Committee approves bill directing Board of Regents to coordinate dementia training for health-care providers

The House Committee on Higher Education and Technology voted to pass Senate Bill 1252 SD2 HD1 on March 19, a bill that would require the Board of Regents to establish a specialized training program to educate health-care providers on caring for patients with Alzheimer's disease and other forms of dementia.

The HD1 version the committee considered incorporates suggestions from the John A. Burns School of Medicine (JABSOM) and adds a new preamble acknowledging existing programs. The circulating HD1 leaves a blank appropriation and FTE count in the bill text but includes suggested amounts and personnel counts in the committee report. The bill also contains a defective date provision of July 1, 3000 as currently drafted.

Committee members said the revised language responds to concerns about placing the program directly within the Board of Regents' governance language. The chair said JABSOM recommended the bill provide coordination of existing programs and that the HD1 reflects those suggestions: "the HD1 we did circulate earlier in the week, does adopt suggestions made from the John A Burns School of Medicine," the chair said.

During decision making, the chair recommended passing SB 1252 with amendments (HD1). The committee proceeded to vote; the chair and vice chair recorded aye votes and other present members voted to adopt the recommendation. Several members were excused; the committee's recommendation to pass with amendments was adopted and the measure will move forward in the legislative process.

The committee did not provide a specific appropriation in the bill text; the committee report lists suggested FTE counts and amounts. The transcript did not identify a named JABSOM representative at the hearing; the bill language reflects JABSOM's written suggestions as described by the chair at the hearing.