HF 715

Introduction - 94th Legislature (2025 - 2026)

Posted on 03/24/2025 04:08 p.m.

A bill for an act
relating to health; increasing medical assistance payment rates for ambulance
services; amending Minnesota Statutes 2024, section 256B.0625, subdivision 17a.

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

Section 1.

Minnesota Statutes 2024, section 256B.0625, subdivision 17a, is amended to
read:

Subd. 17a.

Payment for ambulance services.

(a) Medical assistance covers ambulance
services. Providers shall bill ambulance services according to Medicare criteria.
Nonemergency ambulance services shall not be paid as emergencies. Effective for services
rendered on or after July 1, 2001, medical assistance payments for ambulance services shall
be paid at the Medicare reimbursement rate or at the medical assistance payment rate in
effect on July 1, 2000, whichever is greater.

(b) Effective for services provided on or after July 1, 2016, medical assistance payment
rates for ambulance services identified in this paragraph are increased by five percent.
Capitation payments made to managed care plans and county-based purchasing plans for
ambulance services provided on or after January 1, 2017, shall be increased to reflect this
rate increase. The increased rate described in this paragraph applies to ambulance service
providers whose base of operations as defined in section 144E.10 is located:

(1) outside the metropolitan counties listed in section 473.121, subdivision 4, and outside
the cities of Duluth, Mankato, Moorhead, St. Cloud, and Rochester; or

(2) within a municipality with a population of less than 1,000.

new text begin (c) Effective for services provided statewide on or after January 1, 2026, medical
assistance payment rates for ambulance services are increased by ... percent. Capitation
payments made to managed care plans and county-based purchasing plans for ambulance
services provided on or after January 1, 2026, must be increased to reflect this rate increase.
new text end

deleted text begin (c) deleted text end new text begin (d) new text end Effective for the first day of each calendar quarter in which the price of gasoline
as posted publicly by the United States Energy Information Administration exceeds $3.00
per gallon, the commissioner shall adjust the rate paid per mile in paragraph (a) by one
percent up or down for every increase or decrease of ten cents for the price of gasoline. The
increase or decrease must be calculated using a base gasoline price of $3.00. The percentage
increase or decrease must be calculated using the average of the most recently available
price of all grades of gasoline for Minnesota as posted publicly by the United States Energy
Information Administration.

deleted text begin (d) deleted text end new text begin (e) new text end Managed care plans and county-based purchasing plans must provide a fuel
adjustment for ambulance services rates when fuel exceeds $3 per gallon. If, for any contract
year, federal approval is not received for this paragraph, the commissioner must adjust the
capitation rates paid to managed care plans and county-based purchasing plans for that
contract year to reflect the removal of this provision. Contracts between managed care plans
and county-based purchasing plans and providers to whom this paragraph applies must
allow recovery of payments from those providers if capitation rates are adjusted in accordance
with this paragraph. Payment recoveries must not exceed the amount equal to any increase
in rates that results from this paragraph. This paragraph expires if federal approval is not
received for this paragraph at any time.