Committee advances community health worker bill but members seek clearer scope limits

The Public Health and Welfare Committee advanced Senate Bill 2749, a measure to establish licensure and a Medicaid reimbursement pathway for community health workers, after members debated the bill's scope-of-practice language and approved a technical amendment deleting a preamble.

Sponsor Senator Boyd told the committee the bill would allow the Division of Medicaid to seek a waiver for reimbursement of community health worker services for Medicaid enrollees and that the role is intended initially to support maternal and infant health. "It's a relatively low cost intervention that has a lot of upside," she said, describing community health workers as laypeople trained to help patients take medications, keep appointments and improve diet and exercise.

Committee members repeatedly expressed concern about leaving scope-setting authority broad. Senator Barker asked where the Department of Health's scope-setting power was authorized in statute; sponsor and supporters said the language intentionally allowed some flexibility but that the department and its board would impose narrow guardrails and that legislators could later refine statutory limits. Doctor Edney (Department of Health) was cited by sponsors as part of the development process.

Senator Hobson moved and the committee agreed to delete the preamble. After discussion, including questions about where community health workers might be employed and whether managed-care contracts would be the initial market, the committee approved the bill as a committee substitute by voice vote and the chair announced the ayes have it.

Committee members requested that sponsors and Department of Health staff work with concerned senators to produce more precise scope language before floor consideration.