On Thursday, the Ways and Means Committee passed a substitute for House Bill 1055, with new language raising various fees such as court fees, special license plate fees, and licensing fees. Fee increases are expected to raise $96 million, according to the governor's plan for the revised revenue estimate. 

 

Ways and Means Passes Resolution for Trauma Funding

The House Ways and Means Committee passed SR 277 on Thursday to send a constitutional amendment for a $10 car tag fee for trauma funding to the ballot for 2010. It proposes that revenue from the new fee be deposited into a trauma trust fund to be established by the General Assembly for trauma care purposes.

Proposed Bills Raise Revenue or Improve Fairness 

 

Several bills that would increase revenue or improve fairness are:

 

Additionally, HB 39, which would raise the cigarette tax by $1- a-pack, remains active from last session. Read GBPI's latest fact sheet on the expected $355 million gain from HB 39.

 

HR 1 and HB 1023 Remain in the House Rules Committee

GBPI Resources About Taxes

 

On March 11th, the governor released a revised budget proposal for FY 2011 that does not include these provider fees. Instead, the governor proposes to eliminate sales tax exemptions currently enjoyed by many hospitals, generating $130 million in new revenues for FY 2011. 

This week, the Ways and Means Sales Tax Subcommittee amended House Bill 299 to represent the proposal to eliminate the sales tax exemption for non-profit hospitals. The bill received its first hearing on March 17th and will need a second hearing in order to be reported out of the subcommittee.

 

The governor's new proposal also makes several adjustments to the Medicaid and PeachCare budgets:

1. It reduces Medicaid and PeachCare spending by $144.3 million by cutting reimbursement rates paid to Medicaid and PeachCare providers by 10.25 percent (excluding nursing homes, home and community based providers, and community mental health services).

 

Furthermore, the bill was amended in subcommittee to allow in-state insurers to also offer any policies similar to those allowed from out-of-state insurers. This bill represents the governor's proposal and was reported out of subcommittee on March 17th. The bill is scheduled for a full committee hearing before the House Committee on Insurance Monday, March 22nd, at PM.

 

SB 330 would eliminate the ability of insurance companies licensed in Georgia to impose lifetime or annual caps on benefits for patients. In addition, the bill would limit the ability of insurers to rescind existing policies or deny services in the case of misstatements or omissions on insurance applications.

 

Finally, the bill would allow dependent children to remain on their parent's health insurance policy through the age of 25, even if the dependent is not a full-time student. (It is likely that the protections added by this bill would not be required of out-of-state policies sold in Georgia under the provisions of SB 407.) This bill was favorably reported out of the Senate Committee on Insurance and Labor on March 9th.

SB 331 would allow small employers with 2 - 50 employees to pool with other small employers to purchase group health insurance policies, and would require all health insurers in Georgia to offer plans -- often called Association Health Plans -- designed for these arrangements. This bill is currently assigned to the Senate Committee on Insurance and Labor.

SB 443 creates a legislative oversight committee to review and evaluate the CMOs that currently operate a portion of Georgia's Medicaid program. This bill was favorably reported out of the Senate Committee on Health and Human Services on March 10th.
 
Bills Related to National Health Reform
 
There are several bills and resolutions that seek to assert that Georgia could exempt itself from provisions in national health insurance reform proposals that legislators find objectionable. In particular, SB 317 would make it a state law that Georgians could not be compelled to "participate in any health care system," and that the purchase or sale of health insurance products and/or direct healthcare services could not be prohibited.

 

In addition, SR 794, SR 795, and HR 1086 seek to accomplish the same or similar goals through the constitutional amendment process, and as a result will require two-thirds majority in both the House and Senate to reach the ballot.
 
Although these bills are aimed at provisions in the national health insurance reform proposals in Congress that assess penalties for individuals who do not obtain health insurance (with exceptions related to affordability) through the federal income tax system, it is unclear as to whether these bills would enable Georgians to escape these federal rules if they are enacted.  
 
SB 317 passed the Senate on March 18th, however, SR 794 failed two floor votes in the Senate and is now dead. SR 795 remains in the Senate Committee on Judiciary, and HR 1086 was favorably reported by the House Committee on Health & Human Services.