Existing law creates a health district in any county whose population is 700,000 or more (currently Clark County), which has jurisdiction over all public health matters in the health district. (NRS 439.361, 439.362, 439.366) Existing law authorizes the creation of a health district with similar jurisdiction in counties whose population is less than 700,000 (currently all counties other than Clark County), subject to the approval by the State Board of Health, by affirmative vote of: (1) the board of county commissioners of two or more counties; (2) the governing bodies of two or more cities or towns within any county; or (3) the board of county commissioners and the governing body or bodies of any incorporated city or cities, town or towns, in such a county. (NRS 439.370) Existing law requires each county which is not within a health district to establish a county board of health. (NRS 439.280, 439.362, 439.380) Section 2 of this bill defines the term “health authority” for the purposes of this bill to include county boards of health, health districts and federally recognized Indian tribes which are located in whole or in part in this State. Existing law requires each insurer to pay to the Department of Taxation a tax upon net direct premiums and net direct considerations written at the rate of 3.5 percent. (NRS 680B.027) Section 3 of this bill creates the Account for Public Health in the State General Fund and requires the Division of Public and Behavioral Health of the Department of Health and Human Services to administer the Account. Section 7 of this bill requires the State Treasurer to deposit: (1) the first $30,000,000 of revenues collected from the tax on net direct premiums and net direct considerations during each biennium in the Account; and (2) any revenues collected from the tax during the biennium in excess of $30,000,000 in the State General Fund. Section 3 requires the Division to use any money which is deposited in the Account to: (1) protect and promote public health; and (2) make allocations to health authorities in certain specified percentages of the total money deposited in the Account during the biennium. Section 3 requires the Division to submit to the State Board of Health a report regarding the use of money in the Account. Section 4 of this bill requires the Division to publish on its Internet website, on or before December 1 of each odd-numbered year, an estimate of the amount of money in the Account which will be available for allocation to health authorities for the biennium. Section 4 authorizes a health authority, on or before January 1 of each even-numbered year, to submit to the Division a request for an allocation from the Account, which must be accompanied by a proposal for the use of the allocation that includes certain information. Section 4 requires the Division to make allocations from the Account on or before April 1 of each even-numbered year to health authorities whose requests are approved and provides that money which is not expended or committed for expenditure by the health authority before June 30 of an odd-numbered year reverts to the Account. Section 4 requires a health authority that receives an allocation from the Account to submit a report to the Division concerning the use of the allocated money. Existing law authorizes a district board of health within a health district to exercise the powers, duties and authority of a county board of health within the health district and establishes the membership of a district board of health. (NRS 439.362, 439.366, 439.380, 439.390) Sections 5 and 6 of this bill revise the membership of a district board of health in counties whose population is 700,000 or more (currently Clark County) and counties whose population is less than 700,000 (currently all counties other than Clark County) to add a member selected by the Speaker of the Assembly and a member selected by the Majority Leader of the Senate. Existing law requires: (1) the Director of the Department to adopt regulations to prescribe a framework for the electronic maintenance, transmittal and exchange of electronic health records, prescriptions, health-related information and electronic signatures and requirements for electronic equivalents of written entries or written approvals; and (2) the Department and the divisions thereof, other state and local governmental entities, health care providers and certain entities involved in the business of health insurance to maintain, transmit and exchange health information in accordance with that framework and certain other provisions of law governing electronic health records. (NRS 439.539) Section 8 of this bill requires each health authority that receives an allocation of money from the Account in 2026 to: (1) develop a framework to ensure compliance with those requirements and otherwise promote interoperability with networks and technologies used by certain persons and entities involved in the provision of health care; and (2) submit the framework to the Division and the Legislature. Section 8 requires a health authority to use that allocation of money from the Account to pay the costs associated with developing the framework.

Statutes affected:
As Introduced: 439.362, 439.390, 680B.060
BDR: 439.362, 439.390, 680B.060