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Health Care Financing Committee releases pandemic preparedness bill

June 6, 2007... Today, Sen. Richard T. Moore, D-Uxbridge and members of the Joint Committee on Health Care Financing voted to release several bills including legislation relative to pandemic preparation and response in Massachusetts. 

“I’m pleased we were able to release this important piece of legislation that will make our health care and public safety systems better prepared for any public health emergency,” said Moore. “Now, we need to ensure that this plan is funded and operational before, not after, we are forced to deal with a major public health emergency in our Commonwealth. I’m hopeful that the Legislature will pass this comprehensive bill in a timely manner.”

The current legislation, a version of which was passed by the Senate last year, appropriates $36.5 million to purchase ventilators, beds, vaccine and other supplies to enhance hospital surge capacity, and upgrade the state laboratory by acquiring supplies for surge capacity and by hiring two bacteriologists. 

The bill also calls for the expenditure of funds to build up the state’s public health infrastructure with a focus on local and regional public health planning. The bill includes:

  • $750,000 for the re-establishment of the Office of Local Health Services in the Department of Public Health
  • $150,000 to the New England INDEX for emergency preparedness for disabled individuals
  • $140,000 for DPH to study public health emergency preparedness in the state
  • $1,500,000 for hiring pandemic influenza planners for each of state’s 15 emergency preparedness regions
  • $250,000 for early warning Avian and Zoonotic disease surveillance, preparedness and response planning programs at Tufts University
  • $1,00,000 for home health organizations for purchase of protective equipment

Additional provisions in the bill include: 

  • Granting the commissioner of DPH emergency powers, upon declaration by the governor that a public health emergency exists
  • Establishing the Public Health Emergency Fund to be expended to pay for expenses incurred by the commissioner and local public health authorities in meeting a declared public health emergency
  • Mandating the commissioner of DPH to re-establish an Office of Local Health Services to provide coordination of state health policies with local public health to provide assistance and build a regional network with public health agencies, providers and emergency agencies
  • Expanding DPH’s authority over drugs to control dangerous diseases and enables the commissioner to determine a shortage of a product and the need to vaccinate the public. The bill also gives the commissioner the authority to take immediate possession of necessary pharmaceuticals from any source
  • Mandating DPH to make an investigation of any disease dangerous to the public health and means of preventing its spread, and to consult with local authorities when a condition dangerous to public health exists. Also gives DPH authority to access medical records and other information necessary

Senator Moore has more than a decade of emergency preparedness experience having served as Associate Director of the FEMA during the Clinton Administration and as a member of the advisory committee for the federal Centers for Disease Control. Moore also serves as a representative of the National Conference of State Legislature’s Health Chairs Project and as co-chair of the group’s Homeland Security and Emergency Preparedness Committee.

Additionally, the Committee released a related bill, S. 689 relative to pandemic or disaster planning by health care providers. This bill, sponsored by Moore, offers protection to health care providers from liability for damages or administrative or licensing sanctions resulting from their actions or inactions when engaged in the performance of their duties as a volunteers or employee of the stat during a public health emergency. The legislation also calls for a suspension of administrative requirements and a reconciliation period for charges and reimbursements for providers and carriers. 

Both bills now move to the Senate Ways and Means for consideration.

To download a copy of the bill or to find more information on public health and emergency preparedness log onto Senator Moore’s web site at www.senatormoore.com 

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