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Legislative and Government Relations Report
by Christopher Spanos
The Virginia General Assembly is scheduled to convene on Wednesday, January 12,
2005 at the State Capitol in Richmond, and to adjourn on Saturday, February 26.
Key issues for the upcoming session are HMO Liability, HIPAA Conformities and
Virginia Law, and Medicaid Rates/Scope of Work. Most likely we will not see
changes in Senate and House committees that focus on areas of interest to
clinical social workers.
The Greater Washington Society (GWSCSW) shares the cost of legislative advocacy with its sister society in Virginia (VSCSW). Each year, a legislative program and lobbying agenda is developed at VSCSW board meetings in Richmond; GWSCSW participation is welcomed. Meetings are scheduled for October 23 and December 4, 2004, and January 29, 2005; they begin at 10 AM at the Chippenham Medical Center in Richmond.
Subject to adoption of the General Assembly
Calendar, the annual Legislative/Lobby Day for clinical social workers has been
tentatively scheduled for February 14, 2005. Please mark your calendars.
Key Legislative and Government Affairs Issues:
- Health Insurance Coverage for Anorexia
Nervosa and Bulimia Nervosa
The Virginia General Assembly’s Advisory Commission on Mandated Health Insurance Benefits (Advisory Commission) will meet in September 2004 at the General Assembly Building in Richmond to hold a public hearing on a proposal that would require health insurance coverage for anorexia nervosa and bulimia nervosa. The Societies support this statutory change. At the public hearing, the Societies will be represented by Keitha Austin of VSCSW’s Eastern Chapter; she will urge the passage of House Bill 294 introduced by Delegate Lee Ware which provides that anorexia nervosa and bulimia nervosa are biologically-based mental illnesses for purposes of the mandates that state health care plans, health insurance policies and health services plans include coverage for such illnesses. As of this writing, no date has been set in September for the meeting.
- HIPAA Privacy Regulations
The Joint Commission on Health Care has been asked to study whether further changes to Virginia’s health records laws are warranted to address the requirements of the federal Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act’s (HIPAA) Privacy Regulations. The key item of the Joint Commission’s study will be to examine and make recommendations on patient and attorney access to psychotherapy notes as they apply under current Virginia statutes.
Relevant factors include HIPAA protections (which carve out such notes/records), Virginia law (which is broad and has diverse interpretations), and Virginia Human Rights Regulations (which govern some patient access to records). Practitioners usually make judgment calls about whether to include or exclude psychotherapy notes in permanent records based on patient safety; there is some evidence of confusion about the different federal and state laws governing these notes.
Societies represented on Joint Commission Task Force
A task force has been established in the Virginia Attorney General’s office to consider questions regarding the interface of Virginia's law and the HIPAA Privacy Rule and, along with the Virginia Bar Association’s Health Law Section, provide analysis and recommendations. As legislative advocate for GWSCSW and VSCSW, I am serving on the task force and participating in the larger work group. Chair of the VSCSW Committee on Legislation, Wayne Martin will be the lead contact for clinical society members who would like to offer comments on HIPAA issues, particularly access to psychotherapy records.
Recommendations are to be presented to the Joint Commission’s Executive Director by September 15, and the study is to be presented during the Joint Commission’s meeting on October 24, 2004. The Joint Commission will vote on the options that it wishes to support with legislation during the 2005 session of the General Assembly, at its November 20, 2004 meeting.
- Virginia General Assembly Pre-filed
Legislative Proposals
The VSCSW Committee on Legislation will monitor and comment on all legislation filed that will affect the members of the clinical societies. If you have specific concerns about a bill filed, or if you would like to receive Legislative Alerts by email, please contact Wayne Martin at wamnoles@aol.com.
Government and Public Affairs Counselor Christopher J. Spanos is the legislative advocate for GWSCSW and VSCSW. He can be reached at 804/282-0278 or ChrisSpanos@SpanosConsulting.com.
For GSCSW Legislative
Information contact:
GWSCSW
5028 Wisconsin Avenue NW, Suite 404
Washington DC 20016
Phone 202 537 0007
Fax 202 364-0435
Email GWSCSW@gmail.com
Website http://www.gwscsw.org