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Senate passes HHS omnibus with targeted rate, pharmacy and EMS provisions; MinnesotaCare eligibility handled separately
Summary
The Senate approved House File 2, the HHS omnibus finance and policy bill, after compromises on rate-related directed payment authority, pharmacy benefit management reforms, funding for EMS and long COVID grants, and contentious elements tied to MinnesotaCare eligibility that were handled outside the bill text.
The Minnesota Senate passed House File 2, an HHS (health and human services) omnibus bill, after a portion of negotiations focused on budgets and several policy changes for health providers, behavioral health, and children and families.
Senator Wiklendt, who explained the bill on the floor, said the measure combines multiple sub‑targets negotiated between leadership, the administration and the House. Key elements in the bill include authority for the Department of Human Services to seek a directed payment program focused on mental‑health services, support and temporary directed pharmacy payment programs and steps toward a single state pharmacy benefit manager (PBM), expanded funding for federally qualified health centers and clinics, and an EMS package totaling more than $32 million over four years for operating deficits and rural uncompensated care.
Wiklendt described hard choices to meet budget targets. “We weren’t able to retain the provision…that would increase rates for physicians outside of mental health,” she said, but highlighted funding maintained for long COVID grants, infectious disease prevention, dementia services and newborn screening. The bill also includes a $35 million allocation aimed at child‑welfare IT modernization.
Floor debate touched on several controversies. Some senators pushed back on cuts or program changes carried in the leadership agreement, including a proposal that would limit certain coverage and a later policy step removing MinnesotaCare coverage for undocumented adults (passed separately as House File 1). The author noted that the spreadsheet accompanying the agreement accounted for the MinnesotaCare eligibility change even if the HHS text did not itself carry the technical repeal language.
Other contested items included a cut to adult chiropractic services in MA and MinnesotaCare, a soft cap on occupational and physical therapy services, and provider taxes and fee changes built into the package. A number of amendments were offered during floor debate; several were withdrawn or defeated.
Supporters pointed to investments the bill makes in mental‑health funding mechanisms, community clinics, long COVID grants, maternal and newborn services, and pharmacy reform measures intended to stabilize pharmacy reimbursements and reduce harmful PBM practices. Some senators emphasized concerns about hospital facility fees and said the bill includes reporting requirements to improve transparency.
The Senate adopted the motion to suspend rules to give the bill expedited consideration and later passed it in a roll call where 34 senators voted yes and 33 no. After passage Senator Wiklendt asked members for support, saying the bill “addresses critical concerns and will improve the lives of Minnesotans.”
What happens next: the bill’s funding and policy changes will be implemented by the Department of Human Services and other agencies; some elements — notably any changes to MinnesotaCare eligibility for undocumented adults — were addressed separately in other bills during the special session.
Sources: Senate floor explanation and roll call recorded during the special session.
