Last Thursday the General Assembly passed the Crossover milestone in this long legislative session. Crossover is an arbitrary date by which any bill without a fee or appropriation must make it through one legislative chamber in order to continue its progress toward becoming a law. Watch last week’s Bowtie Briefing filmed at the Legislative Building immediately after the crossover deadline to get an overview.
Some bills will no longer be considered this session, others made the deadline and will continue to make their way through the process. Still others may appear to be ‘dead,’ but could be resurrected in the budget or by inserting the language of the dead bill into one that is still in play. The North Carolina Medical Society (NCMS) advocacy team remains vigilant to ensure bills we oppose will not slip by in another form.
Several bills we continue to watch closely include SB 629, Health Care Services Billing Transparency. This bill would not only prohibit balance billing and eliminate a physician’s ability to negotiate a fair contract with an insurer by establishing a set fee for out-of-network services, it also presents unprecedented access to care issues for patients. Watch for an Action Alert this week that will help you detail for legislators just how bad this bill is for your patients.
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While it appears that HB36 – Enhanced Access to Eye Care Act, which would allow optometrists to perform laser and scalpel eye surgeries, will be a sent to the NC Institute of Medicine for further study, we continue to carefully monitor this revised bill as it is now with the Senate.
The other scope of practice bill of concern is HB88/SB73 –Modernize Nurse Practice Act, which has a fee attached so was not subject to the Crossover rules. Well over 1,000 of you have already responded to our previous Action Alert, telling your legislators why you oppose this bill. Watch for an updated Alert this week to keep your opposition top of mind for your legislator.
