HOUSE APPROPRIATIONS AND FINANCE COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR

HOUSE BILL 575

53rd legislature - STATE OF NEW MEXICO - first session, 2017

AN ACT

RELATING TO THE PUBLIC PEACE, HEALTH, SAFETY AND WELFARE; ENACTING THE HEALTH SECURITY PLAN ANALYSIS ACT TO PROVIDE FOR AN ANALYSIS OF MODELS OF COMPREHENSIVE STATEWIDE HEALTH CARE; ESTABLISHING THE HEALTH SECURITY PLAN ANALYSIS FUND; MAKING AN APPROPRIATION.

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

     SECTION 1. [NEW MATERIAL] SHORT TITLE.--This act may be cited as the "Health Security Plan Analysis Act".

     SECTION 2. [NEW MATERIAL] PROPOSED HEALTH SECURITY PLAN ANALYSIS.--

          A. As funding permits, the legislative finance committee shall obtain an analysis of the requirements and feasibility of establishing a "health security plan". The health security plan is a statewide comprehensive health care coverage plan that ensures health care coverage for all New Mexicans, controls escalating health care costs and improves the health care of its beneficiaries.

          B. The health security plan analysis shall compare the provisions of the House Health and Human Services Committee Substitute for House Bill 101 of the first session of the fifty-third legislature as well as the provisions of House Health and Human Services Committee Substitute for House Bill 101 with other models of comprehensive statewide health care coverage that are designed to control health care costs and improve health care for those covered.

          C. The health security plan analysis shall include:

                (1) a fiscal analysis of the projected first five years of the establishment and operation of the health security plan, including a projection of plan costs for all payer sources and a review of financing options for the proposed health security plan. The fiscal analysis shall provide projections regarding the impact of the health security plan upon the state budget and project the costs of establishing and administering the health security plan. The fiscal analysis shall be guided by the following requirements and assumptions:

                     (a) before estimating beneficiary and employer contributions to the health security plan budget, the legislative finance committee staff shall identify and estimate the amount of public finances that may be contributed to the budget;

                     (b) the health care services to be included, and for which costs are to be projected in determining the financing options, shall be no less than the health care services afforded to state employees pursuant to the Health Care Purchasing Act; and

                     (c) financing options may set minimum and maximum levels of costs to a beneficiary based on the following factors, as they apply to a given beneficiary: 1) the beneficiary's income; 2) any federal subsidies for health coverage costs; 3) medicare offsets; and 4) minimum and maximum levels of employer contributions, taking into consideration an employer's payroll and number of employees;

                (2) an analysis of the optimal governance of the health security plan, including the administrative structure and the applicability of state laws to that governance; and

                (3) the type of coverage that the health security plan may offer in addition to coverage for routine care, preventive care, care related to serious illness and hospitalization care. The analysis shall consider whether the health security plan should include:

                     (a) coverage to supplement medicare;

                     (b) long-term care insurance;

                     (c) automobile medical liability coverage;

                     (d) workers' compensation medical coverage; or

                     (e) other types of coverage.

          D. As used in this section, "beneficiary" means a person eligible for health care and benefits pursuant to the health security plan.

     SECTION 3. [NEW MATERIAL] REPORTING.--Legislative finance committee staff shall issue a final report of its determinations with the specific options and recommendations to the appropriate interim legislative committees no later than October 1, 2018.

     SECTION 4. [NEW MATERIAL] FUNDING.--To fund the health security plan analysis performed pursuant to the Health Security Plan Analysis Act, the legislative finance committee shall seek:

          A. partnerships among state agencies, the federal government and private nonprofit persons to identify and apply for available grant funding and other in-kind and financial resources; and

          B. legislative appropriations as state revenues permit.

     SECTION 5. [NEW MATERIAL] HEALTH SECURITY PLAN ANALYSIS FUND--CREATION.--The "health security plan analysis fund" is created in the state treasury. The fund shall consist of appropriations, gifts, grants, donations and interest earned on investment of the fund. Money in the fund is subject to appropriation by the legislature and may be expended by the legislative finance committee for the purposes of conducting its health security plan analysis pursuant to the Health Security Plan Analysis Act. Money in the fund may be expended on warrants drawn by the secretary of finance and administration pursuant to vouchers signed by the director of the legislative finance committee. Money remaining in the fund at the end of a fiscal year shall not revert to the general fund.

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