HBA-CMT H.B. 100 77(R) BILL ANALYSIS Office of House Bill AnalysisH.B. 100 By: Maxey Public Health 2/7/2001 Introduced BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE The United States Congress and state legislatures have enacted many safeguards to protect consumers from unregulated health care activities. Both federal and state licensing agencies have developed rules to regulate professionals providing a service to consumers. With services to consumers now being provided via the Internet, there may be confusion as to the authority of state licensing authorities who regulate professionals on the Internet with the same authority as in a non-Internet situation. House Bill 100 clarifies that a state licensing authority has the same regulatory power over actions on the Internet as it has in a non-Internet setting. 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. ANALYSIS House Bill 100 amends the Occupation Code to provide that the fact that a health care activity occurs through the use of the Internet does not affect a licensing authority's power to regulate an activity or person that would otherwise be regulated. EFFECTIVE DATE On passage, or if the Act does not receive the necessary vote, the Act takes effect September 1, 2001.