HOUSE BILL REPORT

                  HB 2931

             As Reported By House Committee on:

                       Appropriations

Title:  An act relating to medicare.

Brief Description:  Exempting nursing facilities that make good faith efforts from obtaining and maintaining medicare certification.

Sponsor(s):  Representatives Hine and G. Fisher.

Brief History:

  Reported by House Committee on:

Appropriations, February 10, 1992, DP.

HOUSE COMMITTEE ON

APPROPRIATIONS

Majority Report: Do pass.  Signed by 26 members:  Representatives Locke, Chair; Inslee, Vice Chair; Spanel, Vice Chair; Silver, Ranking Minority Member; Morton, Assistant Ranking Minority Member; Appelwick; Belcher; Bowman; Braddock; Brekke; Carlson; Dorn; Fuhrman; Hine; Lisk; May; Mielke; Nealey; Peery; Pruitt; Rust; D. Sommers; H. Sommers; Sprenkle; Valle; and Wang.

Staff:  John Woolley (786-7154).

Background:  The state's nursing home reimbursement statute currently requires that all nursing homes that are certified for Medicaid patients have at least 15 percent of their beds also certified for Medicare patients.  Since Medicare is 100 percent federal, this is considered to be a means to ensure some cost savings over the Medicaid Program since Medicaid is 50 percent state funded.

Summary of Bill:  The bill amends the 15 percent requirement to say that a portion of a facility's beds must be Medicare certified.  In addition, the Department of Social and Health Services may grant exemptions to this if the department decides that a facility has made a good faith effort to obtain Medicare certification--this exemption clause expires June 1, 1993.

Fiscal Note:  Not requested.

Effective Date:  Ninety days after adjournment of session in which bill is passed.

Testimony For:  None.

Testimony Against:  None.

Witnesses:  None.