April 14, 2006
Efforts continue for a Healthy Kansas
Five bills improving Kansans health care signed today, among 14 bills
Governor Kathleen Sebelius today signed several bills that improve the health care of Kansans.
One bill in particular, HB 2752, requires all incoming college and university students to have a meningitis vaccination. The bill requires all colleges and universities to have in place policies and procedures requiring all incoming students residing in student housing be vaccinated for meningitis, including waivers for those who refuse to take the vaccine, after July 1, 2007. This bill will take effect after publication in the statute book.
In 2004, Governor Sebelius called for additional education for college students on meningitis and urged for students to be vaccinated. “This is a tangible step to ensure our students who could be more susceptible to meningitis are well protected,” Sebelius said.
This bill also expands the statewide Trauma Program and Registry rule and regulation authority of the Secretary of the Department of Health and Environment to include fixing, charging, and collecting fees from trauma facilities to recover expenses incurred in the designation of such facilities. The bill also gives the Secretary the responsibility of designating trauma facilities based on their level of care. Information obtained by the Registry may be disclosed if necessary to protect the public health and to support quality improvement.
This bill will take effect after publication in the statute book.
The Governor also signed into law 13 other bills. During the 2006 Legislative Session, Governor Sebelius has signed 120 bills and vetoed two.
Board of Examiners in Fitting and Dispensing of Hearing Instruments changed
HB 2285 updates outdated language by renaming, amending several statutes in and adding new sections to the Hearing Aid Act, which is renamed the Hearing Instrument Act. This bill changes the composition of the Board of Examiners in Fitting and Dispensing of Hearing Instruments to better address the diversity within the hearing instrument community and gives the Board broader rule making authority with which to implement the Act. The bill also establishes new disciplinary and licensing procedures and criteria, prohibits certain acts, establishes new administrative procedures and clarifies the licensed audiologists also must be licensed under the Act if they fit or dispense hearing instruments. This bill will take effect after publication in the statute book.
Amends the composition of professional corporations
HB 2532 amends existing law that regulates the composition of professional corporations. This bill adds an exception allowing licensed physical therapists and licensed occupational therapists to form a professional corporation. The bill also adds an exception allowing clinical professional counselors, clinical psychotherapists, and clinical marriage and family therapists to form a professional corporation with a chiropractor, dentist, optometrist, osteopathic physician or surgeon, physician, surgeon or doctor of medicine, podiatrist, pharmacist, licensed psychologist, specialist in clinical social work, licensed physical therapist or a registered professional nurse. This bill will take effect after publication in the statute book.
Enact the Pain Patient’s Quality of Care Act
HB 2649 creates the Pain Patient’s Quality of Care Act and amends two of the statutes in the Kansas Healing Arts Act and a statute that concerns assisted suicide. The Pain Patient’s Quality of Care Act identifies pain as a significant health problem and notes the diagnosis and treatment of pain is complex and can involve several treatment modalities. It also gives the state a duty to restrict the inappropriate use of controlled substances while supporting a physician’s and other health care professionals’ ability to provide appropriate pain treatment. It identifies rights and responsibilities of a person suffering from pain, including being an active participant in treatment and reporting all symptoms and concerns accurately, completely and honestly to physicians and other health care professionals assessing and treating the patient’s pain. The amendments relating to assisted suicide would delete two phrases from the statute, both references to medications and procedures that may hasten or increase the risk of death. The two statutes in the Kansas Healing Arts Act that would be amended relate to acts by licensees that constitute professional incompetency and authority of the Board of Healing Arts to take disciplinary actions against the licensee. This bill will take effect after publication in the statute book.
State employees now able to donate to Community Health Charities
HB 2727 adds Community Health Charities to the organizations which state employees may voluntarily elect to contribute via payroll deduction. Community Health Charities is a statewide federation of 31 local Kansas and 50 national voluntary health charities formed in 1993. This bill will take effect after publication in the statute book.
Amends the Workers Compensation Act
HB 2671 allows insurers, issuing a policy to assure the payment of compensation under the Workers Compensation Act, to offer occurrence deductibles, per claimant deductibles, or both to the policyholder for benefits payable under the Act. An occurrence deductible is defined as applying only once to a single accident regardless of the number of workers injured in that accident. The bill also amends the Workers Compensation Act to provide three conditions under which an administrative law judge could dismiss a case after five years: when the case has not proceeded to final hearing, when a settlement hearing has not occurred, or when an agreed award under the Workers Compensation Act is issued. The administrative law judge can grant an extension for good cause shown, provided such motion to extend is filed prior to the five-year limitation. This bill will take effect after publication in the statute book.
Clarifying qualifications of Workers Compensation Act administrative law judges
HB 2696 amends the Workers Compensation Act regarding administrative law judges by clarifying that an administrative law judge (ALJ) must be a lawyer with at least 5 years experience as an attorney and one year of experience practicing law in the area of workers compensation. A Workers Compensation Administrative Law Judge Nominating and Review Committee is established with one member chosen by the Kansas AFL-CIO and one member chosen by the KCCI. The ALJ committee would consider all qualified applicants submitted by the Director of Workers Compensation for a vacancy and would nominate unanimously a person for review by the Secretary, who would then accept or reject the nomination. ALJs appointed on or after July 1, 2006 would serve a four-year term. This bill will take effect after publication in the statute book.
Clarification of the act of misclassification of employees
HB 2772 makes the act of intentionally misclassifying an employee as an independent contractor for the sole or primary purpose of avoiding either state income tax withholding and reporting requirements or state unemployment insurance contributions reporting requirements subject to Kansas Department of Revenue penalties and interest. The bill also allows KDOR to share taxpayer information with the staff attorneys of the Kansas Department of Labor provided that the taxpayer information is for persons suspected of intentionally misclassifying an employee as an independent contractor for the sole or primary purpose of avoiding taxes. This bill will take effect after publication in the statue book.
Restrictions to use of gift certificates and gift cards
HB 2658 makes it a violation of the Kansas Consumer Protection Act from and after January 1, 2007, to sell a gift card or gift certificate containing an expiration date which is less than five years from the date of purchase. This provision would not apply to gift cards or certificates distributed by the issuer to a consumer with out anything given in exchange and gift cards or certificates that are sold below face value at a volume discount to employers or to nonprofit and charitable organizations for fund-raising purposes. Merchants shall not be required to redeem a gift card or certificate for cash. No fees may be charged against the balance of a gift card or certificate within 12 months from the date of issuance of the card. This bill will take effect after publication in the statue book.
Amends the Rail Service Improvement Fund
HB 2709 adds rolling stock (wheeled vehicles, other than locomotives) to the items that can be financed, acquired, or rehabilitated through the Rail Service Improvement Fund. It also eliminates the sunset provision on the transfer of $3 million from the State Highway Fund to the Rail Service Improvement Fund so it continues without an expiration date. The bill also requires the Secretary of Transportation to report annually to the Governor and the Legislature about the allocation and expenditure of moneys from the Coordinated Public Assistance Fund, the Rail Service Improvement Fund, and the Public Use General Aviation Airport Development Fund. This bill will take effect after publication in the statute book.
Amends the Kansas Veterinary Practice Act
HB 2833 makes technical and clarifying amendments to four sections of the Kansas Veterinary Practice Act. Specifically this bill addresses individuals practicing veterinary medicine without a license, authorizing the Board of Veterinary Examiners to take action against them, and providing penalties for the crime. This bill will take effect after publication in the statute book.
Enact the Kansas Money Transmitter Act
HB 2874 enacts the Kansas Money Transmitter Act and amends the banking code to provide licensure requirements for the regulation of the transmission of money. The new law requires the Bank Commissioner to issue a license only if the Commissioner believes the person, business or other entity in question will perform its obligations to purchasers of money transmission services, payees and holders of money orders sold by it and its agents, and that the financial responsibility, character, reputation, experience and general fitness are such to warrant belief that the business will be operated efficiently, fairly and in the public interest. This bill will take effect after publication in the statute book.
Allowing use of 24-hour or 72-hour motor fuel permits
HB 2878 allows interstate motor fuel users to obtain a 24-hour or 72-hour fuel permit which authorizes one commercial motor vehicle to be operated for those time periods within the state without complying with the other provisions of the Interstate Motor Fuel Use Act and in lieu of the tax on motor fuel. The permits can be purchased in multiples of three and motor carrier operators will be allowed to make multiple trips within the 24 or 72-hour period. The 24-hour motor fuel permit costs $13; the 72-hour permit costs $25. This bill will take effect after publication in the statute book.
Unlawful acts concerning hogs, boars, pigs, and swine in wild or feral state outlined
HB 2899 makes it unlawful to import, possess, or transport live feral swine in Kansas and to intentionally or knowingly release any hog, boar, pig or swine to live in a wild or feral state upon public or private land. Additionally, the bill makes it unlawful to engage in, sponsor, instigate, assist or profit from the release, killing, wounding, or attempted killing or wounding of feral swine for the purpose of sport, pleasure, amusement, or production of a trophy. Owners or legal occupants of land, or their employees, would not be prevented from killing feral swine when the feral swine are found on their premises or when destroying property. These individuals would be required to have a permit issued by the Livestock Commissioner in their possession at the time of the killing of the feral swine. This bill will take effect after publication in the statute book.
