HBA-LCA H.B. 3439 76(R) BILL ANALYSIS Office of House Bill AnalysisH.B. 3439 By: Isett Public Education 4/21/1999 Introduced BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE To provide preventative and general health care services to children, and often their families, a public health clinic may currently operate in a public school. A community task force determines which services are needed by the community or by the area the school serves, and a clinic may be established according to those needs. Often, these clinics provide the only affordable and convenient health care service available to an uninsured child or family member. There is a perception that the operation of these clinics may draw business from local, private health care providers. H.B. 3439 prohibits the operation of a school-based public health clinic if there is a private doctor offering general health care services within five miles of the school. RULEMAKING AUTHORITY It is the opinion of the Office of House Bill Analysis that rulemaking authority is expressly delegated to the commissioner of education in SECTION 1 (Section 38.011, Education Code) of this bill. SECTION BY SECTION ANALYSIS SECTION 1. Amends Chapter 38, Education Code, by adding Section 38.011, as follows: Sec. 38.011. LIMITATION ON SCHOOL-BASED HEALTH CLINICS. (a) Prohibits a clinic that provides general health care services to students from being operated on a primary or secondary school campus if a facility at which a physician offers general health care services is located within a five-mile radius of the campus. (b) Provides that a school nurse or other health care professional may provide to a student the on-campus services traditionally performed by a school nurse. (c) Authorizes the commissioner of education to adopt rules as necessary to implement this section. SECTION 2. Provides that this Act applies beginning with the 1999-2000 school year. SECTION 3. Emergency clause. Effective date: upon passage.