By: Talarico H.B. No. 89
 
 
 
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
 
AN ACT
  relating to county and municipal authority regarding certain
  medical and health care billing by ambulance service providers.
         BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
         SECTION 1.  Section 113.902(a), Local Government Code, is
  amended to read as follows:
         (a)  Except as provided by Section 140.013, the  [The] county
  treasurer shall direct prosecution for the recovery of any debt
  owed to the county, as provided by law, and shall supervise the
  collection of the debt.
         SECTION 2.  Chapter 140, Local Government Code, is amended
  by adding Section 140.013 to read as follows:
         Sec. 140.013. BALANCE BILLING FOR COUNTY AND MUNICIPAL
  AMBULANCE SERVICES. (a) "Balance billing" means the practice of
  charging an enrollee in a health benefit plan to recover from the
  enrollee the balance of a health care provider's fee for a service
  received by the enrollee from the health care provider that is not
  fully reimbursed by the enrollee's health benefit plan.
         (b)  A county or municipality may elect to consider a health
  benefit plan payment towards a claim for air or ground ambulance
  services provided by the county or municipality as payment in full
  for those services regardless of the amount the county or
  municipality charged for those services.
         (c)  A county or municipality may not practice balance
  billing for a claim for which the county or municipality makes an
  election under Subsection (b).
         SECTION 3.  This Act takes effect September 1, 2023.