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Committee OKs pilot for remote monitoring of maternal hypertension and diabetes; sends bill to finance
Summary
Senate Bill 8-98 to create a TennCare-administered remote patient monitoring pilot for pregnant and postpartum women with hypertension or diabetes was approved for referral to the finance committee after members asked for an end date and a participant cap change; chair indicated sponsor is amenable to edits.
The Senate Commerce and Labor Committee voted to send Senate Bill 8-98 to the Senate committee on finance. The bill, sponsored by Chair Lady Massey, would establish a pilot program administered by TennCare to remotely monitor maternal hypertension and maternal diabetes among pregnant and postpartum women, using cellular-enabled devices for patients without Wi-Fi or smartphones.
Chair Lady Massey said the pilot aims to include at least 300 eligible women and that remote patient monitoring (RPM) devices would transmit vitals such as blood pressure, weight and glucose to a clinician team to detect problems early and reduce emergency visits. She cited pilots in Georgia and Florida that, she said, reduced emergency room visits and maternal morbidity.
Committee members pressed for clarifications. Members asked that the bill specify an end date for the pilot program and suggested changing the language from "at least 300 participants" to "up to 300 participants" to avoid open-ended commitments. Chair Lady Massey indicated she would accept a committee amendment to add a time limit and said the bill will be further amended in finance if needed. The clerk recorded the committee vote as 7 ayes, 1 no and 1 pass, and the bill was sent to finance with the chair's assurances that she will work to add a defined end date and adjust participant language.
