R-Bucks) could also make it to the governor’s desk. This bill regulates the way prescription drugs are priced when dispensed by a physician under the Workers’ Compensation Act.
Not quite as far along is S.B. 405 (Vance, R-Cumberland). This bill provides for the generic substation of biologics or biosmilars. S.B. 405 is on second consideration in the House, and has already been amended. Given the rules of the legislative process, it is highly unlikely this bill would make it to the governor’s desk without the addition of session days in both chambers.
Economic Development: Tax Credits could be up for consideration
Rep. Godshall’s (R-Montgomery) H.B. 46 could be before the full House for concurrence in Senate amendments on Monday. This bill would provide tax credits to businesses who grant paid leave to employees so they can make organ or bone marrow donations. Additionally, H.B. 91 (Evankovich, R-Armstrong/Westmoreland) could be before the House for concurrence in Senate amendments; this bill would allow businesses that fund scholarships to career and technical schools to be eligible for tax credits under the EITC program. Either bill could be considered and before the governor early next week.
Mcare Settlement Announced
The Corbett Administration announced an agreement has been reached in the Mcare suit filed by the Pennsylvania Medical Society (PAMED), the Hospital & Healthsystem Association of Pennsylvania (HAP) and the Pennsylvania Podiatric Medical Association that resolves a five-year dispute over fund transfers and assessments.
In 2009, PAMED and HAP filed litigation in Commonwealth Court challenging the state’s transfer of $100 million from Mcare to the state’s general fund. In separate litigation filed by PAMED, HAP and the Pennsylvania Podiatric Medical Association (PPMA), the assessment calculation formula was also challenged. This settlement resolution provides that:
- Health care providers will be reimbursed approximately $139 million from an Assessment Relief Fund representing a portion of their assessment payments in 2009-2012 and 2014. Refunds will not be available for up to 18 months.
- Starting in 2015, there will be a new assessment calculation formula that will reduce Mcare assessments by $61 million from the projected 2014 year-end Fund balance.
- The Commonwealth will retain the $100 million that was transferred out of the fund.
The Mcare Act, enacted in March 2002, created the Mcare Fund, a special fund of the Pennsylvania Insurance Department providing medical malpractice liability coverage. The law requires all hospitals and practicing physicians to have at least $1 million of medical liability coverage—$500,000 of which must be obtained from a private insurance carrier, the Joint Underwriting Association or a self-insured program, and the other $500,000 is obtained from Mcare.
So what’s next?
Well, that is always the million-dollar question, but in all likelihood, the House will finish its business on Monday, and we’ll see the members head back home to hit the campaign trail until the November 4 election. There has been no indication that members will return for lame duck session, as has been the case for the last few legislative sessions. However, session is scheduled for November 12, when each caucus will hold leadership elections. Beyond that, expect the halls of the capitol to be pretty quiet; members don’t return until January 6 to be sworn in for the 2015-2016 legislative session.