88R10059 LRM-D By: Jetton H.B. No. 4900 A BILL TO BE ENTITLED AN ACT relating to the establishment of a charitable clinic grant program. BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: SECTION 1. Subtitle B, Title 2, Health and Safety Code, is amended by adding Chapter 54 to read as follows: CHAPTER 54. CHARITABLE CLINIC GRANT PROGRAM Sec. 54.001. DEFINITIONS. In this chapter: (1) "Charitable clinic" means a private, nonprofit, community-based organization that provides health care services to low-income, underinsured, or uninsured persons at nominal or no cost through the use of volunteer health care professionals and health care professional partnerships. (2) "Program" means the charitable clinic grant program established under this chapter. Sec. 54.002. ESTABLISHMENT AND ADMINISTRATION OF PROGRAM. (a) The commission shall establish and administer a charitable clinic grant program through which the commission awards grants to eligible charitable clinics to provide or expand the provision of health care services to low-income, underinsured, and uninsured persons. (b) The commission may award a grant under the program only in accordance with a contract between the commission and a grant recipient. The contract must include provisions granting the commission sufficient control over the money awarded to ensure the public purpose of providing health care services to low-income, underinsured, and uninsured persons is accomplished and this state receives the return benefit. (c) The commission shall award grants under the program to charitable clinics to: (1) increase the clinic's patient capacity; (2) improve the clinic's organization, efficiency, and effectiveness; and (3) expand the clinic's provision of health care services. Sec. 54.003. APPLICATION AND ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS. (a) The commission shall establish application and eligibility requirements for a charitable clinic to satisfy in order to qualify for a grant award under the program. (b) A charitable clinic must include in an application for a grant under this program the specific uses the clinic has for the grant money, which may include the use of grant money for: (1) equipment and technology-related resources; (2) expansion of the clinic premises or services; (3) health care and administrative costs; and (4) staff training and professional development costs. Sec. 54.004. REVIEW COMMITTEE. (a) The commission shall establish a review committee to review and score grant applications submitted under the program for the commission's use in awarding grants under the program. (b) The review committee must be composed of volunteers with appropriate expertise who represent diverse nonprofit and philanthropic backgrounds. (c) To ensure fairness in the review process, the commission shall redact charitable clinic name and location information from the grant applications the review committee reviews and scores. Sec. 54.005. MONTHLY REPORTS. A grant recipient shall submit to the commission each month a report that includes information for the preceding month on: (1) the total number of new clients treated by the charitable clinic; (2) the total amount of fees the clinic charged clients; (3) whether Medicaid, the Medicare program, or a private insurer was billed for health care services provided to a client and the amount billed; (4) the number of volunteers, including health care professionals, who assisted the clinic; (5) the number of prescription drugs dispensed or prescribed; (6) outcome data on: (A) the effectiveness and quality of health care services provided by the clinic; and (B) the percentage of clients who successfully completed treatment; and (7) the clinic's organizational successes, difficulties, delays, or barriers. Sec. 54.006. FUNDING. (a) The commission shall award grants under the program in accordance with this chapter from available money and any additional money appropriated for the purposes of the program. (b) The commission may accept gifts, grants, and donations from any source that are made available for the purposes of the program. Sec. 54.007. RULES. The executive commissioner shall adopt rules to implement this chapter. SECTION 2. Not later than January 1, 2024, the executive commissioner of the Health and Human Services Commission shall adopt the rules necessary to implement Chapter 54, Health and Safety Code, as added by this Act. SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 2023.