Bill Text: TX SB790 | 2021-2022 | 87th Legislature | Enrolled
Bill Title: Relating to county and municipal authority to balance bill for county or municipal air or ground ambulance services and to a study regarding billing by ground ambulance service providers.
Spectrum: Slight Partisan Bill (Democrat 2-1)
Status: (Passed) 2021-06-14 - Effective on 9/1/21 [SB790 Detail]
Download: Texas-2021-SB790-Enrolled.html
| S.B. No. 790 | ||
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| relating to county and municipal authority to balance bill for | ||
| county or municipal air or ground ambulance services and to a study | ||
| regarding billing by ground ambulance service providers. | ||
| BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: | ||
| SECTION 1. Section 113.902(a), Local Government Code, is | ||
| amended to read as follows: | ||
| (a) Except as provided by Section 140.013, the [ |
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| treasurer shall direct prosecution for the recovery of any debt | ||
| owed to the county, as provided by law, and shall supervise the | ||
| collection of the debt. | ||
| SECTION 2. Chapter 140, Local Government Code, is amended | ||
| by adding Section 140.013 to read as follows: | ||
| Sec. 140.013. BALANCE BILLING FOR COUNTY AND MUNICIPAL | ||
| AMBULANCE SERVICES. (a) "Balance billing" means the practice of | ||
| charging an enrollee in a health benefit plan to recover from the | ||
| enrollee the balance of a health care provider's fee for a service | ||
| received by the enrollee from the health care provider that is not | ||
| fully reimbursed by the enrollee's health benefit plan. | ||
| (b) A county or municipality may elect to consider a health | ||
| benefit plan payment towards a claim for air or ground ambulance | ||
| services provided by the county or municipality as payment in full | ||
| for those services regardless of the amount the county or | ||
| municipality charged for those services. | ||
| (c) A county or municipality may not practice balance | ||
| billing for a claim for which the county or municipality makes an | ||
| election under Subsection (b). | ||
| SECTION 3. (a) In this section, "department" means the | ||
| Texas Department of Insurance. | ||
| (b) The department shall conduct a study on the balance | ||
| billing practices of ground ambulance service providers, the | ||
| variations in prices for ground ambulance services, the proportion | ||
| of ground ambulances that are in-network, trends in network | ||
| inclusion, and factors contributing to the network status of ground | ||
| ambulances. The department may seek the assistance of the | ||
| Department of State Health Services in conducting the study. | ||
| (c) Not later than December 1, 2022, the department shall | ||
| provide a written report of the results of the study conducted under | ||
| Subsection (b) of this section to the governor, lieutenant | ||
| governor, speaker of the house of representatives, and members of | ||
| the standing committees of the legislature with primary | ||
| jurisdiction over the department. | ||
| (d) This section expires September 1, 2023. | ||
| SECTION 4. This Act takes effect September 1, 2021. | ||
| ______________________________ | ______________________________ | |
| President of the Senate | Speaker of the House | |
| I hereby certify that S.B. No. 790 passed the Senate on | ||
| April 9, 2021, by the following vote: Yeas 31, Nays 0; and that the | ||
| Senate concurred in House amendments on May 28, 2021, by the | ||
| following vote: Yeas 31, Nays 0. | ||
| ______________________________ | ||
| Secretary of the Senate | ||
| I hereby certify that S.B. No. 790 passed the House, with | ||
| amendments, on May 25, 2021, by the following vote: Yeas 117, | ||
| Nays 26, two present not voting. | ||
| ______________________________ | ||
| Chief Clerk of the House | ||
| Approved: | ||
| ______________________________ | ||
| Date | ||
| ______________________________ | ||
| Governor | ||
