Not a ton news since last week. I’m beginning to sound like a broken record.
On the e-cigarette and smoking front, the good bill (HB 2357) remains in limbo- as it’s passed the full Senate and got through it’s Conference Committee- but wasn’t called to the floor of the House for a vote again this week.
The competing- not so good bill- SB 1147 passed on a voice vote through the Committee of the Whole in the House- but didn’t make it to a floor vote this week.
Other than that, legislators are mostly focused on the budget negotiations. There are a few items we’ll need to ask you to press for in the next couple of weeks with the legislators in your district including:
1) preventative and comprehensive oral health services for pregnant Medicaid members;
2) increased investment in funding for the state loan repayment program and health profession residencies (especially for primary care); and
3) funding Kids Care.
In addition, there’s an important $65M appropriation of federal funds that needs to be made to provide additional subsidies for child care services for folks that qualify- along with a needed increase in reimbursement rates. No state dollars are needed- simply an appropriation of the federal funds that have been allocated to AZ.
