0001| SENATE BILL 266 | 0002| 43RD LEGISLATURE - STATE OF NEW MEXICO - SECOND SESSION, 1998 | 0003| INTRODUCED BY | 0004| NANCY E. RODRIGUEZ | 0005| | 0006| | 0007| | 0008| FOR THE HEALTH AND WELFARE REFORM COMMITTEE | 0009| | 0010| AN ACT | 0011| RELATING TO HEALTH CARE ACCESS; ESTABLISHING A GEOGRAPHIC | 0012| ACCESS DATA SYSTEM; MAKING AN APPROPRIATION. | 0013| | 0014| BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF NEW MEXICO: | 0015| Section 1. SHORT TITLE.--This act may be cited as the | 0016| "Geographic Access Data System Act." | 0017| Section 2. PURPOSE OF THE ACT.--The purpose of the | 0018| Geographic Access Data System Act is to provide access to data | 0019| and information to assist the commission, the legislature and | 0020| other agencies and organizations in administering programs, | 0021| planning, formulating policy and allocating resources to | 0022| improve geographic access to health services. | 0023| Section 3. DEFINITIONS.--As used in the Geographic | 0024| Access Data System Act: | 0025| A. "commission" means the New Mexico health policy | - 1 - 0001| commission; | 0002| B. "health information system" means the | 0003| integrated, statewide data system specified in the Health | 0004| Information System Act; and | 0005| C. "person" means individual or any other legal | 0006| entity. | 0007| Section 4. DATA SYSTEM--CREATION--COMMISSION DUTIES.-- | 0008| A. The commission shall establish and operate the | 0009| geographic access data system. | 0010| B. The commission shall collect data sufficient | 0011| to: | 0012| (1) longitudinally monitor the geographic | 0013| availability of health services; | 0014| (2) assess the contribution to, impact and | 0015| cost-effectiveness of initiatives to improve geographic access | 0016| to health care, including health professional education and | 0017| training programs and initiatives to enhance access in rural | 0018| and underserved areas; | 0019| (3) allow for allocation of resources based | 0020| on the need for various health professionals in different | 0021| geographic areas; | 0022| (4) enable the state to target resources and | 0023| interventions to those geographic areas and health | 0024| professionals most in need by the state; | 0025| (5) provide information to assist in the | - 2 - 0001| effective administration of programs to improve the supply and | 0002| distribution of health professionals and services; | 0003| (6) project future needs for health | 0004| professionals and services; and | 0005| (7) meet the information needs of the variety | 0006| of public and private entities with interests in the supply | 0007| and distribution of health professionals and geographic access | 0008| to health services. | 0009| C. The geographic access data system shall be | 0010| available in accordance with the provisions of Section 7 of | 0011| the Geographic Access Data System Act and shall provide a | 0012| single point of access to data: | 0013| (1) maintained by the state related to health | 0014| service capacity and distribution; | 0015| (2) pertaining to the supply and availability | 0016| of health professionals; and | 0017| (3) regarding state initiatives to improve | 0018| geographic access. | 0019| D. The commission shall: | 0020| (1) utilize data already maintained in other | 0021| databases and by other entities, to the extent feasible and | 0022| accessible to the commission; | 0023| (2) establish data definitions, formats and | 0024| other information standards for the data maintained as part of | 0025| the geographic access data system; | - 3 - 0001| (3) make available, at least annually, a | 0002| report on the geographic availability of health services and | 0003| the supply and distribution of health professionals; | 0004| (4) establish geographic access and capacity | 0005| standards and methodologies to assess the relative needs of | 0006| geographic service areas and for different health | 0007| professionals; | 0008| (5) assess fees for special analysis, data | 0009| requests and dissemination to assist in the operation and | 0010| development of the geographic access data system; and | 0011| (6) identify and seek other sources of | 0012| resources to support the geographic access data system. | 0013| E. The commission shall promulgate regulations | 0014| necessary to carry out the Geographic Access Data System Act, | 0015| in accordance with state law. | 0016| F. The commission shall collect data in the most | 0017| cost-effective manner. | 0018| Section 5. ADVISORY COMMITTEE.-- | 0019| A. The commission shall establish an advisory | 0020| committee representative of the data source entities using | 0021| geographic access information, the health service industry and | 0022| health professionals. | 0023| B. The advisory committee shall develop | 0024| recommendations on: | 0025| (1) data needs and sources; | - 4 - 0001| (2) data collection procedures; | 0002| (3) data analysis, report formats and | 0003| information disseminated; and | 0004| (4) access to data maintained as part of the | 0005| geographic access data system. | 0006| C. The advisory committee shall review, no less | 0007| than every three years, the need for existing data collected | 0008| and maintained as part of the geographic access data system | 0009| and the cost-effectiveness of maintaining the data. | 0010| Section 6. AGENCY COOPERATION.-- | 0011| A. The department of health; the human services | 0012| department; the commission on higher education; the various | 0013| health professional licensing boards authorized in Chapter 61 | 0014| NMSA 1978; the university of New Mexico; New Mexico state | 0015| university; and other state agencies in possession of data | 0016| pertaining to the geographic supply and distribution of health | 0017| professionals and health services, including health | 0018| professional education and training programs, shall cooperate | 0019| with the commission in carrying out the provisions of the | 0020| Geographic Access Data System Act, including making data | 0021| available, collecting survey data and participating in the | 0022| geographic access data system. | 0023| B. Health professional education and training | 0024| programs, either directly or through the commission on higher | 0025| education, shall provide data, including but not limited to | - 5 - 0001| that regarding individuals trained in health professions. | 0002| C. Health profession licensing boards shall | 0003| provide the commission upon request information, including but | 0004| not limited to the following: | 0005| (1) basic data maintained as part of the | 0006| licensing and relicensing procedure, including, as applicable, | 0007| identification data such as name, license number, social | 0008| security number, date of birth and gender; education and | 0009| training institutions and locations; specialty certification; | 0010| year of first licensure; type of license; status of license; | 0011| and practice address; and | 0012| (2) responses to surveys provided by the | 0013| commission to be completed as part of the licensing process by | 0014| the health professionals regarding the characteristics of | 0015| their current and future practice. | 0016| D. Initiatives funded or operated by the state to | 0017| improve the supply of health professionals in rural and | 0018| underserved areas shall provide the commission data, including | 0019| but not limited to information sufficient to enable the | 0020| immediate and long-term assessment of the impact of such | 0021| programs, their cost-effectiveness and impact on geographic | 0022| access in the state. | 0023| E. Upon making any request for data pursuant to | 0024| the Geographic Access Data System Act, the commission shall | 0025| take into consideration the cost of supplying such data and | - 6 - 0001| give reasonable notice and deadlines for compliance. | 0002| Section 7. ACCESS.-- | 0003| A. Access to data in the geographic access data | 0004| system shall be provided in accordance with regulations | 0005| adopted by the commission pursuant to and to fulfill the | 0006| purpose of the Geographic Access Data System Act. | 0007| B. Any data source may obtain access to data it | 0008| has submitted to the geographic access data system. | 0009| C. Any person may obtain aggregate data. | 0010| D. Except as provided for in this section, any | 0011| data collected is strictly confidential and shall not be a | 0012| matter of public record or accessible to the public. | 0013| E. No data source shall be liable for damages to | 0014| any person for having furnished information in accordance with | 0015| the Geographic Access Data System Act. | 0016| Section 8. APPROPRIATION.--Seventy-five thousand dollars | 0017| ($75,000) is appropriated from the general fund to the New | 0018| Mexico health policy commission for expenditure in fiscal year | 0019| 1999 to pay salaries and benefits and other costs necessary to | 0020| establish and maintain the geographic access data system and | 0021| administer the provisions of the Geographic Access Data System | 0022| Act. Any unexpended or unencumbered balance remaining at the | 0023| end of fiscal year 1999 shall revert to the general fund. | 0024| Section 9. EFFECTIVE DATE.--The effective date of the | 0025| provisions of this act is July 1, 1998. | - 7 -