House Bill No. by Representative Bacala aims to enhance Medicaid program integrity by allowing the Louisiana Department of Revenue to share individual-level state income tax return data with the legislative auditor. The bill enacts new provisions in R.S. 24:513(Q) and R.S. 47:1508(B)(44), which authorize the legislative auditor to access this tax data specifically for ensuring the accuracy of Medicaid eligibility determinations, detecting and preventing fraud in the Medicaid program, and fulfilling requirements of the Medical Assistance Programs Integrity Law. The bill also allows the secretary of the Department of Revenue to enter into agreements necessary for facilitating this data sharing.

The proposed law retains existing confidentiality provisions regarding tax records while establishing clear guidelines for the use of the shared data. The legislative auditor is restricted to using the data solely for the specified purposes, and the secretary of the Department of Revenue is empowered to disclose this information under the new provisions. The bill is set to take effect upon the governor's signature or after the expiration of the time for bills to become law without signature.