1.1 	A bill for an act
1.2 	relating to public health; requiring the commissioner of health to research and 
1.3 	report on autism; requiring the Department of Human Services to train autism 
1.4 	service providers; requiring notification of autism service options for medical 
1.5 	assistance and MinnesotaCare recipients.
1.6 	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA:

1.7 	Section 1. AUTISM RESEARCH AND REPORT.
 1.8 	The Department of Health shall study the prevalence and prevention of autism in 
1.9 	Somali communities in Minnesota. They shall review and analyze the magnitude and 
1.10 	incidence of autism-related health disparities according to age, location, potential or known 
1.11 	toxic environmental exposures, housing conditions, poverty, nutritional factors, health 
1.12 	care access including prescribed medical treatments, the occupational and residential 
1.13 	history of the children's parents, and the children's current residence. The Department of 
1.14 	Health shall report results of their analysis and recommendations to the Public Health and 
1.15 	Health and Human Services Committee chairs in the house of representatives and senate.

1.16 	Sec. 2. AUTISM NOTIFICATION.
 1.17 	The commissioner of human services shall develop an informational notice for 
1.18 	parents of children with autism who are enrolled in medical assistance or MinnesotaCare 
1.19 	to inform them that their children may qualify to receive services on a fee-for-service basis 
1.20 	instead of through a managed care organization, explain the process of disenrolling from 
1.21 	managed care, and inform them that fee-for-service coverage may provide access to an 
1.22 	expanded set of providers. The commissioner shall make the informational notice available 
1.23 	on the department's public Web site and include a copy of the notice in the next scheduled 
2.1 	mailing to enrolled children. The commissioner shall make language translations of the 
2.2 	notice available on the Web site and in the mailing to the enrolled children.

2.3 	Sec. 3. TRAINING OF AUTISM SERVICE PROVIDERS.
 2.4 	The Departments of Health and Human Services shall ensure that the departments' 
2.5 	autism-related service providers receive training in culturally appropriate approaches 
2.6 	to the Somali, Latino, Hmong, Indigenous American Indian, and other cultural groups 
2.7 	experiencing a disproportionate incidence of autism.