1.1                          A bill for an act
  1.2             relating to health; providing a senior citizen 
  1.3             prescription drug benefit under the MinnesotaCare 
  1.4             program; appropriating money; amending Minnesota 
  1.5             Statutes 1996, section 256.9354, by adding a 
  1.6             subdivision; proposing coding for new law in Minnesota 
  1.7             Statutes, chapter 256. 
  1.8   BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA: 
  1.9      Section 1.  Minnesota Statutes 1996, section 256.9354, is 
  1.10  amended by adding a subdivision to read:  
  1.11     Subd. 8.  [QUALIFIED SENIOR CITIZENS.] Beginning January 1, 
  1.12  1998, the definition of "eligible persons" is expanded to 
  1.13  include senior citizens eligible under section 256.9370. 
  1.14     Sec. 2.  [256.9370] [PRESCRIPTION DRUG BENEFIT FOR 
  1.15  QUALIFIED SENIOR CITIZENS.] 
  1.16     Subdivision 1.  [PRESCRIPTION DRUG BENEFIT 
  1.17  COVERAGE.] Beginning January 1, 1998, qualified senior citizens 
  1.18  are eligible for coverage of prescription drugs under 
  1.19  MinnesotaCare.  Coverage is limited to prescription drugs 
  1.20  covered under the medical assistance program.  Qualified senior 
  1.21  citizens are not eligible for MinnesotaCare coverage of services 
  1.22  listed under section 256.9353, other than prescription drug 
  1.23  coverage. 
  1.24     Subd. 2.  [QUALIFIED SENIOR CITIZEN.] (a) For purposes of 
  1.25  this section, "qualified senior citizen" means an individual age 
  1.26  65 or older who: 
  2.1      (1) has a household income that does not exceed 200 percent 
  2.2   of the federal poverty guidelines; 
  2.3      (2) is enrolled in Medicare Part A and Part B; 
  2.4      (3) does not have coverage for prescription drugs under a 
  2.5   health plan, as defined in section 62Q.01, subdivision 3; 
  2.6      (4) does not have coverage for prescription drugs under a 
  2.7   Medicare supplement plan, as defined in sections 62A.31 to 
  2.8   62A.44, or policies, contracts, or certificates that supplement 
  2.9   Medicare issued by health maintenance organizations or those 
  2.10  policies, contracts, or certificates governed by section 1833 or 
  2.11  1876 of the federal Social Security Act, United States Code, 
  2.12  title 42, section 1395, et seq., as amended; 
  2.13     (5) is not eligible for medical assistance without a 
  2.14  spenddown or general assistance medical care without a 
  2.15  spenddown; 
  2.16     (6) has not had coverage described in clauses (3) and (4) 
  2.17  for at least four months prior to application for MinnesotaCare; 
  2.18  and 
  2.19     (7) is a permanent resident of Minnesota as defined in 
  2.20  section 256.9359. 
  2.21     (b) Persons who initially enrolled in MinnesotaCare under 
  2.22  subdivision 1 and whose income increases above the limits 
  2.23  established in that subdivision may continue enrollment but must 
  2.24  pay the full cost of coverage. 
  2.25     Subd. 3.  [PREMIUM PAYMENTS AND COST SHARING.] (a) 
  2.26  MinnesotaCare enrollees who are qualified senior citizens must 
  2.27  pay premiums according to the sliding scale established under 
  2.28  section 256.9358. 
  2.29     (b) MinnesotaCare enrollees who are qualified senior 
  2.30  citizens must pay prescription drug copayments as required under 
  2.31  section 256.9353, subdivision 7. 
  2.32     Subd. 4.  [OTHER MINNESOTACARE REQUIREMENTS.] Eligibility 
  2.33  and covered services for MinnesotaCare enrollees who are 
  2.34  qualified senior citizens shall be determined as provided in 
  2.35  this section and section 256.9353, subdivisions 1 to 7, and 
  2.36  section 256.9357 shall no longer apply.  All other provisions of 
  3.1   sections 256.9351 to 256.9363 shall continue to apply unless 
  3.2   otherwise specified in this section. 
  3.3      Sec. 3.  [APPROPRIATION.] 
  3.4      $....... is appropriated from the health care access fund 
  3.5   to the commissioner of human services for the biennium ending 
  3.6   June 30, 1999, to implement section 1.