SB 359

This bill requires the Department of Health Services (DHS) to create and

administer a child psychiatry consultation program (consultation program) to assist

participating clinicians in providing enhanced care to pediatric patients with mild

to moderate health care needs, to provide referral support for those patients who

need care beyond the scope of primary practice, and to provide additional services.

The consultation program is not an emergency referral service. Before January 1,

2015, DHS must review proposals submitted by organizations seeking to provide

consultation services through this consultation program (consultation providers)

and must designate one urban and one rural regional program hub based on

organizations' submitted proposals. Beginning on January 1, 2016, DHS must

create additional regional program hubs to expand the consultation program

statewide.

Under the bill, DHS must select qualified providers to provide consultation

program services. To be a qualified consultation provider, an organization must

demonstrate it meets certain criteria as specified in the bill. While required to have

the capability to provide consultation services by telephone, a consultation provider

may provide services by certain other means of communication including in-person

conference. A consultation provider may also provide the following services, which

are eligible for funding from DHS: certain second opinion diagnostic and medication

management evaluations and certain in-person or Internet site-based educational

seminars and refresher courses provided to any participating clinician who uses the

consultation program. Beginning on January 1, 2016, a consultation provider must

report annually to DHS all of the following: a record of each request for consultation

services including certain information specified in the bill; consultation service

response times, the total number of requests for consultation services, the total

number of cases for which consultation services are provided, and the total number

of individuals and practices requesting consultation services; and a description of the

recruitment and educational efforts conducted by the consultation provider.

The bill also requires the department to conduct annual surveys of

participating clinicians who use the consultation program and conduct interviews of

participating clinicians who use the consultation program.