SB19-005 – Import Prescription Drugs From Canada
Signed by Governor 5/19/2019
This bill creates the Canadian Prescription Drug Importation Program in the Department of Health Care Policy and Financing, through which prescription drugs can be imported to the United States once federal law allows. These drugs are of the same high quality and safety as those sold in the U.S., but will cost consumers significantly less. Through this program, we will make prescription drugs more accessible and more affordable.
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SB19-013 – Medical Marijuana Condition Opiates Prescribed For
Signed by Governor 5/23/2019
This bill gives people with disabling medical conditions more treatment options in terms of pain medication. First, it updates existing statute so that if a person has a medical condition that a physician could prescribe an opioid for, they are eligible to use medical marijuana instead. Second, it removes an overly-restrictive requirement as to the specific types of physicians necessary to make a medical marijuana recommendation for a patient under 18 years of age. It also specifies that patients under 18 years of age may not smoke medical marijuana products at school.
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SB19-015 – Create Statewide Health Care Review Committee
Signed by Governor 5/30/2019
This bill establishes the Health Care Legislative Review Committee as an ongoing interim committee of the General Assembly. The committee will study health care issues affecting Colorado residents, meet up to two times during the legislative interim, and will be made up of no more than 10 members from the House Health and Insurance Committee, the House Public Health Care and Human Services Committee, and the Senate Health and Human Services Committee.
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SB19-073 – Statewide System Of Advance Medical Directives
Signed by Governor 5/16/2019
This bill requires the Department of Public Health and Environment to create and administer a statewide electronic system of advance medical directives. It specifies that it is the responsibility of the person whose medical treatment is subject to the advanced medical directive to ensure that what is uploaded to the system is current and accurate. Any emergency personnel, health care provider, or any other person is not civilly or criminally liable for actions if they comply with a legally executed advance medical directive accessed from the system.
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SB19-133 – Require License Practice Genetic Counseling
Vetoed by Governor 5/31/2019
This bill would require people who work as genetic counselors to receive a license from the Division of Professions and Occupations in order to practice genetic counseling. With the rapid expansion of at-home genetic testing kits, requiring that genetic counselors be vetted and hold a license would keep people safe when they seek guidance based on their genetic information.
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SB19-158 – Sunset Pet Animal Care And Facilities Act
Signed by Governor 5/31/2019
The Pet Animal Care Facilities Act (PACFA) Program is a licensing and inspection program dedicated to protecting the health and well-being of pet animals in shelter facilities throughout Colorado. This bill is a sunset review of the PACFA program, which continues the program until 2026 and implements some changes recommended by Department of Regulatory Agencies, including prohibiting shelters from requiring sterilization, authorizing discipline for animal cruelty, and others.
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SB19-172 – Protect From Unlawful Abandonment And Confinement
Signed by Governor 5/30/2019
This bill expands the definition of crimes against at-risk persons by creating new offenses regarding unlawful abandonment and false imprisonment. It defines unlawful abandonment of at-risk adults as a class 1 misdemeanor and false imprisonment of at-risk adults as either a class 1 misdemeanor or a class 6 felony, depending on the crime’s circumstances.
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SB19-177 – Background Checks Persons Who Work With Children
Signed by Governor 5/28/2019
This bill allows the state Department of Human Services to conduct background checks using its child welfare tracking system when they receive a written request from an individual whose responsibilities include the care, treatment, or supervision of, or unsupervised contact with children. The bill also eliminates exemptions from fingerprint background checks for employees of child care centers and requires such checks be conducted for people who work with children in a number of capacities.
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SB19-193 – Sunset Continue Colorado Medical Practice Act
Signed by Governor 5/31/2019
This bill continues the Colorado Medical Board—which regulates and controls the practice of healing arts, including the licensing standards for Medical Doctors, Doctors of Osteopathy, Physician Assistants, and Anesthesiology Assistants—until September 1, 2026. It also implements recommendations made in the 2019 DORA sunset report, including eliminating the 60-day limit for physicians to practice with pro bono licenses, revisions to disciplinary rules, and others.
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HB19-1014 – Retail Food Establishments Inspection And Suspension
Signed by Governor 2/28/2019
This bill updates food safety requirements for the inspection of retail food establishments. This includes clarifying the definition of imminent health hazard; requiring that the system used to communicate inspection results be updated only through the triennial stakeholder process; and revising civil penalties for retail food establishments.
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HB19-1015 – Recreation Of The Colorado Water Institute
Signed by Governor 2/20/2019
This bill re-establishes the Colorado Water Institute at Colorado State University and the Advisory Committee on Water Research Policy that was repealed in 2017. The institute is tasked with identifying and prioritizing the state’s scientific and policy-related water research needs, performing water-related research and policy analysis, and establishing a water research information and education center. The advisory committee is expanded from 8 to 11 members; its purpose is to create policy guidelines necessary to implement the recommendations from the institute and assess the programs of the institute. The bill also establishes a water research fund.
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HB19-1035 – Remove Fee Cap Electrical Inspection Local Government Higher Education
Signed by Governor 4/10/2019
The bill sets the fee for electrical inspections conducted by local governments or institutions of higher education at $120, an amount that will be adjusted annually based on the consumer price index. Local governments and institutions of higher education may adjust the fee by using a tiered charge with an 8% multiplier based on the size or valuation of the inspected improvement.
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HB19-1038 – Dental Services for Pregnant Women On Children’s Basic Health Plan Plus
Signed by Governor 4/16/2019
This bill requires the Medical Services Board to include dental services for all enrolled pregnant women through the Children’s Health Plan Plus. This is necessary because an unborn child’s health is dependent upon maternal health, and proper oral care has a significant effect on a person’s overall health.
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HB19-1045 – Office Of Public Guardianship Operation Conditions
Signed by Governor 5/30/2019
This bill makes it possible for the Office of Public Guardianship to carry out certain duties before the public guardianship cash fund has received $1,750,000 in gifts, grants, and donations, allowing the office to begin operations as soon as it is signed into law. It also requires the office to begin operating in Denver when it receives sufficient funding to begin operations and creates a partial funding source by increasing probate fees.
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HB19-1051 – Colorado Department of Public Safety Human Trafficking-related Training
Signed by Governor 5/31/2019
In order to prevent human trafficking and aid the victims of trafficking, this bill requires the Division of Criminal Justice to provide human trafficking prevention training to law enforcement agencies, organizations that provide services to human trafficking victims, school personnel and parents, and any other entity that may benefit from the training. Such training may be done in person, online, or in a train-the-trainer format, using a curriculum developed in collaboration with the Colorado Human Trafficking Council.
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HB19-1092 – Animal Ban For Cruelty To Animals Conviction
Signed by Governor 5/1/2019
This bill creates the option for a court to order persons convicted of animal cruelty to complete a mental health treatment program as part of the sentence. It prohibits people convicted of felony animal cruelty from owning a pet for 3-5 years, unless the defendant’s treatment provider makes a specific recommendation not to impose the ban and the court agrees. In addition, a juvenile who has committed animal cruelty may be prohibited from owning, possessing, or caring for a pet animal.
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HB19-1102 – Nonanimal And Lab-grown Meat Misbranding
House Committee on Public Health Care & Human Services: Postponed Indefinitely 3/1/2019
This bill requires that food labeled or packaged as “meat” be derived primarily from livestock; labeling products that are lab-grown or artificially cultured as “meat” is added to the definition of misbranding.
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HB19-1202 – Food Systems Advisory Council
Signed by Governor 5/31/2019
The bill moves the Colorado Food Systems Advisory Council from the Department of Agriculture to Colorado State University and modifies the council’s membership and duties. Upon revision, the council is required to meet at least four times per year. The redefined purpose of the council is to grow local and statewide food economies to support producers and improve access to fresh and healthy foods for low-income populations, as well as researching national best practices for food assistance, serving as a food policy resource, and collecting relevant data.
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HB19-1233 – Investments In Primary Care To Reduce Costs
Signed by Governor 5/16/2019
The purpose of this bill is to improve the quality of health care that Coloradans receive while simultaneously reducing the cost of health care. It does this by establishing a Primary Care Payment Reform Collaborative in the Department of Regulatory Agencies. The purpose of this collaborative is to examine primary care practices; implement affordability standards across Medicaid and state employee health plans; and enable a shift away from emergency medicine by creating more investment in primary care.
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HB19-1237 – Licensing Behavioral Health Entities
Signed by Governor 6/3/2019
This bill updates licensing for providers of behavioral health services. It consolidates the licensing done by each the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment (CDPHE) and the Department of Human Services into one behavioral health entity license to be administered by the CDPHE. The bill also creates a requirement that providers of substance or alcohol use disorder treatment be licensed; establishes a fund for the new licensing program; and creates an advisory council to assist program implementation.
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HB19-1241 – University of Colorado Training and Scholarships Rural Physicians
House Committee on Appropriations: Laid Over This Bill Unamended, Amendment(s) Failed 5/9/2019
This bill expands access to health care in underserved areas by incentivizing medical students to commit to practicing primary care medicine in a rural or frontier area. It accomplishes this by requiring that the University of Colorado School of Medicine provide educational support services and scholarships to students participating in the rural track program, including that it cover the housing expenses of rural track students while located in rural or frontier areas.
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HB19-1269 – Mental Health Parity Insurance Medicaid
Signed by Governor 5/16/2019
This bill improves access to mental health care by requiring that private health insurers and the state’s Medicaid plan provide medically necessary coverage for behavioral, mental health, and substance use disorder services. This coverage must be on par with that provided for physical health services. Insurers must also demonstrate compliance as established by new reporting requirements, and a formal complaint process is set in place.
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HB19-1292 – Colorado Resiliency Office Reauthorization Funding
Signed by Governor 5/16/2019
This bill repeals the requirement that the Colorado Resiliency Office be grant funded and makes a $249,454 appropriation for it for FY2019-20. The Colorado Resiliency Office administers the resiliency and community recovery program as part of the state’s disaster recovery and response functions.
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HB19-1296 – Prescription Drug Cost Reduction Measures
House Committee on Appropriations: Lay Over Unamended, Amendment(s) Failed 5/9/2019
The purpose of this bill is to reduce the cost of prescription drugs for Coloradans by requiring health insurers, prescription drug manufacturers, and others to report on the costs of prescription drugs to the commissioner of insurance. This information is to be analyzed by the commissioner, who will submit an annual report regarding the effects of prescription drug costs on health insurance premiums. These reports will enable policies to be implemented that make prescription drugs more affordable.
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