Advocate briefs Erlanger council on House Bill 204 to remove competitor veto in Certificate of Need process

Mary Anne Proctor briefed the Erlanger City Council caucus on House Bill 204, describing the bill as a targeted reform that would eliminate a "competitor veto" at two steps of Kentucky's nine-step certificate-of-need process while leaving substantive review criteria in place.

Proctor, who has spoken with city leaders across Northern Kentucky, said the bill does not repeal the Certificate of Need but removes a procedural step that frequently allows established providers to block new entrants and drives costly litigation. "What it did, it removed a competitor veto," Proctor said, arguing the change would allow applicants a more level playing field without changing the state's health-plan review standards.

Council members split over whether the topic was appropriate for a municipal caucus. "This is not a city issue," Council member Jasper Lucas said, noting the city cannot change state law; other members said constituents had urged the council to follow up and that passing a local resolution could support regional reform.

Proctor outlined prior committee action: the bill failed in a health committee and a proposed task force was not reestablished by the Senate chair. She said similar municipal resolutions have been filed in Covington, Fort Wright and Walton and asked whether Erlanger would consider a resolution supporting the targeted change.

Next steps: Council asked Proctor to provide written materials on House Bill 204 so members could research the measure and decide whether to take a local position at a future caucus meeting.