Next week will be another busy one for hearing public health related bills in the House and Senate Health Committees. We’ve been busy reading the bills that are up in committee next week and have made our decisions about what to support, oppose, be neutral on and the things to just leave alone for this week.
The two tables below list the full agenda of bills next week. The items in bold are the ones we’ve taken a position on. Between planning for the upcoming conference and trying to stay ahead of all the bills that are being proposed made for a super busy week for me!
Below the charts is a brief explanation of the bills we’ve taken a position on in the upcoming week.
House HHS Committee (Monday 1:30pm)
| Bill | Name | Sponsor | AZPHA Position |
| HB2171 | health care workforce council; fund | Bliss | No Position Yet |
| HB2279 | behavioral health professionals; addiction counseling | Gress | No Position Yet |
| HB2323 | DCS; specialty medical evaluations | Payne | No Position Yet |
| HB2424 | licensed health aides | Willoughby | No Position Yet |
| HB2451 | marijuana; advertising; restrictions | Montenegro | Yes |
| HB2452 | marijuana funds; uses; enforcement | Montenegro | Neutral |
| HB2453 | AHCCCS; naturopathic physicians | Montenegro | No Position Yet |
| HB2480 | group homes; random drug screening | Parker B | No Position Yet |
| HB2494 | nursing board; licensure; appropriation | Bliss | No Position Yet |
| HB2502 | SNAP; mandatory employment; training | Biasiucci | No |
| HB2503 | SNAP; waivers; exemptions | Biasiucci | No |
| HB2504 | forced organ harvesting; insurance; prohibition | Biasiucci | No Position Yet |
| HB2520 | community health centers; graduate education | Peña | Yes |
| HB2621 | sovereign authority; border; health crisis | Montenegro | No Position Yet |
Senate HHS Committee (Tuesday 1:30pm)
| SB1036 | social work compact | Shope | No Position Yet |
| SB1157 | influenza response plan; updates; review | Shamp | No Position |
| SB1163 | homeopathic medicine; integrated medicine; qualifications | Shamp | No Position Yet |
| SB1173 | licensed professional counselors; compact | Gowan | No Position Yet |
| SB1209 | hospitals; fentanyl testing | Shope | No Position Yet |
| SB1211 | pharmacists; prescribing; naloxone; reporting | Shope | Yes |
| SB1212 | vapor products; sales; directory | Shope | No |
| SB1233 | chiropractic care; licensure; complaint investigations | Shamp | No Position Yet |
| SB1234 | pharmacy board; virtual manufacturers | Shamp | No Position Yet |
| SB1235 | maltreatment oversight committee; establishment | Shamp | No Position Yet |
| SB1238 | obstetric services; rural communities; recommendations | Shamp | Yes |
| SB1250 | AHCCCS; claims | Shope | Yes |
| SB1267 | physical therapy assistants; students; supervision | Shope | No Position Yet |
| SB1269 | dental hygienists; botox; continuing education | Shope | No Position Yet |
| SB1295 | advanced practice registered nurses; compact | Shamp | No Position Yet |
| SB1309 | mental health evaluations; information; consent. | Miranda | Yes |
| SB1311 | mental health; oversight; data; documentation. | Miranda | Yes |
| SB1335 | appropriation; older individuals; blind. | Carroll | No Position Yet |
| SB1361 | sober living homes | Carroll | No Position Yet |
| SB1387 | kinship foster care stipend; increase | Alston | No Position Yet |
| SB1388 | temporary assistance; child only case | Alston | No Position Yet |
| SB1406 | international medical licensees; provisional licensure | Shamp | No Position Yet |
HB2451 support – This bill would add additional reasonable restrictions on how marijuana stores and dispensaries can advertise to ensure they aren’t targeting those folks under 21 years old. Needs supermajority.
HB2452 neutral – This bill explicitly allows ADHS to use excess marijuana funds to go to the attorney general’s office for enforcement, which is a good thing except the amount isn’t capped leading to a risk that community colleges could be shortchanged as a result.
HB2502 & 2503 oppose – These bills place unreasonable administrative restrictions on participants in the SNAP program as well as unnecessary administrative burdens on ADES.
HB2520 support – This bill would help community health centers to more efficiently stand up additional rural family medicine residencies.
SB1309 support – Ensures care coordination and gathering if history from family and natural supports. This is often not done, persons released and results in bad outcomes often hitting the news.
SB1311 support – Hopefully AHCCCS will inform connected state entities- licensing, DES etc. if they determine an agency is out of compliance. AHCCCS should facilitate quarterly meetings with state entities to review findings of established reports.
SB1211 support – Good bill that authorizes pharmacists to dispense naloxone (or any other opioid antagonist approved by the FDA) without a signed prescription and removes related reporting and rulemaking requirements.
SB1212 opposed. This one is being pushed by PM, Reynolds, Altria, and Juul as a barrier to entry for competitors (and increase their market share) which is actually kind of a who cares issue really. It also distracts from proven policies with proven public health benefits like SB1130 offers. If SB1212 some will suggest the bill is part of the youth tobacco problem when it really sin’t and use it as an excuse or reason to not pass SB1130. Also, FDA already maintains a list of all authorized e-cigarette products permitted to be on the market.
SB1238 support – Good bill that makes ADHS convene stakeholders to develop recommendations to ensure obstetrics and gynecology services are provided in low-volume, high-risk rural communities and report its recommendations.
SB1250 support – Prohibits AHCCCS contracted MCOs from denying a claim for payment because of the lack of prior authorization if AHCCCS has authorized the item or service.
SB1309 support – Good bill that expands information that’s needed for court ordered behavioral health evaluations to include more information about the proposed patient. It also specifies which individuals may provide informed consent on behalf of a proposed patient for a voluntary evaluation.
SB1311 support – Makes it clear that AHCCCS is responsible for monitoring, overseeing and evaluating other state agencies that provide mental health services. It also makes good changes to the procedures for mental health prepetition screenings and court-ordered evaluations.
See the full list (60+) of AZPHA bill positions