Bill > HB1013

Introduced Session

AN ACT To amend Titles 15, 20, 31, 33, 35, 37, 45, and 49 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to courts, education, health, insurance, law enforcement officers and agencies, mental health, public officers and employees, and social services, respectively, so as to implement the recommendations of the Georgia Behavioral Health Reform and Innovation Commission; to provide for compliance with federal law regarding mental health parity; to provide for definitions; to provide for annual reports; to provide for annual data calls regarding mental health care parity by private insurers; to provide for information repositories; to require uniform reports from health insurers regarding nonquantitative treatment limitations; to provide for consumer complaints; to provide for same-day reimbursements; to provide for a short title; to provide for definitions and applicability of certain terms; to revise provisions relating to independent review panels; to provide for annual parity compliance reviews regarding mental health care parity by state health plans; to provide for medical loss ratios; to revise provisions relating to coverage of treatment of mental health or substance use disorders by individual and group accident and sickness policies or contracts; to define medical necessity for purposes of appeals by Medicaid members relating to mental health services and treatments; to provide for a state Medicaid plan amendment or waiver request if necessary; to provide that no existing contracts shall be HB 1013/AP impaired; to provide for service cancelable loans for mental health and substance use professionals; to provide for the establishment of a Behavioral Health Care Workforce Data Base by the Georgia Board of Health Care Workforce; to provide for a grant program to establish assisted outpatient treatment programs; to provide for definitions; to provide grant requirements; to provide for grant application and award; to provide for research and reporting; to provide for rules and regulations; to revise definitions relating to examination and treatment for persons who are mentally ill or who have addictive diseases; to authorize peace officers to take persons to emergency receiving facilities under certain circumstances; to provide for a grant program for accountability courts that serve the mental health and substance use disorder population; to provide for powers and duties of the Office of Health Strategy and Coordination; to provide for methods to increase access to certified peer specialists in rural and underserved or unserved communities; to provide for implementing certain federal requirements regarding the juvenile justice system; to provide for automatic repeal; to provide for funds from the County Drug Abuse Treatment and Education Fund for mental health divisions; to provide for training requirements for behavioral health co-responders; to provide for co-responder programs; to provide for continued exploration of strategies for individuals with mental illnesses; to authorize the Behavioral Health Reform and Innovation Commission to collaborate and provide advisement on certain programs, coordinate certain initiatives, and convene certain groups and advisory committees; to extend the sunset date for the Behavioral Health Reform and Innovation Commission; to provide for an annual unified report by the administrator of the Georgia Data Analytic Center relating to complaints filed for suspected violations of mental health parity laws; to provide coverage for medications for the treatment of certain disorders under Medicaid; to provide for related matters; to repeal conflicting laws; and for other purposes.

AI Summary

Committee Categories

James Beverly (D)*,  Sharon Cooper (R)*,  Don Hogan (R)*,  Todd Jones (R)*,  Mary Oliver (D)*,  David Ralston (R)*,  Brian Strickland (R), 

Effective Date 2022-07-01 (on 04/04/2022)