Page 14 - Delaware Medical Journal - July-August 2018
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149th General Assembly Closes:
Strong Year for Physicians
After what seemed to be shaping up as an easy June 30 compared to last year, the legislature hit a last- minute bump in the road. Delaware's full budget really comes in three pieces, or “money bills” — the budget, the bond bill, and grant-in-aid. While one piece was done early, the other two caused a serious scare that the legislature would again fail to complete its duties by the close of June 30. By 8:40 a.m. on July 1, all three passed after hours of frenzied negotiations, which as result will set the stage for when the 150th General Assembly convenes in January 2019.
Once again, health care legislation continued to take a prominent role in Dover, and once again the Medical Society of Delaware (MSD) was there every step of the way to advocate on behalf of MSD members and their patients. When the gavel came down
to close the 149th General Assembly,
it marked a strong year for MSD that included many notable successes. Below are a few critical bills that the Society worked on in the closing days of session.
Primary Care (SB 227) Gets Unanimous Votes — MSD Members Made the Difference! — Crafted by MSD alongside Rep. Bentz and Sen. Townsend, this bill, primary care services at Medicare made headlines throughout the state. Thanks
to impressively strong and determined advocacy efforts from MSD members, and concentrated efforts by the primary care community in particular, Senate Bill 227 headed to the Governor’s desk on June 28. A loud and clear grassroots MSD member mobilization made a tremendous impact in driving home the urgency of the primary care crisis for
successfully passed, ongoing engagement will be critical to ensure the work started this session continues into the next.
Benchmarking Health Care Largely Absent — Executive Order 19 expired June 30, dissolving the benchmark’s temporary advisory group. While neither legislation nor a report were issued
by the end of session, comments from previous meetings of the group, found on the Delaware Department of Health and Social Services website, are being aggregated and next steps are expected in the coming weeks.
Marijuana Legalization Fails in Floor Vote (HB 110 & HCR 52) — With
both its House and Senate sponsors retiring, marijuana legalization came to concerted opposition effort that included addiction, travel, and health advocates, the bill failed to receive the votes needed, falling well short even after
the sponsor amended the bill to lower
its necessary vote total to 25. MSD was as a valuable ear and voice for Delaware physicians for this highly debated issue.
Mental Health & Guns (HB 302) —
In 2013, the Psychiatric Society of Delaware, through the Medical Society, worked with Attorney General Beau Biden in crafting HB 88, which sought to from persons a danger to themselves
or others with due process. While the bill cleared the House unanimously, it ultimately failed in the Senate. In 2018 the legislation resurfaced in a wave of gun bills. After additional due process amendments, the legislation sailed through both chambers and became law in April. Also passed on June 30
was Senate Bill 230, which imports federal mental health parity reporting requirements to the state level.
Personal Injury Protection Fee Schedule (SB 161) — Insurance Commissioner Navarro proposed legislation seeking
to import the worker’s compensation
fee schedule into the Personal Injury Protection (PIP) system. Early questions and concerns were raised by MSD and other system participants, leading the Commissioner to convene stakeholder meetings to explore a path forward
to lowering PIP costs in the 2019 legislature.
Women's Health Bills — The Society both supported and opposed bills pertaining to women’s health this session. Paid family leave for state employees (HB 3), supported by the Delaware Section of American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) and Delaware Chapter, American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), was signed into law on June 30. Just minutes before, insurance coverage for infertility
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Del Med J | July/August 2018 | Vol. 90 | No. 6
