2005 Health Legislation

During the 2005 session, the General Assembly enacted more than sixty bills and budget special provisions affecting public health, government health insurance, health care facilities, and the health care professions. The Current Operations and Capital Improvements Appropriations Act of 2005, S.L. 2005-276 (S 622), provides funding for a number of public health initiatives, including fifty new school nurse positions, grants for community-based programs to eliminate disparities in health status between majority and minority populations, and a pilot program to pay for interpreter services for local health department patients who do not speak English proficiently. A special provision in the appropriations act transfers children under age six from North Carolina Health Choice, the state children’s health insurance program, to the Medicaid program. Other special provisions create the Medicaid Ticket to Work program and establish new criteria for how Medicaid applicants may provide evidence of their North Carolina residency. A new law will require local health departments to obtain and maintain accreditation. Local authority to regulate smoking in public places has been expanded, and smoking inside buildings operated by the Department of Correction (DOC) has been prohibited. The tax on cigarettes increased from 5 cents to 30 cents per pack on September 1, 2005, and will rise to 35 cents per pack on July 1, 2006. The legislature was quite active in the area of school health. A new law requires local boards of education to adopt policies permitting students with asthma or life-threatening allergies to carry and self-administer medications. Another law regulates snacks and beverages in school vending machines. Special provisions in the appropriations act enact a new law requiring all students enrolling in public kindergarten to obtain a comprehensive eye examination and establish the Governor’s Vision Care Program to provide funds for early detection and correction of vision problems in children. The 2005 General Assembly provided for the licensure of perfusionists, the health care personnel who operate heart and lung machines. Several other new laws amend other licensure acts, including those applying to acupuncturists, recreational therapists, and occupational therapists. Two enacted bills make changes to the state’s certificate of need law that are the most significant the health care industry has experienced in over a decade. More than a dozen other new laws or special provisions that are not specifically directed to public health or health care nevertheless will be of interest to health professionals. They include the Identity Theft Protection Act and the Methamphetamine Lab Prevention Act. 42 North Carolina Legislation 2005 These and several other new laws are summarized in this chapter. Other chapters that summarize laws that may be of interest to public health or health care professionals include Chapter 4, “Children, Families, and Juvenile Law”; Chapter 11, “Environment and Natural Resources”; Chapter 16, “Mental Health”; Chapter 22, “Senior Citizens”; and Chapter 23, “Social Services.”