Senate Bill No. 454

(By Senators Snyder, Bailey, Ball, Prezioso, Sprouse, Bowman, Kessler, Anderson, Schoonover, Love, Dittmar, Helmick, Deem, Sharpe, Ross, Fanning, Chafin, Minear, Dugan, Walker, McKenzie and Boley)

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[Introduced February 10, 1998; referred to the Committee on Government Organization.]
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A BILL to amend and reenact section twenty-one, article one, chapter sixteen of the code of West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended; and to amend and reenact section three, article two-a of said chapter, all relating to certain rules of local and county health boards requiring approval by the appropriate body of elected officials.

Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That section twenty-one, article one, chapter sixteen of the code of West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended, be amended and reenacted; and that section three, article two-a of said chapter be amended and reenacted, all to read as follows:
ARTICLE 1. STATE BUREAU OF PUBLIC HEALTH.
§16-1-21. Fees for services; health services fund.

(a) Notwithstanding any other provisions of this chapter, the administrator of the division of health commissioner of the bureau of public health may assess and charge reasonable fees for the provision of services provided by the division of health bureau: Provided, That no individual may be denied health care services because of the inability of the individual to pay for services when services are provided to similarly situated individuals who have the ability to pay for them. Payments of fees shall be deposited into a special revolving fund in the state treasury.
(b) Any balance including accrued interest in the special revolving fund at the end of any fiscal year shall not revert to the general revenue fund but shall remain in the special revolving fund for use by the administrator of the division of health commissioner of the bureau of public health for funding health programs in the ensuing fiscal years.
(c) The administrator of the division of health commissioner of the bureau of public health may authorize reasonable fees for the provision of services by county or municipal boards of health as created in article two or article two-a of this chapter: Provided, That no individual may be denied health care services because of the inability of the individual to pay for services when services are provided to similarly situated individuals who have the ability to pay for them. Payments of fees shall be deposited into the local board of health account for use by the local board of health for funding health programs. The fees established will be created on a sliding fee basis determined by an individual's ability to pay: Provided, however, That the board of health bureau of public health may submit a request through the administrator commissioner for third party reimbursement where such request is appropriate: Provided further, That boards of health which establish such fees shall annually submit a schedule of fees, a sliding fee scale and an accounting of amounts collected to the administrator of the division of health commissioner of the bureau of public health for approval on an annual basis.
(d) The administrator of the division of health commissioner of the bureau of public health shall promulgate propose legislative rules for promulgation in accordance with article three, chapter twenty-nine-a of this code, setting forth the fees established, assessed, charged, authorized or approved by the administrator commissioner.
ARTICLE 2A. ALTERNATIVE METHOD OF ORGANIZING LOCAL HEALTH AGENCIES.

§16-2A-3. Powers and duties of county and municipal boards of health; filing of rules.
(a) County or municipal boards of health created and established pursuant to the provisions of this article shall direct, supervise and control all matters relating to the general health and sanitation of their respective counties or municipalities. The local boards of health also have the power and authority to adopt and promulgate propose for promulgation and, from time to time, amend rules, consistent with the public health laws of this state and the rules of the West Virginia state department of health and human resources, as may be necessary and proper for the protection of the general health of the county or municipality and the prevention of the introduction, propagation and spread of disease. All proposed rules shall be filed, in the case of a county board, with the clerk of the county commission, and in the case of a municipal board, with the clerk, recorder or similar officer of the municipality. These proposed rules have no effect unless approved by an affirmative vote of a majority of the members of the county commission members present and voting, in the case of rules proposed by a county board, and by an affirmative vote of a majority of the members of the governing body of a municipality present and voting, in the case of rules proposed by a municipal board. Proposed rules shall be kept by the clerk or recording officer in a separate book and shall be public records.
(b) It is the duty of local boards of health to protect the general health and supervise and control the sanitation of their respective counties and municipalities; to enforce the laws of this state pertaining to public health, and the rules of the department of health and human resources, insofar as they are applicable to counties or municipalities, and to perform duties in relation to public health as may be prescribed by order of the county commission or by ordinance of the municipality consistent with the public health laws of this state and the regulations duly adopted by rules of the department of health and human resources, promulgated in accordance with article three, chapter twenty-nine-a of this code. All local boards of health receiving state or federal funds for health purposes shall submit a general plan of operation for health purposes to the commissioner of the bureau of public health for approval. The commissioner may act through any county or municipal board of health created, established and operated pursuant to the provisions of this article.
(c) Local departments of health created and established pursuant to the provisions of either this article or article two of this chapter shall be notified of each immunization for hepatitis-b and other blood borne pathogens received by firefighters within the service area of the local department of health. Local departments of health shall maintain, for a period of not less than thirty years, a record of the date of the immunization and the name of each firefighter within the service area of the local health department immunized against hepatitis-b and other blood borne pathogens.



NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to provide that rules proposed by municipal or county health boards require approval by the county commission or the governing body of the municipality.

Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken from the present law, and underscoring indicates new language that would be added.