Texas House Bill HB 4643

Texas 2025 - 89th Regular

• Filed: 3/12/25
• Out of House Committee: 4/21/25
• Voted on by House: 4/30/25
• Out of Senate Committee: 5/15/25
• Voted on by Senate: 5/20/25
• Governor Action: 6/20/25

Caption

Relating to access to criminal history record information that relates to providers and provider applicants under Medicaid and other public benefits programs administered by the Health and Human Services Commission.

Summary

HB 4643 expands and clarifies the Texas Health and Human Services Commission’s authority to obtain criminal history record information for people connected to Medicaid and other public benefits providers. The bill amends Section 411.1143 of the Government Code to make clear that HHSC, as well as the Office of Inspector General, may access criminal history information not only for Medicaid providers and applicants, but also for providers and applicants in other public benefits programs administered by HHSC. The bill also broadens the categories of individuals whose criminal history may be reviewed. In addition to providers themselves, the bill expressly includes persons with at least a five percent ownership interest, certain secured creditors with a five percent or greater interest in the provider’s assets, corporate officers and directors, partners in partnerships, and managing employees. It adds definitions for “managing employee,” “ownership interest,” and “provider,” aligning the statute more closely with operational and ownership control relationships in health care businesses.

Impact

HB 4643 updates state law governing background-check access for HHSC and the Office of Inspector General by extending criminal history screening authority beyond Medicaid to other public benefits programs. It strengthens oversight of provider enrollment and participation by allowing the state to review criminal history information for a wider set of owners, managers, and controlling persons associated with providers and provider applicants. The bill affects the Government Code and, indirectly, the administration of Medicaid and other HHSC-run benefit programs, especially provider enrollment, fraud prevention, and program integrity enforcement.

Sentiment

The bill appears to have been broadly supported and noncontroversial. It passed the House by a very large margin, with only one nay vote, and passed the Senate unanimously. The voting history suggests strong bipartisan agreement that the measure is a routine administrative and oversight update rather than a major policy shift.

Contention

There is little evidence of substantive opposition in the available record. The only notable point of possible concern is the expansion of criminal history access to a broader set of people tied to providers, including owners, officers, partners, and managing employees, which could raise privacy or administrative burden concerns in other contexts. However, no committee testimony or recorded debate is provided, and the near-unanimous votes indicate that any such concerns were not significant enough to generate organized resistance.