AN ACT Relating to implementing audit recommendations on lead testing for children enrolled in medicaid; adding a new section to chapter 43.70 RCW; creating a new section; and providing an expiration date.

(1) The department shall create a plan to identify and assess communities in the state that are the most at risk for lead exposure. The communities in the assessment may be organized by the census tract or zip code. The department shall ensure that health care providers have access to the community-level risk assessments. The assessments must be conducted on an annual basis.

(2) The department shall finalize and fully execute a data-sharing agreement with the health care authority by no later than July 1, 2024. The purpose of the data-sharing agreement is to conduct a coordinated analysis to determine the extent to which children enrolled in medicaid are receiving required lead tests and whether children at the highest risk are receiving required testing. The highest risk designation is based on the risk analysis conducted as required in subsection (1) of this section.

(3) The department shall launch and implement the childhood lead testing promotion plan by December 1, 2024. The testing plan must be updated and published by December 31, 2024, and annually thereafter.

(a) Establish performance measures and data collection criteria to monitor whether all children enrolled in medicaid are receiving all required blood lead tests; and

(b) Clarify the contract language for managed care organizations and establish clear expectations for blood lead testing and the internal performance measures and thresholds regarding medicaid testing requirements.

(a)(i) Ensure all guidance and information received by health care providers from the state about the medicaid blood lead testing requirement is clear and consistent; and

(ii) Include the contact information for who to contact if a provider has questions about the requirements; and

(b) Create a communication plan to ensure that health care providers in the state understand the requirement and how to implement the requirement.

(3) The health care authority shall provide additional guidance and information to medicaid providers on blood lead testing requirements including, but not limited to, suggestions on how to increase testing rates and compliance, such as with in-office lead testing and system prompts for health care providers while at the point-of-care with a patient.

(4) The health care authority, in consultation with the department of health, shall submit to the governor and the appropriate committees of the legislature a preliminary report no later than December 1, 2024, and a final report no later than June 30, 2025, that includes a summary of the work conducted in this section and any other work conducted to address the performance audit by the office of the state auditor on lead testing for children enrolled in medicaid.