House Study Bill 574



                                       SENATE/HOUSE FILE       
                                       BY  (PROPOSED DEPARTMENT OF
                                            VETERANS AFFAIRS BILL)


    Passed Senate, Date               Passed House,  Date             
    Vote:  Ayes        Nays           Vote:  Ayes        Nays         
                 Approved                            

                                      A BILL FOR

  1 An Act relating to the process utilized in assessing residents of
  2    health care facilities for veterans program benefits.
  3 BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA:
  4 TLSB 5409DP 81
  5 pf/je/5

PAG LIN



  1  1    Section 1.  Section 135C.31A, Code Supplement 2005, is
  1  2 amended to read as follows:
  1  3    135C.31A  ASSESSMENT OF RESIDENTS == PROGRAM ELIGIBILITY.
  1  4    Beginning July 1, 2003, a A health care facility receiving
  1  5 reimbursement through the medical assistance program under
  1  6 chapter 249A shall assist the Iowa department of veterans
  1  7 affairs in identifying, upon admission of a resident, the
  1  8 resident's eligibility for benefits through the federal United
  1  9 States department of veterans affairs.  The health care
  1 10 facility shall also assist the Iowa department of veterans
  1 11 affairs in determining such eligibility for residents residing
  1 12 in the facility on July 1, 2003.  The department of
  1 13 inspections and appeals, in cooperation with the department of
  1 14 human services, shall adopt rules to administer this section,
  1 15 including a provision that ensures that if a resident is
  1 16 eligible for benefits through the federal United States
  1 17 department of veterans affairs or other third=party payor, the
  1 18 payor of last resort for reimbursement to the health care
  1 19 facility is the medical assistance program.  The rules shall
  1 20 also require the health care facility to obtain information
  1 21 from a resident to determine if the resident is a veteran and
  1 22 to then report to the Iowa department of veterans affairs only
  1 23 the names of residents identified as veterans along with the
  1 24 names of their spouse and any dependents.  Information
  1 25 reported by the health care facility shall be verified by the
  1 26 Iowa department of veterans affairs.  This section shall not
  1 27 apply to the admission of an individual to a state mental
  1 28 health institute for acute psychiatric care or to the
  1 29 admission of an individual to the Iowa veterans home.
  1 30                           EXPLANATION
  1 31    This bill requires the rules of the department of
  1 32 inspections and appeals, regarding the identifying of
  1 33 residents of health care facilities who are veterans, to
  1 34 require the health care facilities to obtain information from
  1 35 residents to determine if the residents are veterans and then
  2  1 to report to the Iowa department of veterans affairs only the
  2  2 names of residents identified as veterans along with the names
  2  3 of their spouse and any dependents.  Information reported by
  2  4 the health care facilities is to be verified by the Iowa
  2  5 department of veterans affairs.
  2  6 LSB 5409DP 81
  2  7 pf:rj/je/5