Public Health, Welfare and Labor Committee - Senate

A quorum public health committee will come to order and appreciate everyone being here just one quick announcmenet we are very very happy to have with us today the optometry students with the southern college of optometry in Memphis if you'll please stand so we can welcome you. Okay we're gonna go we're gonna move right down our agenda I'm going to start with them actually gonna start backwards and hit men start with Senator Blake Johnson with H. B. eleven thirty seven. Senator Johnson you're recognized to present had house bill eleven thirty seven thank you cheer. It members this this bill goes back a ways even whenever I was on the city council the this bill would allow the city to be able to burn its registration as it collects it and not have it piled up in after storms require waiver and the. To be a lot better to be done in small amounts and citizens can do this at their own. Right now so. Should be good vote. Are there any questions from members of the committee. Is there anyone in the audience that would like to speak for or against this bill. C. nine would you like to close for your bill I'm closed appreciate a good vote. Motion to pass second second all those in favor say aye and oppose ayes have it congratulations you've passed your bill senator love house bill eleven forty five. You're recognized thank you madam chair colleagues I present to you house bill eleven forty five which is on the personal where it is today before I get into that bill just a little bit about lupus the foundational Lucas states that there is a estimated one point five million Americans who are living with some form of Lucas. The strikes primarily women of childbearing age and so however can also strike me and women and children's I mean me and and children as well ninety percent of all people living with lupus are women. Kamose with lupus develop the disease between the ages of fifteen and forty four. So what we're trying to do today is just built the awareness of lupus with this lupus day and basically that's it. All right thank you are there any questions from members of the committee. C. N. nine are the is there anyone in the audience I would like to speak for or against this bill. C. nine you can close for your bill and you can make your own motion on clothes motion to pass all right second all those in favor say aye and oppose ayes have it congratulations you've passed your bill thank you sure thank you Committee yes Sir Senator void Europe Senate bill seventy four. And we do have an amendments. All right center but if you want to go ahead and just explain your amendments will adopt that first. Thank you madam chair so this amendment cleans up some language and and just makes it read better and make it more clear and work better with federal law so I'm happy to answer any questions are there any questions on the amendment. All right motion close on my amendment and I make a motion to adopt the amendment. And second all those in favor say aye. Opposed Is have it amendment is adopted you may proceed with the bill as amended. Thank you madam chair so I have with me Jenna Goldman who is going to help me with the presentation quickly and so we had a hospital that they brought to me some concerns about people being able to have care who people who were incapacitated couldn't make decisions for him or herself and we couldn't find somebody couldn't be identified and quickly move quick manner to the guardian and help with those so miss Coleman is going to introduce ourself and explain a lot more all right. Few hydrogen at Goldman with mercy health systems and we have seen an increase of adult patients kind being abandoned in the hospital without family or anybody to help us and get them appropriate care and so I am part of the issue with discharge planning as I'm sure you know is making sure they have appropriate coverage so we've had many cases for example we've had a lady with a severe head trauma who lived with us for over six months and there's only one facility that can accept patients that need that level of care for the rest of their life and she didn't have coverage and we don't have access to financial information all of that And so this bill I am just addresses the ability to be able to apply for Medicaid benefits that somebody may need to I know there's lots of discussions about other things people would like to address but this one specifically just allows us to get coverage so we can get appropriate care for these patients right are there any questions from members of the committee. Senator Solomon you're recognized for a question can you explain and kind of defined circuit for me. To the circuit may apply yes the understand what that means and how one actually gets legal authority to be a circuit yes I am that circuit is defined under the Arkansas health care decisions act and senator Ervin actually ran that in two thousand nineteen in the circuit would be appointed by a provider. Okay so there's a start senate me to step on your bill but for which she did it so there is a legal process that one yes actually find as a circuit yes okay thank you all insert the questions yet. Thank you yes very important very important bill I I mean I and so many of these issues that that is specially the folks that are working in politics care physicians and nurses are working in politics care and some of those issues but we've seen that a lot with so many of our hospitalizations related to COVID as well so I appreciate appreciate what you are bringing for any other questions from members of the committee C. nine anyone here to wish to speak for or against the bill C. nine you're recognized close for the bill I make a motion picture member of the committee. Thank you madam chair and we would appreciate a good vote into making a chair a motion do pass. As amended as amended and second right all those in favor say aye and opposed ayes have it Senate bill seventy four as amended houses congratulations all rights next we are going to go to let's see we we've got some folks Tosh I'm against me so it's my turn. As those Senator Solomon if you will take the chair for me I will be running. Senate bill fifty seven fifty eight this. And perhaps ninety three we're going to hold Senate bill ninety two that's going to be held us just for information. Few minutes that would be great. Senator if you would introduce yourself and you may present your bill thank you senator Missy Irvin Here to present Senate bill fifty seven. But Senate bill fifty seven is with the Arkansas State Medical Board fee reduction and this this board wishes to reduce our fees for licensed providers that's what the bill basically does the currently the Board messy to change these laws to reduce the speeds and they cannot reduce the fees for your rule promulgation which is why you have the bill before you these fees are fixed in several different statutes and so they're raising sufficient revenue to proceed and so that's what the bill does. And that this is we worked with the department of health on this bill so they have the blessing of the Department of Health to proceed and I can answer any questions. The members have questions. Senior questions is there anyone would like to speak for or against the bill. Seeing none Senator you're welcome to close for your bill right I just appreciate the state medical board for taking this action without all clothes and make a motion to pass. Second we have second. Members all in favor say aye aye opposed. Hearing none senator bill is passed thank you. Thank you would Give the next billion talkative representative bill fifty eight. And. Senator Missy you're recognized to present your bill okay so Senate bill fifty eight again working with our state agencies through this process this is a bill that is a result of recommendations from two separate massage therapy ad hoc committees that make up the industry professionals and the massage therapy technical advisory committee members and under this current law students and apprentices are performing hands on techniques with clients in various stages of undress as part of their instruction prior to completing a background check the bill would provide for the ability to run these background checks prior to any students or apprentices performing massage therapy and touching members of the public and clearly this protects the public as well as potentially identifying human trafficking situations the Bill also helps massagers students and apprentices economically because they would be allowed to work in massage therapy under supervision for up to six months after graduation while they complete the final licensure requirements and and the current law that we have does not allow for this there are no additional fees and the licensure fee is shifted to the learning permit stage. I'll be happy to answer any questions members anyone have questions. Thing no questions would anyone like to speak for or against the bill. Kim says your bill okay. Senator judge to close your bill and closed and proceed to get votes and on second. Thank you to all in favor say aye. Opposed say none senator your bill is passed thank you have another one lined up yes Senate bill ninety three I'm going to run this bill for senator Hammer. And what this bill does working with our for our folks it simply it just a little updates the law and it relates to having the dental school in the state of Arkansas M. as is currently in the law the statute related to dental school in Arkansas and the Arkansas dental practice act is antiquated and it's immaterial so this updates that law and the current statute was written long before the establishment of the commission on dental accreditation which is Kota Kota was established in nineteen seventy five and is nationally recognized by the United States Department of Education as the sole agency to a credit dental and dental related education programs conducted at the post secondary level so this would help any institution of higher education public or private or nonprofit that can satisfy that rigorous and multi year accreditation criteria according to cota through their process and so that's what the bill does clearly this does not create or find a dental school it's installed it just ensures that the process can be followed for Accreditation from Kota. So that's what the bill does so at senator Hammer worked with all entities of higher ed in the Division of higher at as well as with the Arkansas dental Association he or also here and are are good with the bill. And director are please here if he wants to answer any questions and we are excited to have this opportunity the state of Arkansas understanding these members anyone have any questions. Thirty one like to speak for or against the bill do you want to speak for your bill senator Hammer. I don't take a chance. But the motion to promotion do pass second. members all in favor say aye. Opposed. Senator bill senator Hammer bill is Pat thank you congradulations senator Hammer all right thank you. Thank you. Okay the last bill that we have on our agenda is SP eighty nine I know that Senator English is and the whole way but sure is children's is here so I'd really rather just go ahead and run the bill if we can business children's are you okay with that. She in here. Okay. Members of feel to start looking over Senate bill eighty nine. Well they're not here I really wanted to run it do you want to. Senator Solomon. Okay great. If if you'll just come to the table that would be great and just identified herself for the record and we will run this bill. Go ahead Senator Solomon introducing Senate bill eighty nine I'm going to turn it over to explain what the bill does. And if you'll just identify yourself for the record and we'll proceed okay thank you senator feel here's the assistant director for the town of program to persistence for needy families at the Arkansas division of workforce services thank you thank you thank you for the opportunity so what we are wanting to do with S. B. eighty nine is Act seventeen oh five of two thousand five created the work pays program as a component of ten if in Arkansas. That program is a workforce incentive post employment program that moving tanning recipients or T. recipients when they are employed they have the opportunity to go into the work pays. Currently the only way that we can serve low income able bodied. families. Is the prerequisite is that you have to have been enrolled in T.. What we're seeking to do is remove that pre requisite an SP eighty nine and how they're for allowing us to serve able bodied low income families that may not be on TV but may be in Medicaid or staff or other means tested programs are currently are taking off road are down and therefore that limits our ability to serve low income families that may need the assistance and may still qualify but currently we can't serve them. All right miss children's Teague one or add anything to that and just recognize yourself for the record yes thank you streets Childress director the Division of workforce services thank you senator Ervin of for allowing us to be here today and thank you Senator Solomon for running this bill I was working with Senator English to see if she could make it to the Committee so thank you as of Mr Harris said this is in an effort to get individuals off of government assistance into employment and so this will allow us to help those individuals move into the workplace program without having to be in the transitional employment assistance program prior to being served their work pace so this will help us get more people into jobs appreciate rates appreciate the opportunity thank you thank you are there any questions from members of the committee. All right anybody wish to speak for or against the bill. All right you're recognized to close for the bill closed and you want to make a recommendation to pass okay and second all right all those of favour say aye. And oppose ayes have it congratulations bill passes all right and members of we're gonna hold set us Senate bill ninety two we're going to hold that bill and could work is there anyone in the audience of that was not here last week that would like to introduce themselves to the committee. Start with. Yes go ahead. Thank you. K. anybody else in the audience. I want to Mr Tarpley. Executive director of the Arkansas state. Mr. Arkansas hospital okay is there anyone else here. All right well we appreciate everybody we look forward to working with you and with the ordered turned.