The entire record of the previous legislative session (Thursday, January 14) can be found here.
Key legislation that was passed, most of it previously discussed here, included:
HB 202 (Rep. B. Short)-Designed to protect policyholders when a health or life insurance company is liquidated. Pretty sure that this bill was a Matt Denn proposal from his time as IC. Passed by both houses, will go to Governor.
HB 30 (Jaques)-Increases assessments on developers to reflect current school construction costs. Was sponsored primarily by the Middletown-area legislators to try to get a grip on exploding development. Passed House and goes to Senate. Vigorously opposed by homebuilders’ lobby. 13 Rethugs voted no. Here’s the roll call.
HB 294 (Bennett)-Passed the House w/o a dissenting vote, but will bear watching in the Senate. The bill basically eliminates some elective row office jobs in Kent County and transfers the functions to the Kent County Department of Finance. Good government bill, eliminates some political hackery in county government. So why, El Somnambulo, does this bill bear watching in the Senate?
Glad’ja asked. Because Her Royal High Potentate Nancy Cook has decreed this bill as anathema to building a career for up-and-coming political talent, and she still throws her not insubstantial avoirdupois around in the Senate. It will be interesting to see what committee is assigned this bill. As to her argument about political talent, I have two words for her: Mike and Kozakowski. I rest my case.
The Session Report for January 14 also lists some newly-introduced bills. I will not generally discuss them here as I usually leave that for my committee meeting previews and wrapups.
Today’s Preview:
Not many bills on the agenda, but a few interesting ones, including a seemingly-innocuous bill that, in fact, is a window into the Delaware Way:
Only bill on the agenda is nevertheless an intriguing one:
SB 81 (Sokola)-Would require chain restaurants to provide labels with complete and accurate nutritional information. There would also be an educational outreach by the Division of Public Health on obesity.
While I admire the intent of this bill, (a) the cynic in me believes that people who go to fast food places already know that the food is laden with all kinds of bad things, and they don’t care; and (b) if you’re gonna do this, why limit it to fast food places? I love Italian food, but I’ve always got a cardiologist on speed-dial when I go to an Italian restaurant. Should make for an interesting floor debate.
Now, kids, sidle up closer to your computer screen as I e-whisper you some nasty facts about the Delaware Way. But, first, I’ve got an audience participation assignment for you. Read this bill, which is on today’s House Agenda:
HB 3 (Hudson)-Would add a representative from the Delaware Health Care Facilities Association to the Hospital Infection Advisory Board.
First, here is the section of the Code delineating the current members of this Board:
(c)(1) The Secretary of the Department shall appoint an Advisory Committee, which shall include 1 infection control professional who has responsibility for infection control programs from each hospital or health care system in Delaware, 4 infection disease physicians with expertise in infection control, and 1 representative from the State Division of Public Health and the Public Health Hospital Infections Specialist responsible for collating and reporting data. The Secretary shall also appoint 7 other members of the Committee including representatives from direct care nursing staff, academic researchers, consumer organizations, health insurers, health maintenance organizations, organized labor and purchasers of health insurance, such as employers. The Advisory Committee shall have the authority to engage personnel with appropriate training and/or certification in infection prevention and control for the purposes of collecting data.
To that list of 7, this bill would add a lobbyist. The Delaware Health Care Facilities Association primarily lobbies for the nursing home industry. Its Executive Director, Yrene Waldron, led the fight on behalf of the nursing home industry to thwart nursing home reform in Delaware. With Vince Meconi as Secretary of DHSS, she largely succeeded. Nursing homes are notorious for doing a poor job with infections. When they get bad enough, the patients are sent to the Emergency Room where the blame game between hospitals and nursing homes as to who was responsible, ensues. And, DHCFA’s director has led the fight to keep accurate nursing home infection information from the public.
While it may indeed make sense to have a front-line nursing home provider on this board, the public is in no way served by having a hired lobbyist on this board, especially one who has proven hostile to even the most minimal of reform efforts.
We hear talk all the time about ‘special interest’ legislation. Generally, by Rethugs who call anything helping the poor or working families as benefiting the special interests. However, HB 3 is true special interest legislation. If they are serious about changing the Delaware Way, the House of Representatives will shoot this worthless, and possibly damaging, piece of legislation down today.
Back tomorrow, with bold opinions and boldface in tow.