Moving forward, vol. 8, no. 8 (2003 February 28)

Volume 8, Issue 8

Moving Forward

February 28, 2003

Lawmakers recessed February 19-25 to allow budget subcommittees to work on the state spending plan for 2004 that begins July 1. The House reconvened on February 26 for the 20th day of the 40 day session. Some members of the Senate proposed a new round of budget cuts approaching $90 million from the current fiscal year that ends on June 30, aimed at avoiding a tax increase. The Senate Appropriations Committee conducted budget hearings on Thursday to hear from State agencies that would be affected by such cuts.
To avoid increasing taxes to supplement the FY 04 budget, an additional 2.5% of the budget, or $400 Million, must be cut. The Governor's proposed legislation to increase excise taxes on tobacco and alcohol remains in the Ways and Means Committee.
State School Superintendent Kathy Cox presented the Governor's proposed legislation to amend HB 1187, A+ Education Reform. The STARS Education Plan, described in HB515 and HB516 changes testing, accountability and local control policies.
Legislation Tracker
HB 34: Education; students committing certain acts of physical violence; disciplinary tribunal Sponsor: Greene-Johnson, 60th Status: Filed
HB 38: Child support; amend provision; income deduction order Sponsor: Ehrhart 28th Status: Filed
HB 81: Teachers; rights for continued employment; restore Sponsors: Lucas 105th district, Cummings 19th, Hugley 113th, Greene 134th, Reece 11th, Jordan 83rd. Status: Education Committee favorably reported
HB 130: Georgia Health Care Act Sponsors: Holmes 48th, Orrock 51st Status: Referred to Appropriations Committee
HB 142: Fair Lending Act; amend provisions Sponsors: Floyd 132nd, Shaw 143rd, Parrish 102nd, Royal 140th, Channell 77th, Skipper 116th Status: Passed the House; referred to Senate Banking and Financial Institutions Committee
HB 145: Health Maintenance Organizations; mental disorders; point-of-service options Sponsors: Gardner 42nd, Harbin 80th, Moraitakis 42nd, Henson 55th, Maddox 59th Status: Referred to Insurance Committee
HB 211: Assistance dogs; interfering with, assaulting, killing; penalties Sponsors: Rice 64th, Millar 52nd, Dix 70th, Sholar 141st, Jenkins 93rd Status: Referred to Special Judiciary Committee

HB 256: Industries for the Blind; manufactured products; purchase by state employess; exception Sponsors: Broome 141st, Sholar 141st, Skipper 116th, Westmoreland 86th, Drenner 57th, Lunsford 85th Status: Referred to House State Institutions and Property Committee
HB 295: Education; deaf students; certification of interpreters Sponsors: Butler 88th, Smith 76th, Thompson 69th, Burmeister 96th, Bordeaux 125th Status: Referred to Education Committee
HB 318: Adult Day Center Licensure Act; enact Sponsors: McClinton 59th, Howard 98th, Ashe 42nd, Mobley 58th, Sinkfield 50th, Maddox 59th Status: Referred to Human Relations and Aging Committee
HB 352: Licensing boards; complaints against licensee; certain notification Sponsors: Harbin 80th, Campbell 39th, Powell 23rd, Boggs 145th Status: Referred to Governmental Affairs Committee
HB 357: Certain deaths; persons in compensated care; notify coroner Sponsor: Howard 98th Status: Referred to Human Relations and Aging Committee
HB 363: Electronic Textbooks; make available to local boards, schools, and students Sponsors: Fludd 48th, Greene-Johnson 60th, Marin 66th, Floyd 69th, Holmes 48th Status: Referred to Education Committee
HB 428: Intellectually Disabled Health and Fitness Program Fund; establish; special license plates Sponsors: Borders 142nd, O'Neal 117th, McBee 74th, Jenkins 93rd, Stephens 123rd Status: Referred to House Motor Vehicles Committee
HB 429: Workers' compensation; total and temporary partial disability; benefits Sponsors: Bordeaux 125th, Bannister 70th, Ralston 6th Status: Referred to Industrial Relations Committee
HB 515: Education accountability; comprehensive revision of provisions Sponsors: Richardson 26th, O'Neal 117th, Coleman 65th Status: Read and referred to Education Committee
HB 516: Education flexibility and accountability; comprehensive revision of provisions Sponsors: Richardson 26th, O'Neal 117th, Coleman 65th Status: Read and referred to Education Committee
HB 526: Nursing Home Provider Fee Act; enact Sponsors: Channell 77th, Shaw 143rd, Buck 112th Status: House Ways and Means Committee; Notice of Motion to Engross
HR 225: Intellectually disabled health and fitness program; special plates Sponsors: Borders 142nd, O'Neal 117th, McBee 74th, Jenkins 93rd, Stephens 123rd Status: Appropriations Committee

SB 12: Criminal Offenses and Penalties for Abuse, Neglect, and Exploitation of Disabled Adults and Elder Persons Sponsor: Unterman 45th, Balfour 9th, Squires 5th Status: Passed the Senate; now in House Special Judiciary Committee

SB 17: Child support; computation of award, guidelines, income deduction orders Sponsor: Harp 16th Status: Referred to Judiciary Committee

SB 50: Health Insurers; Consumer Choice of Benefits Health Plan Act Sponsors: Seabaugh 28th, Golden 8th, Price 56th, Moody 27th, Mullis 53rd, Williams 19th Status: Referred to Insurance and Labor Committee

SB 53: GA Fair Lending Act; amend provisions Sponsors: Cheeks 23rd, Starr 44th, Crotts 17th Status: Passed the Senate; House Banks and Banking Committee favorably reported

SB 111: Death Investigations; patients receiving compensated care in facilties licensed by DHR Sponsors: Tanksley 32nd, Unterman 45th Status: Referred to Judiciary Committee

SB 170: Long-term care services; in-home and community based care; consumer choice and control; Independence Plus Act Sponsors: Jackson 50th, Dean 31st, Zamarripa 36th, Gillis 20th, Starr 44th, Thomas 2nd , Kemp 3rd, Blitch 7th, Hill 4th, Brown 26th, Hooks 14th, Meyer von Bremen 12th, Johnson 1st, Levitan 40th Status: Referred to Health and Human Services Committee

SB 186: Natural Gas; discontinuing service to persons age 65 or disabled; prohibit during winter heating season Sponsor: Thomas 2nd Status: Read and Referred to Senate

SR 146: Educational Testing, Study Committee on; create Sponsor: Seabaugh 28th Status: Read and referred to Education Committee
------------------------------ View any bill in its entirety at
http://www.legis.state.ga.us/legis/2003_04/leg/legislation.htm

Budget Overview

Proposed Department of Human Resources Austerity Cuts for Fiscal Year 2004: Mental

Health/Developmental Disabilities/Addictive Disease

State Dollars

Convert 75% of state-funded DD family support slots to Medicaid waiver slots

$586,767

Reduce Emory contract for Autism Resource Center

$100,000

Reduce state-level reserve for autism support (these are funds remaining from the closing of the

Clayton Respite Home, and do not reflect a loss in services.)

$35,924

Reduce room and board supplement for 1,362 consumers with

Developmental disabilities by 30%

$2,039,731

Eliminate the Marcus Institute contract for fetal alcohol syndrome services

$108,520

Newly Proposed Cuts: Department of Community Health (DCH) DCH is proposing premiums between $0-458/month for the Katie Beckett waiver program based on the parents' income. This will impact 5,417 children and families. To implement this proposal, DCH must obtain Federal approval. DCH also proposed a 10% provider rate cut for all Medicaid waiver programs.

Category

Total State Reduction

Community Care (CCSP) Independent Care Mental Retardation Waiver Waivered Home Care DSPS Therapeutic Residential Services SOURCE MRWP (CHHS Waiver)

3,216,146 DHR state 789,160 Medicaid
5,351,951 DHR state 214,458 Medicaid 86,731 DHR state
1,926,683 DHR state 312,200 1,884,997 DHR state

FY 2003 Supplemental Budget The proposed cuts in MHDDAD totals $8 million or 1.3% of their state

budget. These include:

State Dollars

Consolidation of Augusta Regional Hospital and Gracewood administration

(259,000)

Cut state MR service dollars and refinance with Social Service Block grant

(462,500)

One-time hiring freeze of state office and state hospital staff

(1.5

million)

Austerity Adjustments

($3.1 million)

Some Enhancements remain in the budget:
Transfer 11 children from nursing homes to community $222, 692
Transition planning for people with DD or mental illness who want to move to community from institutions
$170,000 Start-up costs for 65 children moving from institutions to community $585,000

FY 2004 Budget

The big budget contains temporary tax increases for tobacco and alcohol totaling $400 Million and

calls for using Rainy Day funds.

Enhancements: DCH

State Dollars

145 people to move from nursing home to community

$3.2 million

Assessment of people to move from nursing home to community

$75,000

15 people with serious mental illness will move from institutions to community and this reflects

their primary care health costs 10 people off ICWP waiting list

$220,369

$36,045

The overall MHDDAD FY 04 budget has been cut by $11 million state dollars. All cuts described in the

following section are from existing state dollars. These are not all the cuts to MHDDAD, just the ones

which appear to directly impact DD.

Cuts: DHR

State Dollars

Consolidate administration at Augusta Regional and Gracewood

($813,417)

Reduce administration costs at CSBs

($2.6 million)

Cut MR state funds and replace with SSBG federal funds

($761,108)

Eliminate contract with Georgia Hearing Impaired

($50,000)

Austerity adjustments (budget cuts)

($5.46 million)

Pay raise from last year not annualized for 2004

($3.61

million)

Because so many people with DD are served in Community Mental Health Centers, which include all the

CSB's, the additional cut of $4.2 million will affect people with DD.

The only enhancements to DHR are for child welfare and Olmstead/Waiting Lists items. All

enhancements are from projections for maximizing federal revenue through the ICF/MRs, ICFs and

skilled nursing facilities. The term used for this maximization process is upper payment limit (UPL). It is

based on changing the federal reimbursement rates at the institutions so they can capture 100% of their

costs in the future. This is a short-term fix during a fiscal crisis, not a long-term solution. DHR is also

researching whether flexibility in federal regulations will allow additional provider groups (other than

nursing homes and hospitals) to participate in the UPL.

Enhancements:DHR

State Dollars

Move 50 people from state hospitals to community

$2.6

million

Move 15 people with serious mental illness from institutions to the community

$432,898

Transition planning for moving the above 65 people

$170,000

Add 2 state office positions to certify and monitor services

$148,644



Serve 50 people with DD from the short term waiting list

who need services in addition to what they are already receiving

$949,031

Enhancement: Aging

State Dollars

Move 84 people from nursing homes to CCSP $421,523.

Current Waiting Lists For Services Over 3,300 people are waiting for help, including: 3,142 Georgians with Mental Retardation or Developmental Disabilities 249 people with severe physical disabilities

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