Kansas 2025-2026 Regular Session

Kansas House Bill HB2742

Introduced
2/6/26  

Caption

Enacting the family rights in medical investigations act to provide requirements for the reporting of suspicions of abuse or neglect of a child for medical professionals and require a medical professional to provide notice to a parent of a CARE exam and allow parents to request a second medical opinion.

Impact

The legislation has a notable impact on existing state laws surrounding child welfare and medical reporting. It stipulates that a parent or guardian has the right to seek a second medical opinion from a healthcare professional who is not affiliated with the original case. This second opinion becomes part of the evidence considered in any subsequent investigation by the department. Such provisions seek to give more voice and choice to parents involved in potential child abuse cases.

Summary

House Bill 2742, known as the Family Rights in Medical Investigations Act, introduces significant changes to the process through which medical professionals report suspicions of child abuse or neglect. The bill mandates that before issuing an opinion asserting abuse or neglect, medical professionals must document reasonable consideration of alternative medical explanations for the condition of a child. This aims to ensure a thorough evaluation before declaring something as abuse or neglect, thereby protecting both children and their rights.

Conclusion

Overall, HB2742 reflects an attempt to refine the reporting processes associated with childhood abuse allegations while ensuring that the rights of parents and guardians are considered. It promotes transparency and collaboration between medical professionals and families but raises significant questions about the practical implications of its requirements in urgent care scenarios.

Contention

During discussions of HB2742, there were points of contention regarding the balance between child welfare and parental rights. Some advocates expressed that while it is essential to prevent child abuse, the procedural changes introduced by the bill could complicate and delay essential protective actions. Critics highlighted that the requirement for additional medical opinions might hinder prompt responses to legitimate cases of abuse, raising concerns about safety and child welfare.

Companion Bills

No companion bills found.

Previously Filed As

KS HB2002

Expanding medical assistance eligibility and enacting the cutting healthcare costs for all Kansans act.

KS HB2001

Authorizing the secretary of commerce to enter into agreements with major professional sports franchises to establish STAR bond projects for a major professional sports complex, providing for additional revenue sources, expanding the powers and discretion of the secretary and making other changes to the STAR bonds financing act to facilitate such projects, limiting the secretary’s authority to approve such projects to one year unless extended by the legislative coordinating council, authorizing the Kansas development finance authority to issue STAR bonds for such projects, transferring funds under certain circumstances from the state gaming revenues fund to the attracting professional sports to Kansas fund for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2025, and, if approved by the legislative coordinating council, for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2026.

KS SB6

Providing a sales tax exemption for sales of electricity to residential premises by municipally owned or operated utilities.

KS HB2003

Establishing the veterans' valor property tax relief act providing for an income tax credit or refund for eligible individuals, modifying the definition of household income and increasing the appraised value threshold for eligibility of seniors and disabled veterans related to increased property tax claims and citing the section as the homeowners' property tax freeze program, providing property tax exemptions for certain personal property including watercraft, marine equipment, off-road vehicles, motorized bicycles and certain trailers, excluding internal revenue code section 1031 exchange transactions as indicators of fair market value, providing for certain exclusions from the prohibition of paying taxes under protest after a valuation notice appeal and providing four prior years' values on the annual valuation notice.

KS SB2

Eliminating the income limit to qualify for the subtraction modification exempting social security benefits, increasing the income tax credit amount for household and dependent care expenses, establishing the veterans' valor property tax relief act providing for an income tax credit or refund for eligible individuals, citing the increased property tax homestead refund claim section as the homeowners' property tax freeze program, decreasing the normal privilege tax rate, increasing the extent of property tax exemption for residential property from the statewide school levy, decreasing the rate of ad valorem tax imposed by a school district; providing for certain transfers to the state school district finance fund, reducing the state rate of tax on sales of food and food ingredients and modifying the percent credited to the state highway fund from revenue collected.

KS SB7

Authorizing federally licensed firearm dealers, in addition to county sheriffs, to receive applications for concealed carry licenses and forward such applications to the attorney general, prohibiting sheriffs from assessing any fee related to application services and allowing dealers to assess a fee related to application services not to exceed $20.

KS SB8

Exempting the sale of firearms, firearms accessories, ammunition, firearm safes and firearm safety devices from the retatilers' sales tax.

KS SB1

Modifying income tax rates for individuals, exempting all social security benefits from Kansas income tax, increasing the Kansas standard deduction and the Kansas personal exemption, increasing the income tax credit amount for household and dependent care expenses, decreasing the privilege tax normal tax, excluding internal revenue code section 1031 exchange transactions as indicators of fair market value for property tax valuation purposes, increasing the extent of property tax exemption for residential property from the statewide school levy, providing for certain transfers to the state school district finance fund and abolishing the local ad valorem tax reduction fund and the county and city revenue sharing fund.

KS SB3

Clarifying the procedures and restrictions on accepting a nomination for an elected office.

KS HB2004

Authorizing counties to propose an earnings tax for ballot question.

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