HB 721

Page 1

AN ACT

RELATING TO HEALTH CARE; AMENDING THE COUNTY MATERNAL AND

CHILD HEALTH ACT TO INCLUDE TRIBES; CHANGING THE TITLE OF THAT

ACT.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF NEW MEXICO:

Section 1. Section 24-1B-1 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 1991,

Chapter 113, Section 1) is amended to read:

"24-1B-1. SHORT TITLE.--Chapter 24, Article 1B NMSA

1978 may be cited as the "Maternal and Child Health Plan

Act"."

Section 2. Section 24-1B-2 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 1991,

Chapter 113, Section 2) is amended to read:

"24-1B-2. PURPOSE OF ACT.--The purpose of the Maternal

and Child Health Plan Act is to encourage the development of

comprehensive, community-based maternal and child health

services to meet the needs of childbearing women and their

families."

Section 3. Section 24-1B-3 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 1991,

Chapter 113, Section 3) is amended to read:

"24-1B-3. DEFINITIONS.--As used in the Maternal and

Child Health Plan Act:

A. "board" means the board of county commissioners

of a county or leadership of a tribe;

B. "department" means the department of health;

HB 721

Page 2

C. "planning council" means the maternal and child

health planning council; and

D. "tribe" means an Indian nation, tribe or pueblo

located within the boundaries of the state."

Section 4. Section 24-1B-4 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 1991,

Chapter 113, Section 4) is amended to read:

"24-1B-4. PLANNING COUNCIL CREATED--MEMBERSHIP.--

A. The board may create a maternal and child

health planning council, and it may appoint members for terms

designated by the board. The members of the planning council

shall be selected to represent a broad spectrum of interests

that may include elected officials, tribal officials,

community-based program providers, childbearing and parenting

families, residents, local school administrators, local

political leaders, employees of the income support office,

employees of the county field health office, maternal and

child health care providers, obstetricians, family physicians,

nurses, mid-level providers and hospital administrators.

B. Members of the planning council shall elect

from among themselves a chair for a term designated by the

board. The planning council shall meet at the call of the

chair.

C. Planning council members shall not be paid, but

they may receive per diem and mileage expenses as provided in

the Per Diem and Mileage Act."

HB 721

Page 3

Section 5. Section 24-1B-5 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 1991,

Chapter 113, Section 5) is amended to read:

"24-1B-5. MATERNAL AND CHILD HEALTH PLANS.--

A. The board or its designee with the advice of

the planning council may prepare a maternal and child health

plan. The plan shall have the approval of the planning

council and the board before it may be submitted by the board

to the department for approval.

B. Two or more boards may agree among themselves

to establish a maternal and child health plan.

C. Each maternal and child health plan shall

include:

(1) a needs assessment that identifies and

quantifies:

(a) those populations that are unable

to obtain adequate maternal and child health services;

(b) the major factors that affect

accessibility to local maternal and child health services;

(c) the gaps in locally available

maternal and child health services; and

(d) the extent to which county and

tribal residents use maternal and child health services

available in other counties;

(2) an inventory that identifies existing

public and private providers, services and maternal and child

HB 721

Page 4

health plans, medicaid and other governmental, tribal and

charitable resources, program duplications and the county's

current monetary contributions to maternal and child health

programs;

(3) recommendations on how to improve and

fund maternal and child health based upon the needs assessment

and inventory of existing services and resources;

(4) recommendations to eliminate

duplications of services, improve access and initiate new

services as needed; and

(5) conclusions about the need to rely on

services available in other counties and on the level of

charitable, federal, state, county or tribal funding and in-

kind contributions that are required to implement the maternal

and child health plan fully.

D. The recommendations contained in the maternal

and child health plan may be based on the development of

comprehensive maternal and child health services. Development

of the maternal and child health plan may include a

consideration of:

(1) teen pregnancy;

(2) family planning;

(3) prenatal care;

(4) financing of perinatal care for persons

not eligible for medicaid;

HB 721

Page 5

(5) proposals to expand provider capacity;

(6) outreach, information, referral, risk

assessment and case management for both pregnant women and

their children;

(7) perinatal health education projects;

(8) home visiting and social support groups;

(9) projects that reduce poor pregnancy and

child outcomes;

(10) projects that enhance utilization of

well-child care;

(11) projects that remove transportation

barriers from perinatal services; and

(12) projects that coordinate local

community services, including those services provided by the

county's state public health office.

E. The maternal and child health plan shall be

updated at the request of the board or the department if the

plan as implemented is not achieving the stated goals or if

the needs of the local population have changed."

Section 6. Section 24-1B-6 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 1991,

Chapter 113, Section 6) is amended to read:

"24-1B-6. MATERNAL AND CHILD HEALTH FUNDS.--

A. The department shall contract for maternal and

child health services to implement a maternal and child health

plan after the plan has been approved by the department.

HB 721

Page 6

B. As a condition of the department contracting

for maternal and child health services, after an opportunity

for county or tribal input, a county or tribe may be asked to

contribute to the implementation of an approved maternal and

child health plan based on the relative wealth of the county

or tribe as measured by the population, the per capita income,

the gross receipts tax base and the average property value.

C. The department shall contract for maternal and

child health services to implement a maternal and child health

plan based upon:

(1) the amount of funds appropriated for the

purpose of carrying out the provisions of the Maternal and

Child Health Plan Act;

(2) the need for services as measured by:

(a) maternal and child health

indicators;

(b) the teen pregnancy rate; and

(c) maternal and child health provider

availability and shortages; and

(3) the demonstration that the services in

the maternal and child health plan fit into the comprehensive

outline of community-based maternal and child health services

described in Subsection D of Section 24-1B-5 NMSA 1978.

D. Nothing in the Maternal and Child Health Plan

Act shall prohibit the department from contracting for those

HB 721

Page 7

categories of maternal and child health services that it

contracted for prior to the effective date of the Maternal and

Child Health Care Act or that it deems essential for public

health."

Section 7. Section 24-1B-7 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 1991,

Chapter 113, Section 7) is amended to read:

"24-1B-7. DEPARTMENT--POWERS AND DUTIES.--

A. The department shall review, evaluate and

approve or reject a maternal and child health plan and it may

require that a county update its maternal and child health

plan.

B. The department is authorized to contract for

maternal and child health services to implement maternal and

child health plans, subject to the availability of

appropriations for that purpose.

C. The department shall monitor and evaluate the

contracts funded by the department and assess whether maternal

and child health conditions are improving.

D. The department shall provide technical

assistance and training to assist as needed in developing

maternal and child health plans.

E. The department may gather information necessary

to evaluate the effectiveness of services it contracts for

through the provisions of the Maternal and Child Health Plan

Act.

HB 721

Page 8

F. The department shall adopt all rules necessary

to carry out the purposes of the Maternal and Child Health

Plan Act, including:

(1) the procedures and format for applying

for department approval of a maternal and child health plan;

(2) the format for maternal and child health

plans;

(3) the criteria to review, evaluate and

approve or reject maternal and child health plans;

(4) the procedures and format for requesting

that the department procure services under a department-

approved maternal and child health plan;

(5) the formula used to determine a required

contribution to implement maternal and child health plans;

(6) a procedure that determines the need for

maternal and child health services;

(7) the procedure to determine the

distribution of state funds appropriated to implement maternal

and child health plans;

(8) the procedures for gathering and

reporting programmatic and financial information necessary to

evaluate the effectiveness of maternal and child health

services for which the department contracts pursuant to the

provisions of the Maternal and Child Health Plan Act; and

(9) definitions that set an acceptable

minimum standard for the services provided."

HB 721

Page 9