Allows for reimbursement of transportation costs for emergency care without prior authorization by the social services official including emergency medical transportation by an ambulance service certified under article 30 of the public health law; and further authorizes the commissioner of health to establish a reimbursement methodology to ensure providers are reimbursed.
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
5068
2009-2010 Regular Sessions
IN SENATE
April 27, 2009
___________
Introduced by Sen. THOMPSON -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
printed to be committed to the Committee on Social Services
AN ACT to amend the social services law, in relation to reimbursement of
transportation costs for emergency care
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. Subdivision 1 of section 365-h of the social services law,
2 as added by chapter 81 of the laws of 1995, is amended and a new subdi-
3 vision 4 is added to read as follows:
4 1. The local social services official shall have responsibility for
5 prior authorizing transportation of eligible persons and for limiting
6 the provision of such transportation to those recipients and circum-
7 stances where such transportation is essential, medically necessary and
8 appropriate to obtain medical care, services or supplies otherwise
9 available under this title. However, prior authorization shall not be
10 required for transportation to obtain emergency care, including emergen-
11 cy medical transportation by an ambulance service certified under arti-
12 cle thirty of the public health law.
13 4. With respect to transportation and care provided to an eligible
14 person by an ambulance service certified under article thirty of the
15 public health law, the commissioner of the department of health shall
16 establish a reimbursement methodology that ensures that providers are
17 reimbursed at the greater of the medical assistance rate in effect on
18 the effective date of this subdivision, or the medicare allowable charge
19 (pursuant to title XVIII of the federal social security act) for such
20 transportation and care. The amount of increase in reimbursement
21 produced by this methodology over what would otherwise have been paid
22 shall be phased in as follows: in the state fiscal year in which the
23 provisions of this subdivision become a law, thirty-three percent; in
24 the following state fiscal year, sixty-six percent; and in the second
25 state fiscal year following the state fiscal year in which the
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD06378-04-9
S. 5068 2
1 provisions of this subdivision become a law and all subsequent fiscal
2 years, one hundred percent.
3 § 2. Subdivision 1 of section 368-a of the social services law is
4 amended by adding a new paragraph (z) to read as follows:
5 (z) Notwithstanding any inconsistent provision of this chapter or any
6 other provision of law to the contrary, one hundred percent of the
7 amount expended for medical assistance under this title for transporta-
8 tion and care furnished under subdivision four of section three hundred
9 sixty-five-h of this title on or after April first, two thousand ten,
10 after first deducting therefrom any federal funds properly received or
11 to be received on account thereof.
12 § 3. This act shall take effect April 1, 2010.
