1.1                          A bill for an act 
  1.2             relating to medical assistance; combining the 
  1.3             alternative care program and the home- and 
  1.4             community-based services waiver for the elderly 
  1.5             program. 
  1.6   BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA: 
  1.7      Section 1.  [ELDERLY PROGRAMS COMBINED.] 
  1.8      (a) The commissioner of human services shall develop a plan 
  1.9   for presentation to the 1997 legislature to combine the 
  1.10  alternative care program under Minnesota Statutes, section 
  1.11  256B.0913, and the home- and community-based services waiver for 
  1.12  the elderly program under Minnesota Statutes, section 256B.0915, 
  1.13  into one program.  
  1.14     (b) The plan shall provide one set of eligibility criteria, 
  1.15  one list of covered services, one monthly spending cap, and one 
  1.16  method of calculating client payment obligations to replace 
  1.17  current requirements of both programs. 
  1.18     (c) The commissioner shall quantify the state 
  1.19  administrative savings that will result from this section and 
  1.20  must include in the plan a proposal for using the administrative 
  1.21  savings to begin eliminating inequities in payment rates in the 
  1.22  two programs.  The plan must include recommendations for 
  1.23  implementing one standard set of payment rates by June 30, 1998. 
  1.24     (d) The plan must be reported to the legislature by 
  1.25  December 15, 1996. 
  2.1      Sec. 2.  [FEDERAL LAW CHANGES.] 
  2.2      If federal law changes do not occur in order to permit the 
  2.3   implementation of section 1, the commissioner shall report by 
  2.4   December 15, 1996, on the feasibility of combining the two 
  2.5   programs under existing federal law.