HB1660sam002 93RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY

Sen. M. Maggie Crotty

Filed: 5/13/2004

09300HB1660sam002 LRB093 09991 DRJ 51067 a

AMENDMENT TO HOUSE BILL 1660

AMENDMENT NO. ______. Amend House Bill 1660 by replacing everything after the enacting clause with the following:

"Section 5. The Illinois Public Aid Code is amended by adding Section 5-5.25 as follows:

(305 ILCS 5/5-5.25 new)

Sec. 5-5.25. Access to mental health services. The General Assembly finds that providing access to mental health services in a timely manner will improve the quality of life for persons suffering from mental illness and will contain health care costs by avoiding the need for more costly inpatient hospitalization. The Illinois Department shall reimburse advanced practice nurses who have a collaborative agreement with a collaborating physician specializing in psychiatry that authorizes the provision of mental health services for mental health services they provide, as authorized by Illinois law, to recipients. The Illinois Department, by rule, shall develop a method to reimburse providers for mental health services provided by telemedicine. The reimbursement methodology for mental health services provided by telemedicine shall be comparable to the reimbursement methodology used by the Illinois Department for other services provided by telemedicine.

Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon becoming law.".