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Votes at a glance: committee advances EMS surprise‑billing, school‑sports physicals, optometry loan relief
Summary
The Health and Human Services Committee voted to pass several bills by voice or hand vote: HB 506 (adds EMS to surprise‑billing protections), HB 970 (standardizes school sports physicals), and HB 659 (adds optometrists to rural loan‑forgiveness programs). All were recorded as unanimous in committee.
The committee approved several relatively noncontroversial bills by voice or hand vote. Representative Scott Hilton described House Bill 506, which extends the state's Surprise Billing Consumer Protection Act to include EMS charges; the committee passed the substitute unanimously after brief discussion.
Representative Townsend presented House Bill 970 to codify standards for high‑school sports physicals, including a cardiovascular history and exam; members debated concerns that the standard should not drift into requiring scans, but the committee voted to advance the bill.
Representative Gerald Green presented House Bill 659 to add optometrists to a list of practitioners eligible for student‑loan forgiveness when they practice in rural areas; committee members praised the approach and voted unanimously to advance the bill.
Each bill was reported out of the Health and Human Services Committee and will proceed to additional legislative steps.
