ULTRASOUND EQUIP. GRANT PROGRAM H.B. 5637 (H-1): FLOOR ANALYSIS
House Bill 5637 (Substitute H-1 as reported without amendment)
Sponsor: Representative Jacob Hoogendyk
House Committee: Health Policy
Senate Committee: Health Policy
CONTENT
The bill would amend the Public Health Code to do the following:
-- Create the "Ultrasound Equipment Fund".
-- Require the Department of Community Health (DCH) to establish and administer a program to provide grants for the purchase of ultrasound equipment to qualified entities that provided free or reduced-cost family planning or reproductive health services to low-income women and had fewer than two ultrasound machines.
-- Require a 50% cost match or a repayment guarantee for a grant.
-- Require the DCH to give to the chairpersons of the House and Senate Appropriations Subcommittees for the DCH an annual report summarizing the grants made, contractual commitments made and achieved, and a preliminary evaluation of the grant program's effectiveness.
Under the bill, "qualified entity" would mean a local agency, organization, or corporation; or a subdivision, contractee, subcontractee, or grant recipient of a local agency, organization, or corporation, that had been reviewed and determined by the DCH to satisfy specified conditions, including the presence of a trained medical professional or a qualified medical director to perform the ultrasound, and an agreement that the equipment would not be used to assist in the performance of an elective abortion.
Proposed MCL 333.9141 Legislative Analyst: Julie Koval
FISCAL IMPACT
The proposed Fund would include revenue from various sources, including Federal money, private donations, State restricted funds, and State General Fund/General Purpose revenue. The fiscal impact on the State would depend on how much State Restricted or General Fund/General Purpose revenue was appropriated to the Fund. Such a decision would be made in the development of the Department of Community Health budget each year, so the fiscal impact is indeterminate.
There would be minor costs related to the promulgation of rules and the annual report.
Date Completed: 11-5-04 Fiscal Analyst: Steve Angelotti
Analysis was prepared by nonpartisan Senate staff for use by the Senate in its deliberations and does not constitute an official statement of legislative intent. hb5637/0304