HF 2058

as introduced - 93rd Legislature (2023 - 2024) Posted on 03/06/2023 04:20pm

A bill for an act
relating to human services; establishing the cultural and ethnic minority
infrastructure grant program, grants for culturally specific provider consultations,
and a community health worker mental health training program; modifying medical
assistance reimbursement for mental health group settings; appropriating money;
amending Minnesota Statutes 2022, sections 245.4889, subdivision 1; 256B.0625,
subdivisions 18a, 49; proposing coding for new law in Minnesota Statutes, chapter
245.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA:

Section 1.

Minnesota Statutes 2022, section 245.4889, subdivision 1, is amended to read:

Subdivision 1.

Establishment and authority.

(a) The commissioner is authorized to
make grants from available appropriations to assist:

(1) counties;

(2) Indian tribes;

(3) children's collaboratives under section 124D.23 or 245.493; or

(4) mental health service providers.

(b) The following services are eligible for grants under this section:

(1) services to children with emotional disturbances as defined in section 245.4871,
subdivision 15, and their families;

(2) transition services under section 245.4875, subdivision 8, for young adults under
age 21 and their families;

(3) respite care services for children with emotional disturbances or severe emotional
disturbances who are at risk of out-of-home placement or already in out-of-home placement
in family foster settings as defined in chapter 245A and at risk of change in out-of-home
placement or placement in a residential facility or other higher level of care. Allowable
activities and expenses for respite care services are defined under subdivision 4. A child is
not required to have case management services to receive respite care services;

(4) children's mental health crisis services;

(5) mental health services for people from cultural and ethnic minorities, including
supervision of clinical trainees who are Black, indigenous, or people of color;

(6) children's mental health screening and follow-up diagnostic assessment and treatment;

(7) services to promote and develop the capacity of providers to use evidence-based
practices in providing children's mental health services;

(8) school-linked mental health services under section 245.4901;

(9) building evidence-based mental health intervention capacity for children birth to age
five;

(10) suicide prevention and counseling services that use text messaging statewide;

(11) mental health first aid training;

(12) training for parents, collaborative partners, and mental health providers on the
impact of adverse childhood experiences and trauma and development of an interactive
website to share information and strategies to promote resilience and prevent trauma;

(13) transition age services to develop or expand mental health treatment and supports
for adolescents and young adults 26 years of age or younger;

(14) early childhood mental health consultation;

(15) evidence-based interventions for youth at risk of developing or experiencing a first
episode of psychosis, and a public awareness campaign on the signs and symptoms of
psychosis;

(16) psychiatric consultation for primary care practitioners; deleted text begin and
deleted text end

(17) providers to begin operations and meet program requirements when establishing a
new children's mental health program. These may be start-up grants deleted text begin . deleted text end new text begin ; and
new text end

new text begin (18) mental health services based on traditional healing practices of cultural communities
including American Indian, Hmong, and Somali communities.
new text end

(c) Services under paragraph (b) must be designed to help each child to function and
remain with the child's family in the community and delivered consistent with the child's
treatment plan. Transition services to eligible young adults under this paragraph must be
designed to foster independent living in the community.

(d) As a condition of receiving grant funds, a grantee shall obtain all available third-party
reimbursement sources, if applicable.

Sec. 2.

new text begin [245.4907] CULTURAL AND ETHNIC MINORITY INFRASTRUCTURE
GRANT PROGRAM.
new text end

new text begin Subdivision 1. new text end

new text begin Establishment. new text end

new text begin The cultural and ethnic minority infrastructure grant
program is established in the Department of Human Services to ensure that mental health
and substance use disorder treatment supports and services are culturally specific and
culturally responsive to meet the cultural needs of the communities served.
new text end

new text begin Subd. 2. new text end

new text begin Eligible applicants. new text end

new text begin An eligible applicant is a licensed entity or provider from
a cultural or ethnic minority population who:
new text end

new text begin (1) provides mental health or substance use disorder treatment services and supports to
individuals from cultural and ethnic minority populations, including individuals who are
lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, or queer and from cultural and ethnic minority
populations;
new text end

new text begin (2) provides or is qualified and has the capacity to provide clinical supervision and
support to members of culturally diverse and ethnic minority communities to qualify as
mental health and substance use disorder treatment providers; or
new text end

new text begin (3) has the capacity and experience to provide training for mental health and substance
use disorder treatment providers on cultural competency and cultural humility.
new text end

new text begin Subd. 3. new text end

new text begin Allowable grant activities. new text end

new text begin (a) Cultural and ethnic minority infrastructure grant
program grantees must engage in activities and provide supportive services to ensure and
increase equitable access to culturally specific and responsive care and to build organizational
and professional capacity for licensure and certification for the communities served.
Allowable grant activities include but are not limited to:
new text end

new text begin (1) workforce development activities focused on recruiting, supporting, training, and
supervision activities for mental health and substance use disorder practitioners and
professionals from diverse racial, cultural, and ethnic communities;
new text end

new text begin (2) supporting members of culturally diverse and ethnic minority communities to qualify
as mental health and substance use disorder professionals, practitioners, clinical supervisors,
and recovery peer specialists; mental health certified peer specialists; and mental health
certified family peer specialists;
new text end

new text begin (3) culturally specific outreach, early intervention, trauma-informed services, and recovery
support in mental health and substance use disorder services;
new text end

new text begin (4) providing trauma-informed, culturally responsive mental health and substance use
disorder supports and services for children and families, youth, or adults who are from
cultural and ethnic minority backgrounds and are uninsured or underinsured;
new text end

new text begin (5) mental health and substance use disorder service expansion and infrastructure
improvement activities, particularly in greater Minnesota;
new text end

new text begin (6) training for mental health and substance use disorder treatment providers on cultural
competency and cultural humility; and
new text end

new text begin (7) activities to increase the availability of culturally responsive mental health and
substance use disorder services for children and families, youth, or adults or to increase the
availability of substance use disorder services for individuals from cultural and ethnic
minorities in the state.
new text end

new text begin (b) The commissioner must assist grantees with meeting third-party credentialing
requirements, and grantees must obtain all available third-party reimbursement sources as
a condition of receiving grant funds. Grantees must serve individuals from cultural and
ethnic minority communities regardless of health coverage status or ability to pay.
new text end

new text begin Subd. 4. new text end

new text begin Data collection and outcomes. new text end

new text begin Grantees must provide regular data summaries
to the commissioner for purposes of evaluating the effectiveness of the cultural and ethnic
minority infrastructure grant program. The commissioner must use identified culturally
appropriate outcome measures instruments to evaluate outcomes and must evaluate program
activities by analyzing whether the program:
new text end

new text begin (1) increased access to culturally specific services for individuals from cultural and
ethnic minority communities across the state;
new text end

new text begin (2) increased the number of individuals from cultural and ethnic minority communities
served by grantees;
new text end

new text begin (3) increased the cultural responsiveness and cultural competency of mental health and
substance use disorder treatment providers;
new text end

new text begin (4) increased the number of mental health and substance use disorder treatment providers
and clinical supervisors from cultural and ethnic minority communities;
new text end

new text begin (5) increased the number of mental health and substance use disorder treatment
organizations owned, managed, or led by individuals who are Black, Indigenous, or people
of color;
new text end

new text begin (6) reduced health disparities through improved clinical and functional outcomes for
those accessing services; and
new text end

new text begin (7) led to an overall increase in culturally specific mental health and substance use
disorder service availability.
new text end

Sec. 3.

Minnesota Statutes 2022, section 256B.0625, subdivision 18a, is amended to read:

Subd. 18a.

Access to medical services.

(a) Medical assistance reimbursement for meals
for persons traveling to receive medical care may not exceed $5.50 for breakfast, $6.50 for
lunch, or $8 for dinner.

(b) Medical assistance reimbursement for lodging for persons traveling to receive medical
care may not exceed $50 per day unless prior authorized by the local agency.

(c) Regardless of the number of employees that an enrolled health care provider may
have, medical assistance covers sign and oral language interpreter services when provided
by an enrolled health care provider during the course of providing a direct, person-to-person
covered health care service new text begin or a mental health service provided in a group setting new text end to an
enrolled recipient with limited English proficiency or who has a hearing loss and uses
interpreting services. Coverage for face-to-face oral language interpreter services shall be
provided only if the oral language interpreter used by the enrolled health care provider is
listed in the registry or roster established under section 144.058.

Sec. 4.

Minnesota Statutes 2022, section 256B.0625, subdivision 49, is amended to read:

Subd. 49.

Community health worker.

(a) Medical assistance covers the care
coordination and patient education services provided by a community health worker if the
community health worker has received a certificate from the Minnesota State Colleges and
Universities System approved community health worker curriculum.

(b) Community health workers must work under the supervision of a medical assistance
enrolled physician, registered nurse, advanced practice registered nurse, physician assistant,
mental health professional, or dentist, or work under the supervision of a certified public
health nurse operating under the direct authority of an enrolled unit of government.

(c) Care coordination and patient education services covered under this subdivision
include, but are not limited to, services relating to oral health and dental care.

new text begin (d) The commissioner shall collaborate with the Minnesota State Colleges and
Universities to establish a mental health training program consisting of at least 40 hours of
training for community health workers.
new text end

Sec. 5. new text begin APPROPRIATION.
new text end

new text begin $....... in fiscal year 2024 is appropriated from the general fund to the commissioner of
human services to fund interpreter services at intensive residential treatment facilities,
children's residential treatment centers, or psychiatric residential treatment facilities in order
for children or adults with limited English proficiency or for children or adults who are
fluent in another language to be able to access treatment. The commissioner shall use
$100,000 of this appropriation to contract with an organization to provide technical assistance
and training to residential providers on providing culturally appropriate treatment for adults
with limited English proficiency or for adults who are fluent in another language. Grantees
must track data on the demographics of the people they serve, the outcomes, and
recommendations for the future.
new text end

Sec. 6. new text begin APPROPRIATIONS; CULTURAL AND ETHNIC INFRASTRUCTURE
GRANT FUNDING.
new text end

new text begin $10,000,000 in fiscal year 2024 and $5,000,000 in fiscal year 2025 are appropriated
from the general fund to the commissioner of human services for grants under the cultural
and ethnic infrastructure grant program under Minnesota Statutes, section 245.4907.
new text end

Sec. 7. new text begin APPROPRIATIONS; CULTURALLY SPECIFIC PROVIDER
CONSULTATION.
new text end

new text begin $....... in fiscal year 2024 and $....... in fiscal year 2025 are appropriated from the general
fund to the commissioner of human services to pay for case specific consultation between
a mental health professional and the appropriate diverse mental health professional in order
to facilitate the provision of services that are culturally appropriate to a client's needs. This
cultural consultant will discuss the case with the referring clinician without seeing the patient
directly. The consulting mental health professional will discuss the situation and make
recommendations to the referring clinician. The consultations may be carried out in person,
by telephone, and through other real-time interactive media. The referring clinician and the
cultural consultant must be reimbursed for this service at the same rate based on length of
the consultation using reimbursement rates for mental health professional services. The
commissioner must determine if this service can be reimbursed under medical assistance.
new text end