HBA-NIK, PDH H.B. 1489 76(R)    BILL ANALYSIS


Office of House Bill AnalysisH.B. 1489
By: Maxey
Corrections
3/3/1999
Introduced



BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE 

Qualified health professionals often are not accessible to citizens of some
urban and most rural areas of Texas.  Additionally, the provision of
medical care in a correctional setting may be affected by security
concerns.  Telemedicine holds promise for addressing the needs of all of
these populations. Telemedicine refers to a professional providing
interactive, long distance services to a consumer in another location.  In
1997, the University of Texas Medical Branch (UTMB) and Texas Tech
University Health and Science Center (TTUHS) conducted 3,382 inmate medical
consultations.  This is fewer than 10 percent of inmate specialty
appointments.  According to experts at UTMB and TTUHSC, as much as 60 to 80
percent of offsite medical consultations could be accomplished by
telemedicine. 

H.B. 1489 creates a task force to develop a statewide telemedicine plan to
expand the use of telemedicine within the prison system and authorizes the
use of correctional telemedicine resources to assist in the implementation
of telemedicine in rural areas. 

RULEMAKING AUTHORITY

It is the opinion of the Office of House Bill Analysis that this bill does
not expressly delegate any additional rulemaking authority to a state
officer, department, agency, or institution. 

SECTION BY SECTION ANALYSIS

SECTION 1.  Amends Section 501.059(k), Government Code, to require the
Correctional Managed Health Care Advisory Committee (committee) to report,
by October 31 of each year, to the governor, the comptroller, the state
auditor, and the legislative budget board regarding any amounts received in
the previous fiscal year in excess of costs incurred in the previous fiscal
year in providing health care services under the managed health care plan.
Requires the committee to deposit half of the excess amounts received to
the general revenue fund. 

SECTION 2.  Amends Subchapter B, Chapter 501, Government Code, by adding
Section 501.0591, as follows: 

Sec. 501.0591.  USE OF TELEMEDICINE AND TELEMEDICINE RESOURCES.  (a)
Requires the University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston and the Texas
Tech Health Sciences Center (medical centers), in conjunction with the
committee, to develop and implement a comprehensive plan for expanding the
use of telemedicine within the prison system.  Provides that the plan must
include measures designed to reduce inmate transportation and health care
costs. 

(b)  Authorizes the medical centers to use correctional telemedicine
resources for rural health care initiatives and for purposes of rural
health care education.  Authorizes the Center for Rural Health Initiatives
to assist the committee and the medical centers in coordinating a statewide
effort to link rural communities with health education centers through
correctional telemedicine resources. 

(c)  Requires the committee and any ad hoc committee of the Texas
Department of Criminal Justice that deals with transportation issues to
report to the 77th Legislature  regarding the progress made in expanding
the use of telemedicine in providing inmate health care services and
reducing inmate transportation and health care services.  Specifies the
contents of the report.  Requires the legislature to consider dedicating
any savings realized through expanding the use of telemedicine for purposes
of further expanding the use of telemedicine to provide inmate health care
services.  Provides an expiration date for this subsection of September 1,
2001.  

SECTION 3.  Requires the committee to annually deposit amounts received to
the general revenue fund as required by Section 501.059(k), Government
Code, beginning not later than October 31, 2000.  Requires the medical
centers, in conjunction with the committee, to develop and begin
implementation of the comprehensive plan required by Section 501.0591(a),
Government Code, not later than January 1, 2000. 

SECTION 4.Effective date: September 1, 1999.

SECTION 5.Emergency clause.