Vermont S 63: An act relating to modifying the regulatory duties of the Green Mountain Care Board

Bill Text

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VT LEG #384283 v.1
No. 62. An act relating to modifying the regulatory duties of the Green
Mountain Care Board.
(S.63)
It is hereby enacted by the General Assembly of the State of Vermont:
Sec. 1. 18 V.S.A. § 9351 is amended to read:
§ 9351. HEALTH INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY PLAN
(a)(1) The Department of Vermont Health Access, in consultation with the
Department’s Health Information Exchange Steering Committee, shall be
responsible for the overall coordination of Vermont’s statewide Health
Information Technology Plan. The Plan shall be revised annually and updated
comprehensively every five years to provide a strategic vision for clinical
health information technology.
(2) The Department shall submit the proposed Plan to the Green
Mountain Care Board annually on or before November 1. The Green Mountain
Care Board shall approve, reject, or request modifications to the Plan within 45
days following its submission; if the Board has taken no action after 45 days,
the Plan shall be deemed to have been approved. [Repealed.]
(3)(A) The Department, in consultation with the Steering Committee,
shall administer the Plan.
(B) The Plan shall include the implementation of an integrated
electronic health information infrastructure for the sharing of electronic health
information among health care facilities, health care professionals, public and
private payers, and patients. The Plan shall provide for each patient’s

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electronic health information that is contained in the Vermont Health
Information Exchange to be accessible to health care facilities, health care
professionals, and public and private payers to the extent permitted under
federal law unless the patient has affirmatively elected not to have the patient’s
electronic health information shared in that manner.
(C) The Plan shall include standards and protocols designed to
promote patient education, patient privacy, physician best practices, electronic
connectivity to health care data, access to advance care planning documents,
and, overall, a more efficient and less costly means of delivering quality health
care in Vermont.
(D) A representative of the Green Mountain Care Board shall be a
voting member of the Steering Committee.
* * *
(c) The Department of Vermont Health Access, in consultation with the
Steering Committee and subject to Green Mountain Care Board approval, may
propose updates to the Plan in addition to the annual updates as needed to
reflect emerging technologies, the State’s changing needs, and such other areas
as the Department deems appropriate. The Department shall solicit
recommendations from interested stakeholders in order to propose updates to
the Health Information Technology Plan pursuant to subsection (a) of this
section and to this subsection, including applicable standards, protocols, and
pilot programs, and following approval of the proposed updates by the Green

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Mountain Care Board, may enter into a contract or grant agreement with
appropriate entities to update some or all of the Plan. Upon approval of the
updated Plan by the Green Mountain Care Board, the The Department of
Vermont Health Access shall distribute the updated Plan to the Secretary of
Administration; the Secretary of Digital Services; the Commissioner of
Financial Regulation; the Green Mountain Care Board; the Secretary of
Human Services; the Commissioner of Health; the Commissioner of Mental
Health; the Commissioner of Disabilities, Aging, and Independent Living; the
Senate Committee on Health and Welfare; the House Committee on Health
Care; affected parties; and interested stakeholders. Unless major modifications
are required, the Department may present updated information about the Plan
to the legislative committees of jurisdiction in lieu of creating a written report.
(d) The Health Information Technology Plan shall serve as the framework
within which the Green Mountain Care Board reviews certificate of need
applications for information technology under section 9440b of this title. In
addition, the Commissioner of Information and Innovation Secretary of Digital
Services shall use the Health Information Technology Plan as the basis for
independent review of State information technology procurements.
* * *
Sec. 2. 18 V.S.A. § 9352 is amended to read:
§ 9352. VERMONT INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY LEADERS
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(c) Health information exchange operation.
(1) VITL shall be designated in the Health Information Technology Plan
approved by the Green Mountain Care Board pursuant to section 9351 of this
title to operate the exclusive statewide health information exchange network
for this State. The Plan shall determine the manner in which Vermont’s health
information exchange network shall be managed. The Green Mountain Care
Board shall have the authority to approve VITL’s budget pursuant to chapter
220 of this title. Nothing i