HHS committee report signed, awaits House discussion

The omnibus health and human services conference committee report now awaits discussion on the House and Senate floors.

Sponsored by Rep. Matt Dean (R-Dellwood) and Sen. Michelle Benson (R-Ham Lake), HF945/SF800* would cut $482.44 million from projected state spending during the 2018-19 biennium. It also would transition Minnesotans from MNsure, the state-run insurance marketplace, to a federally facilitated marketplace. Conferees agreed to the report late Monday.

MORE View the spreadsheet

Funding provisions remain the same as the report adopted May 1.

These include:

• $4.16 million to provide school-linked mental health grants, allowing students to receive early intervention and care at their schools;
• $3.52 million to reduce service fees by 25 percent for parents of children who are disabled;
• $3.25 million to provide long-term homelessness support services, housing for mentally ill adults, transitional housing and emergency shelters;
• $3.44 million to provide a rate increase for complex services provided by personal care assistants; and
• $1.38 million to fund a $13 per month increase in cash assistance for families in the Minnesota Family Investment Program, though the program is expected to save $62,000 over the 2018-19 biennium.