Conference committee approves DHHS amendments to Senate Bill 2,033 addressing distressed ambulance services

Members of the conference committee on Senate Bill 2,033 voted to adopt Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) amendments that add tools for identifying and assisting “distressed” ambulance services, including temporary waivers, a coordinator role and a clarified reimbursement provision.

The action, moved by Senator Roars and seconded by Senator Clemens, added the word “direct” before “costs” in the subsection that allows the department to request that a distressed ambulance service reimburse the department for costs incurred administering the section; the motion passed on a roll call with committee members recorded as voting aye.

The committee’s DHHS witnesses described the amendment set as starting from the Senate version and incorporating DHHS changes. Allison Hicks, general counsel for the public health division of the Department of Health and Human Services, said the amendment rewords enforcement language and shifts the early trigger from an actual violation to a “substantial likelihood to fail.” She told the committee that “one of the kind of key indicators of a substantial likelihood to fail or substantial likelihood to be…