Resolve, Directing the Department of Health and Human Services To Study Providing Medical Assistance to Maine's Inhabited Islands

Sec. 1. Medical assistance for island residents study. Resolved: That the Department of Health and Human Services shall study the feasibility of, need for and cost of providing nonemergency medical care for residents and visitors on all the year-round inhabited islands in the State via telemedicine as defined in the Maine Revised Statutes, Title 24-A, section 4316, subsection 1. The study must consider a program that uses a means of telemedicine transmission that ensures the confidentiality of patients' medical information as required by state and federal laws and the training of at least one person on each island in the use of telemedicine tools. The study must also consider the cost to the State if telemedicine services to island resident MaineCare patients are reimbursed by the MaineCare program; and be it further

Sec. 2. Report. Resolved: That the Department of Health and Human Services shall report its findings under section 1, along with any suggested legislation, to the Joint Standing Committee on Health and Human Services no later than January 15, 2016. The joint standing committee may report out a bill to the Second Regular Session of the 127th Legislature related to the report.

SUMMARY

This resolve requires the Department of Health and Human Services to study the feasibility of, need for and cost of providing telemedicine medical assistance for residents and visitors on all the year-round inhabited islands in the State and to report to the Joint Standing Committee on Health and Human Services no later than January 15, 2016.