The bill establishes the New Hampshire Children's Behavioral Health Association as a nonprofit corporation dedicated to evaluating the costs associated with childhood behavioral health services for children aged 18 and younger. It introduces new definitions such as "assessable coverage," "assessable entity," and "childhood behavioral health services," and outlines the association's responsibilities, including the preparation of articles of association, bylaws, and annual assessments. The governance structure will include a board of directors comprising representatives from various assessable entities, healthcare providers, and state officials. The association will coordinate care for youth with complex behavioral health challenges and ensure accessibility to services for children under 19 with assessable coverage, excluding those covered by Medicaid.

Additionally, the bill amends RSA 135-F by inserting a new subdivision that details the framework for the association, while no specific legal language is deleted. It establishes a Childhood Behavioral Health Services Fund funded through assessments from assessable entities, mandates annual reports to the commissioner of insurance, and allows for the collection of assessments. The bill also amends RSA 417-E:1, V-a to require health insurers to submit comparative analyses of benefits for children, ensuring compliance with parity laws. Furthermore, it provides tax exemptions for the association and immunity from liability for its members. The fiscal impact is indeterminable, with potential increases in state revenues and expenditures exceeding $2.5 million annually, and the bill is set to take effect 60 days after passage.

Statutes affected:
Introduced: 417-E:1