SUMMARY--Creates program to increase awareness of health care programs for children and to encourage enrollment in such programs. (BDR 40-1232)
FISCAL NOTE: Effect on Local Government: No.
Effect on the State or on Industrial Insurance: Yes.
EXPLANATION - Matter in italics is new; matter in brackets [ ] is material to be omitted.
AN ACT relating to public health; creating a program to increase awareness of health care programs for children and to encourage enrollment in such programs; providing that money in the intergovernmental transfer account may be transferred to an account established for the provision of health care services to uninsured children under certain circumstances; and providing other matters properly relating thereto.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEVADA, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEMBLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
Section 1 Chapter 439B of NRS is hereby amended by adding thereto the provisions set forth as sections 2, 3 and 4 of this act.
Sec. 2 1. The department shall establish a program to increase awareness of health care programs for children and to encourage enrollment in such programs. The program must provide for the dissemination of information to the public relating to health care services that are available in this state to children who are under the age of 13 years, including, without limitation, information concerning:
(a) Federal, state and local governmental programs which provide health care services to such children;
(b) The requirements for eligibility to participate in such programs; and
(c) The procedures for enrolling children in such programs.
2. The information disseminated pursuant to subsection 1 must encourage the use of the programs identified pursuant to subsection 1 and must emphasize:
(a) The benefits of preventive health care services to the well-being of children; and
(b) The reasons that preventive health care services are more efficient in treating potential health care needs and are more economical than obtaining emergency health care services which are often required when symptoms of an illness are not promptly and properly treated.
3. The program must be designed to disseminate information using the most effective means available to the extent possible, including, without limitation, using:
(a) Words or graphics, or both, that promote understanding of the information by the intended audience, considering the average level of reading comprehension of and the language understood by the audience.
(b) Printed materials that may be displayed at or distributed to:
(1) Offices of the federal, state and local government that have contact with parents of children who are under the age of 13 years or direct contact with such children, or both, in the normal course of business;
(2) Schools attended by children who are under the age of 13 years;
(3) Public libraries;
(4) Providers of health care who provide services to children who are under the age of 13 years;
(5) Child care facilities that provide services to children who are under the age of 13 years;
(6) Organizations that provide community-based services to parents of children who are under the age of 13 years, or to such children, or both; and
(7) Any other person deemed appropriate; and
(c) Radio, television and other electronic means.
Sec. 3 1. The director shall evaluate the effectiveness of the program established pursuant to section 2 of this act annually. The evaluation must include, without limitation:
(a) Determining the total number of children under the age of 13 years who reside in this state and the number of such children who have received health care services through a federal, state or local governmental program during the previous year; and
(b) Measuring the effectiveness of the content, form and method of dissemination of information through the program.
2. The director shall make any necessary recommendations to improve the program based upon his evaluation.
3. On or before December 31 of each year, the director shall provide a written report to the interim finance committee concerning the results of the evaluation and any recommendations made to improve the program.
Sec. 4 The director may, within the limits of available money, contract for services to assist the department in carrying out the provisions of sections 2 and 3 of this act.
Sec. 5 NRS 422.385 is hereby amended to read as follows:
422.3851. The allocations and payments required pursuant to NRS 422.387 must be made, to the extent allowed by the state plan for Medicaid, from the Medicaid budget account.
2. [The] Except as otherwise provided in subsection 3, the money in the intergovernmental transfer account must be transferred from that account to the Medicaid budget account to the extent that money is available from the Federal Government for proposed expenditures, including expenditures for administrative costs. If the amount in the account exceeds the amount authorized for expenditure by the department for the purposes specified in NRS 422.387, the department is authorized to expend the additional revenue in accordance with the provisions of the state plan for Medicaid.
3. If enough money is available to support Medicaid, money in the intergovernmental transfer account may be transferred to an account established for the provision of health care services to uninsured children who are under the age of 13 years pursuant to a federal program in which at least 50 percent of the cost of such services is paid for by the Federal Government, if enough money is available to continue to satisfy existing obligations of the Medicaid program or to carry out the provisions of sections 2 and 3 of this act.
Sec. 6. Section 39 of Assembly Bill No. 13 of this session is hereby amended to read as follows:
Sec. 39. 1. This [act becomes] section and sections 1 to 30, inclusive, and 32 to 38, inclusive, of this act become effective on July 1, 1997.
2. Section 31 of this act becomes effective at 12:01 a.m. on July 1, 1997.
Sec. 7. 1. This section and sections 1 to 4, inclusive, and 6 of this act become effective on July 1, 1997.
2. Section 5 of this act becomes effective at 12:01 a.m. on July 1, 1997.