GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF NORTH CAROLINA
SESSION 2007
SESSION LAW 2007-410
HOUSE BILL 628
AN ACT to create a uniform co-payment schedule for MH/DD/Sa Services as recommended by the Joint Legislative Oversight committee for Mental Health, Developmental Disabilities, and Substance Abuse Services.
The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:
SECTION 1. G.S. 122C-146 reads as rewritten:
"§
122C-146. Fee for service.Uniform co-payment schedule.
(a) The area
authorityLME and its contractual provider agencies shall prepare
fee schedules implement the co-payment schedule based on family income
adopted by the Secretary for services and under G.S. 122C-112.1(a)(34).
The LME is responsible for determining the applicability of the co-payment to
individuals authorized by the LME to receive services. An LME that provides
services and its contractual provider agencies shall also make every
reasonable effort to collect appropriate reimbursement for costs in providing
these services from individuals or entities able to pay, including insurance
and third-party payment, except that individuals payments. However,
no individual may be refused services because of an inability to pay.
(b) Individuals
may not be charged for free services, as required in "The Amendments
to the Education of the Handicapped Act", P.L. 99-457, provided to
eligible infants and toddlers and their families. This exemption from charges
does not exempt insurers or other third-party payors from being charged for
payment for these services, if the person who is legally responsible for any
eligible infant or toddler is first advised that the person may or may not
grant permission for the insurer or other payor to be billed for the free
services. However, no individual may be refused services because of an
inability to pay.
(c) All funds
collected from fees from area authorityco-payments for LME
operated services shall be used for the fiscal operation or capital
improvements of the area authority's programs.to provide services to
individuals in targeted populations.
The collection of fees co-payments by an
area authority an LME that provides services may not be used as
justification for reduction or replacement of the budgeted commitment of local
tax revenue. All funds collected from co-payments by contractual provider
agencies shall be used to provide services to individuals in targeted
populations."
SECTION 2. G.S. 122C-112.1(a) is amended by adding a new subdivision to read:
"§ 122C-112.1. Powers and duties of the Secretary.
(a) The Secretary shall do all of the following:
…
(34) Adopt rules for the implementation of a co-payment graduated schedule to be used by LMEs and by contractual provider agencies under G.S. 122C-146. The co-payment graduated schedule shall be developed to require a co-payment for services identified by the Secretary. Families whose family income is three hundred percent (300%) or greater of the federal poverty level are eligible for services with the applicable co-payment."
SECTION 3. The Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services shall identify all services that are funded by or through the Department's budget and that do not require income-based criteria in order for an individual to be eligible to receive the service. The Secretary shall develop a proposal for implementing income-based criteria for eligibility for those programs and shall submit the proposal to the General Assembly and the Fiscal Research Division by November 1, 2007.
SECTION 4. Section 1 of this act becomes effective July 1, 2008, and applies to services provided on or after that date. The remainder of this act is effective when it becomes law.
In the General Assembly read three times and ratified this the 2nd day of August, 2007.
s/ Beverly E. Perdue
President of the Senate
s/ Joe Hackney
Speaker of the House of Representatives
s/ Michael F. Easley
Governor
Approved 2:40 p.m. this 21st day of August, 2007