03/05/2007 01:30 PM Senate HEALTH, EDUCATION & SOCIAL SERVICES
| Audio | Topic |
|---|---|
| Start | |
| SB62 | |
| SB76 | |
| Adjourn |
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
| *+ | SB 62 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| *+ | SB 76 | TELECONFERENCED | |
ALASKA STATE LEGISLATURE
SENATE HEALTH, EDUCATION AND SOCIAL SERVICES STANDING COMMITTEE
March 5, 2007
1:33 p.m.
MEMBERS PRESENT
Senator Bettye Davis, Chair
Senator John Cowdery
MEMBERS ABSENT
Senator Joe Thomas, Vice Chair
Senator Kim Elton
Senator Fred Dyson
COMMITTEE CALENDAR
SENATE BILL NO. 62
"An Act establishing the Advisory Committee on Public Reporting
of Health Care Associated Infections; relating to reporting and
dissemination of data concerning health care associated
infections; and providing for an effective date."
HEARD AND HELD
SENATE BILL NO. 76
"An Act establishing a higher education savings program for
eligible children who were placed in out-of-home care by the
state; and providing for confidentiality of identifying
information of a beneficiary under the program."
HEARD AND HELD
PREVIOUS COMMITTEE ACTION
BILL: SB 62
SHORT TITLE: TASK FORCE ON HEALTH CARE INFECTIONS
SPONSOR(s): SENATOR(s) STEVENS
01/19/07 (S) READ THE FIRST TIME - REFERRALS
01/19/07 (S) HES, FIN
03/05/07 (S) HES AT 1:30 PM BUTROVICH 205
BILL: SB 76
SHORT TITLE: TUITION FOR CERTAIN CHILDREN
SPONSOR(s): SENATOR(s) ELLIS
02/07/07 (S) READ THE FIRST TIME - REFERRALS
02/07/07 (S) HES, FIN
03/05/07 (S) HES AT 1:30 PM BUTROVICH 205
WITNESS REGISTER
Doug Letch, Aide
to Senator Stevens
Alaska State Capitol
Juneau AK
POSITION STATEMENT: Presented SB 62
Jay Butler, Director
Division of Public Health
Department of Health & Social Services
Juneau AK
POSITION STATEMENT: In support of SB 62
Sandra Stark, representing herself
No address provided
POSITION STATEMENT: In support of SB 62
Rosemary Craig, representing herself
No address provided
POSITION STATEMENT: In support of SB 62
Jennifer Grogg
Alaska State Hospital and Nursing Home Association (ASHNHA)
Mat-Su Valley AK
POSITION STATEMENT: In support of SB 62
Kim Mymes-Spink
Professionals in Epidemiology
No address provided
POSITION STATEMENT: In support of SB 62
Mike Lesmann, Community Relations Manager
Office of Children's Services
Juneau AK
POSITION STATEMENT: In support of SB 76
Gabe Aceves, aide to Senator Ellis
Alaska State Capitol
Juneau AK
POSITION STATEMENT: Available for questions on SB 76
Terra Horton
Faith Based and Community Initiatives
No address provided
POSITION STATEMENT: In support of SB 76
Jim Lynch, Associate Vice President of Finance
University of Alaska
Fairbanks AK
POSITION STATEMENT: In support of SB 76
Chip Wagoner, Executive Director
Alaska Conference of Catholic Bishops
Juneau AK
POSITION STATEMENT: In support of SB 76
ACTION NARRATIVE
CHAIR BETTYE DAVIS called the Senate Health, Education and
Social Services Standing Committee meeting to order at 1:33:45
PM. Present at the call to order were Senator Cowdery and Chair
Davis.
SB 62-TASK FORCE ON HEALTH CARE INFECTIONS
CHAIR DAVIS announced SB 63 to be under consideration. She added
that because of the lack of a quorum, the committee would only
be hearing testimony and would not be moving the bill that day.
DOUG LETCH, aide to Senator Gary Stevens, sponsor of SB 62, said
that the bill would set up an advisory committee on public
reporting of health-care-associated infections, which would be
managed by the Department of Health and Social Services (DHSS).
The committee would include a senator and representative, nine
members appointed by the governor, and a state official in
charge of epidemiology. The nine appointed members would include
physicians, a representative of the Alaska Native Tribal Health
Consortium, a representative of the Alaska chapter of the
Association of Professionals in Infection Control, a
representative of the Alaska State Hospital and Nursing Home
Association (ASHNHA), urban and rural consumers, and a
statistician.
He explained that the committee's role will include developing
recommendations for analyzing and distributing information
related to preventing hospital infection, and will provide its
recommendations to the DHSS by 2009. By January of 2011 it will
provide the legislature with a report addressing the unique
challenges facing Alaska in regards to the issue.
He added that many states do this sort of analysis and
reporting.
1:38:12 PM
JAY BUTLER, Director of the Division of Public Health for the
Department of Health and Social Services (DHSS), said that
infections in health care settings have highlighted a need for
public health attention in hospitals. Much intensive health care
intervention is now done on an out-patient basis, and patients
are sent home who may be sicker than those in the hospital. This
has led to a consumer-driven interest in public disclosure of
hospitals' infection rates. As many as two million infection
cases are associated with health care settings yearly; the
mortality rate is around 90,000 each year. A number of states
require public disclosure of these rates, but challenges include
accurate identification of infections; oftentimes infections
don't develop until discharge from the hospital. In addition,
public disclosure could act as a disincentive to use of
hospitals; the more thorough a hospital is in its reporting, the
more the hospital appears to be negligent in its care.
He added that a special challenge in Alaska is the small patient
population, which means difficulties in reporting useful data.
Also there is no evidence that public reporting will improve
health. Studies have shown that certain criteria should be
followed in reporting, including using established public health
surveillance methods, a multidisciplinary advisory panel, and
appropriate process and outcome measures; he gave examples of
processes and outcomes that should be studied. A final
recommendation would be that the agency measuring the data
provide regular and confidential feedback to health care
providers.
1:47:08 PM
CHAIR DAVIS thanked Mr. Butler for his presentation and said
that she look forward to forming the task force.
SENATOR COWDERY related a personal story about hospital
infections.
1:49:30 PM
SANDRA STARK, representing herself, said she is a public member
of the initial working group. She said that lives will be saved
by this legislation, perhaps an indeterminate number but
doubtless many. Practices are varied for preventing infection
and they do make a great difference. Monitoring hospital
infection prevention through a pilot program will mean less
costs and hospitalizations, the rates of which are very high in
Alaska.
1:52:12 PM
ROSEMARY CRAIG, representing herself, said she had worked with
Ms. Stark on the Lower Kenai Peninsula and it would be
advantageous for the entire state to have some kind of tracking,
but that she was concerned with how larger and smaller hospitals
would be compared; she requested that the committee investigate
this further.
1:53:06 PM
JENNIFER GROGG, representing the Alaska State Hospital and
Nursing Home Association (ASHNHA), said that it supports an
advisory committee on hospital infections. Such a committee
would be able to review the success of states with similar
legislation and advise Alaska. Creating equitable guidelines is
difficult, and Alaska's should be tailored to the state's
specific needs; outpatient facilities should be included in the
reporting process.
1:56:13 PM
KIM MYMES-SPINK, with Professionals in Epidemiology, said that
the group supports the bill and would be happy to participate on
the task force.
CHAIR DAVIS closed public testimony for SB 62 and said the
committee would hear the bill again at a later date.
SB 76-TUITION FOR CERTAIN CHILDREN
1:58:16 PM
CHAIR BETTYE DAVIS announced SB 76 to be up for consideration.
SENATOR ELLIS, sponsor of SB 76, said that the bill concerns the
collection of education funds for foster youth who age out of
the system and who often do not succeed in life afterwards. He
said that Missouri has a similar program that allows the funding
of education accounts for children leaving foster care at the
age of 18; SB 76 would establish such a program in Alaska to
allow churches, individuals, charities, and community
organizations to open accounts for the purposes of these youths'
college education. The accounts would be managed through the
University of Alaska (UA)'s college savings account program. The
donations could be used for any educational endeavor, from
vocational education to college.
He added that many foster children have suffered from abuse and
neglect, and their caretakers cannot be expected to provide
education savings for them. The bill will help foster youth
become more productive citizens.
CHAIR DAVIS said that she thinks the bill will be successful and
she looks forward to helping it pass through.
MIKE LESMANN, Community Relations Manager for the Office of
Children's Services (OCS), said that the OCS is very supportive
of the bill. The Faith-based and Community Initiatives Office of
the DHSS is also in support of the bill, and together the
offices look forward to developing information-sharing
procedures with the UA and directing monies donated to the
program.
2:05:16 PM
SENATOR COWDERY asked what will happen to the money if a foster
child doesn't use it.
GABE ACEVES, Staff to Senator Ellis, replied that the
beneficiary name on a given account can be changed if a youth
decides not to use the money.
2:06:35 PM
TERRA HORTON, Faith Based and Community Initiatives, said that
as a social worker she is aware of the challenges facing foster
youth. They are at a higher risk for many factors such as
poverty, drug abuse, homelessness, etc.; few are able to pursue
their desires for further education, financial difficulties
being the major deterrent. This bill would diminish the
financial challenge to these kids and let them lead more self-
sufficient, productive lives.
2:09:31 PM
SENATOR ELLIS thanked Ms. Horton for her participation in the
program.
2:10:03 PM
JIM LYNCH, Associate Vice President of Finance for the
University of Alaska, said that the UA supports SB 76 and has
participated in drafting the bill to see that it works in unison
with the college savings program. He said that the importance of
a college account creates or intensifies aspirations of foster
youth and it is an outstanding program that has no downsides.
The money can be switched around between beneficiaries and will
be invested as well.
2:12:25 PM
SENATOR ELLIS said that Mr. Lynch helped with making sure that
the legislation would work smoothly with the UA program.
MR. ACEVES explained that a provision in the bill makes children
in long-term, out-of-state foster care the highest funding
priority. The department may establish specific criteria as well
as the donors, but the two most important criteria are the age
of the child and the length of their stay in out-of-home care.
DAVIS asked if a child who ages out of the system can use the
funds at any point or they must do so immediately.
MR. ACEVES replied that the funds are good until the youth
reaches the age of 30.
MR. LYNCH added that there is no practical limitation within the
college savings program.
2:16:50 PM
CHIP WAGONER, the Executive Director for the Alaska Conference
of Catholic Bishops (ACCB), said that the bill is important
because the government cannot do everything in terms of
providing for youth; the community needs to take some of the
responsibility. The bill will provide a needed boost for foster
youth, and marketing the program is particularly important
because people, corporations, and non-profits need to know about
it to participate.
CHAIR DAVIS remarked that Alaskans are known to be giving
people, and the program will be successful. She added that the
bill will be brought before the committee in the near future.
There being no further business to come before the committee,
Chair Davis adjourned the meeting at 2:20:21 PM.
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