NCASCA Legislative Update 4-23-19

The North Carolina General Assembly is gearing up again following a brief spring break.  To recap current activities, NCASCA Legislative Director Dick Carlton and NCASCA President Kelli Collins met with Senator Burgin last week regarding SB 646.  This is a bill that has several provisions, one of which is eliminating CON for ASCs.  The bill also adds a requirement that ASCs meet a commitment that at least 4% of their total revenue be from Medicare or Medicaid cases and report all payer data to the state. 

On behalf of NCASCA members, Dick and Kelli were able to communicate with Senator Burgin that NCASCA was not in support of this bill as drafted and wanted to be part of any discussions amending the language.   This bill is still in the Senate Rules Committee and has not yet moved.  To view more about SB 646 click here.

Other bills NCASCA is following:

HB 857:  CON Exemption/Ambulatory Surgical Facilities  - Introduced last week and has not been referred to committee.  This is another bill that attempts to repeal the CON laws in some form.  NCASCA is closely monitoring this bill.  

HB 43:  Establish Standards for Surgical Technology- Passed the House with NCASCA-suggested amendments to have a more favorable grandfather provision and added the exemption for situations where a facility cannot find a certified tech in its area.

HB 70:  Delay NC Health Connex for Certain Providers - The current bill contains language for how a provider can apply to receive an exemption to the requirement. The current deadline to comply for ASCs is June 2021.  NCASCA is still working on an effort to exempt ASCs from submitting data to the HIE network.  

 

Crossover date is almost here.  Most bills must pass its House of origin before the crossover date, which is May 9.  If a bill does not pass its House of origin, it cannot be considered further this year.   With this deadline approaching, the General Assembly will continue its fast pace the next few weeks.  NCASCA will keep you informed as the session continues.  If you have any questions or want to know how you can get more involved, contact Meghan Millard at [email protected] or at (888) 526-9450.