With General Assembly members on spring break last week, NCMS has been getting caught up on a torrent of bills filed. All bills being considered by the Senate are now filed, with many impactful ones filed at the last minute.
Of note is SB 639, which, among many provisions, would change current minor consent law. As currently written, minors can consent to treatment for pregnancy, venereal disease, emotional disturbance, and abuse of controlled substances. This bill would remove those exceptions and only allow consent for these treatments from emancipated minors.
Here some the other bills of note we are tracking:
SB 467/HB 552, MOMnibus Act: Various policies and appropriations for programs based around birth peoples, especially black women.
SB 491/HB 587, NC Genetic Counselors Workforce Act: Would establish a Genetic Counselors Licensure Board and formally regulate the process of genetic counseling.
SB 513/HB557, North Carolina Healing Arts Commission: Would allow naturopathic doctors to prescribe with a formulary and more through a licensing process. Also creates a healing arts commission and create licensure for reflexologists and music therapists.
SB 597, Pharmacists/Collaborative Practice: Would create new rules that would expand pharmacist/physician collaborative practice which would expand pharmacist scope to allow testing and therapy.
SB 624/HB576, Health Care Practitioner Transparency Act: Would require name badges with licensure status on them to be worn in medical settings.
SB 641, Medical Ethics Defense (MED) Act: Would not allow termination or other career impediments for health care professionals/payers who refuse to participate or pay for certain medical practices based on conscience (defined as moral, religious, or ethical beliefs and principals, as well as these same values in a company’s publishes guidelines, mission, etc.).
Find the full summary of the above bills here.