Transcript Highlights:

• Medicaid and the Children's Health Insurance Program, or CHIP, compromise close to $80 million.
• Senator Merkley and I have a bill, the No Up Code Act, that actually achieves that.
• In fact, let's talk about how bad that up-coding is that comes from the home visits.
• And there is frustration with coding.
• That is responsible. for coding and it is time.

Keywords: Michael Falkender, Deputy Secretary of the Treasury, IRS, taxpayer privacy, nomination process, committee hearing

Summary: The committee convened to discuss critical issues surrounding the nomination of Michael Falkender for the position of Deputy Secretary of the Treasury. This meeting included a series of remarks from committee members who expressed divergent views on Falkender's qualifications and the implications of his appointment. Senator Wyden voiced strong opposition, arguing that Falkender represents harmful policies expected to be perpetuated under the current administration, especially concerning taxpayer privacy and IRS tactics. Meanwhile, other members defended Falkender, noting his extensive experience, including a commitment to transparency in government operations if confirmed.

Transcript Highlights:

• Jane O'Brien, Chief Medical Officer at the Franciscan Children's Hospital. Dr.
• Jane O'Brien, Chief Medical Officer at the Franciscan Children's Hospital; Dr.
• He receives care in Albany or at Boston Children's. Valley aged out.
• My generation, my children's generations, and before.
• Children's, Cambridge Health Alliance, Boston Medical Center, and UMass.

Keywords: 995, all

Summary: The special legislative commission on the future of Pappas Rehabilitation Hospital for Children held a hybrid public hearing focused on the hospital’s future, admissions, staffing, infrastructure, and whether the facility should be preserved, expanded, or reimagined. Opening remarks from legislators, commissioners, parents, and union representatives emphasized that Pappas provides a unique combination of medical, rehabilitative, educational, and residential services for children with complex needs, and several speakers argued that the hospital is effectively being depopulated through reduced admissions and ongoing discharges despite public assurances that it remains open. Multiple speakers urged the commission to extend its authorization and continue its work before any closure or major change can occur. Testimony from labor leaders, including AFSCME, SEIU Local 509, and the Massachusetts Nurses Association, described a “silent closure” in practice, with staff reporting confusion about the hospital’s status, declining census numbers, blocked admissions, and uncertainty about the workforce’s future. They called for immediate action to stop admission denials and unnecessary discharges, and some proposed short-term solutions such as temporary modular structures to address infrastructure barriers and allow admissions to resume. Parents and former patients testified that Pappas provided life-changing independence, specialized therapy, and campus-based supports that they said could not be replicated elsewhere, and they criticized alternative placements as inadequate. Commissioner Robert Goldstein of the Department of Public Health said the administration supports keeping Pappas open and funded while the commission works, but he argued that admissions must comply with hospital-level-of-care rules and that the campus’s deteriorating infrastructure limits the kinds of children who can safely be served there. He said the department is continuing admissions for appropriate patients, working to expand outreach and services, and exploring long-term options, including broader statewide models of care. Commissioners pressed him on whether discharge status or lack of a clear discharge plan had been used as a barrier to admission, and requested de-identified data on patients recommended for admission but denied. No formal votes were taken during the hearing.

Transcript Highlights:

• early in is to identify these diseases early in in<00:02:44.920> these<00:02:45.120> children's
• lives and I'm happy in these children's lives and I'm happy happy<00:02:47.480> to<00:02:47.640
• We're also referred to the U of M Masonic Children's Hospital right here next door in Minneapolis.
• The Masonic Children's Hospital is the only hospital in the country that does this treatment.
• Hospital is the only Hospital Children's Hospital is the only Hospital in<00:15:04.880> the<00

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• And this would undercut our efforts to continue to build out the children's system of care. children's
• We're children's residential services.
• we need this funding for our children's we need this funding for our children's residential<00:23
• <00:23:19.280> residential reliance on children's residential reliance on children's residential
• And we children's behavioral health.

Keywords: 1191, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• it says is that the postpartum screens, and my cursor down here, carriers will develop appropriate codes
• health insurer, Mass Medical Society, pediatrician, Massachusetts Coalition of Nurse Practitioners, Children's

Keywords: 995, all

Summary: The Ellen Story Commission for Postpartum Depression held its spring meeting with a large turnout, beginning with roll call and a review of the agenda. Co-chairs Representative Brandy Fluker-Reid and Senator Liz Miranda highlighted progress from the recently enacted maternal health omnibus law and the Moms Matter Act, including creation of a midwifery board, expansion of out-of-hospital birth options, doula services, lactation support, MassHealth coverage changes, and a trust fund for community-based behavioral health and substance use grants. Members also discussed implementation of the new law, the commission’s annual report, and the need to continue supporting birth centers and perinatal mental health services. A substantial portion of the meeting focused on commission membership and vacancies. Commissioners discussed whether to remain on the body, the need to fill several open seats, and whether the commission’s statutory composition should be updated to better reflect current practice and expertise. Members suggested adding more clinicians working directly with perinatal families, infant mental health experts, and a representative from PSI of Massachusetts, while also noting the value of having regulators and professional society representatives at the table. Several participants said any changes to membership would likely require legislation, and the co-chairs said they would explore options and possibly circulate a flyer or other invitation process for nominations. The commission also discussed meeting structure and future planning. Members generally supported moving to quarterly virtual meetings, with a preference for a 4 p.m. start time, and some suggested one annual in-person gathering. The group agreed to postpone the usual May Advocacy Day because the Great Hall was unavailable and instead aim for a fall event, with volunteers stepping forward to help plan it. Commissioners raised top-of-mind issues including postpartum depression screening reimbursement, care for people after miscarriage or abortion, access for undocumented pregnant people, and the impact of federal cuts. The meeting ended with agreement to crowdsource legislative priorities for the next quarter, consider future presentations from outside organizations, and send updates between meetings, followed by a motion to adjourn that passed unanimously.

Transcript Highlights:

• I rushed our son to the closest children's hospital and truthfully let doctors know what was going on
• We didn't want him to be coded in for retirement. So then I called DCF.

Summary: The Health and Human Services Committee considered eight bills and reported all of them favorably, several as amended. HB 1347 on clinical laboratory personnel was presented as a response to staffing shortages in Florida labs; the sponsor and Quest Diagnostics supported aligning state licensure with CLIA standards to improve hiring and turnaround times. The bill passed 24-0. CS/HB 47, dealing with specific medical diagnoses in child protective investigations, drew extensive emotional testimony from parents and advocates who said children had been wrongly removed after misdiagnoses; the bill was amended to tighten timelines and record-sharing requirements, then passed 26-0. CS/HB 287 created a public records exemption for applicants, owners, operators, and references of family foster homes and passed unanimously. The committee also approved CS/HB 439, allowing chiropractors to inject vitamins and nutrients under training and safety limits, after an amendment clarified they may not prescribe prescription drugs; it passed 26-0. CS/HB 1021 would allow pharmacists to administer medications in trauma centers under physician direction, and an amendment added pediatric trauma centers; it passed 26-0. HB 867 would let occupational therapists perform dry needling after specified training and supervision, and it passed 25-0. HB 1309, which shortens deadlines for patients to access their medical records and aligns nursing home access rules with federal law, drew opposition from health information management groups over privacy and portal/data-security concerns, but supporters argued it simply speeds access to records; it passed 21-5. CS/HB 915 codifies and expands Medicaid eligibility protections for working people with disabilities so they can keep coverage while employed, with strong support from disability advocates and emotional testimony from the sponsor about her son’s benefits concerns; it passed 26-0. After these votes, the committee adjourned.

Transcript Highlights:

• Texas government code section 448.001, it defines anti-Semitism means. a certain perception of Jews that
• the crowd and the crowd yelled, crucify him crucify him his blood his blood be on our us and our children's

Bills: SB2972, SB1909, SB2815, SB735, SB2233, SB800, SB1069, SB2683, SB2986, SB2058, SB2310, SB2055, SB1032

Keywords: expressive activities, freedom of speech, public forum, higher education, protests, student rights, antisemitism, public institutions, disciplinary policy, student organizations, compliance, institutional policy, disciplinary sanctions, diploma designation, institution merger, academic records, student options, Holocaust education, Holocaust Remembrance Week, genocide education

Transcript Highlights:

• There is a delete all if we could go to the delete all we shall we will take up Amendment bar code 3,
• I am the deputy director children's legal services at the Department of Children and Families.

Keywords: 999, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• million, which is very odd because since 2012, the cabinet has reported $0 coming out of these children's
• because if they're getting federal benefits, that means that they are having to pull from those children's
• Social Security Social those children's Social Security Social Security<00:04:15.440> benefits
• And this bill is a product of the work we've done through the interim on the Families and Children's
• on the Families and Children's on the Families and Children's Committees<00:10:15.360> in

Keywords: 958, all

Transcript Highlights:

• And then two of our larger hospitals, being UAMS and Children's, have a different per diem structure
• Children's gets an outpatient cost settlement, so they do not participate in the outpatient UPL program
• So looking at Children's Hospital, since I have that reference and worked there for a while...
• So looking at Children's Hospital since I have that reference and work there for a while.
• Children's Hospital, since I have that reference and worked there for a while.

Summary: The subcommittee met to review Department of Human Services hospital payments in Arkansas Medicaid, with DHS Secretary Janet Mann and Deputy Secretary Misty Eubanks presenting first, followed by Arkansas Hospital Association Executive Vice President Jody Ann Tritt and a brief comment from Arkansas Children’s. DHS outlined the main hospital payment streams: fee-for-service per diem payments, upper payment limit (UPL) supplemental payments, cost settlements, and smaller payments such as graduate medical education and disproportionate share hospital funds. Members asked for plain-language explanations of cost settlements, why per diem rates vary by hospital type, and why UPL applies to private hospitals. DHS said cost settlements and UPL are mechanisms to help offset Medicaid underpayment, with SFY 2025 hospital payments totaling hundreds of millions of dollars and no general revenue used for supplemental payments beyond the state share funded through hospital assessments and related financing structures. Committee members focused heavily on whether Arkansas hospitals are adequately reimbursed and why rural hospitals struggle. Tritt explained that critical access hospitals, rural emergency hospitals, PPS hospitals, and specialty hospitals operate under different federal and state rules, and said lower per diem rates for some facilities help with cash flow and later cost settlement adjustments. She said Arkansas hospitals are under financial strain, citing a negative patient services margin statewide and noting that Medicaid, Medicare, and commercial payers all contribute to the problem. She also said the association had just authorized a statewide survey of hospital finances and costs, which she expected would take about a year to complete. A major theme was commercial insurance reimbursement. Tritt argued Arkansas hospitals are paid far less than hospitals in neighboring states even though premiums are similar, and said administrative burdens, prior authorizations, and denials add to the problem. She said hospitals receive about 52 to 53 cents on the dollar for Medicaid costs without UPL and about 78 cents with UPL, still below cost. Members also discussed Medicare wage index issues, Medicare Advantage, and whether hospitals could use technology or alternative arrangements to improve finances. No votes were taken on the hospital presentation. At the end of the meeting, DHS provided a brief update on Living Choices and assisted living reimbursement. Officials said one assisted living facility, Pillars of the Community in Crossett, had announced closure, with nine waiver clients being transitioned to other settings. DHS said the current cost reporting period was underway and that a new rate study could be ready for review before the end of the fiscal year if reports were submitted on time. Members also asked about the broader waiver plan, and DHS said the next waiver iteration would likely be brought back to the committee in the summer.

Transcript Highlights:

• These are modifications to the Children's Mental Health Case Management Service Provider Training and
• This defines clinical supervision in the Children's Mental Health Act.
• This is the big Children's Mental Health terminology bill, but these sections had some slightly more
• This is an expansion of the Health Care Bill of Rights to include patients in children's residential
• Article 8, starting on page 201, is the Children's Mental Health Terminology article.

Bills: HF2115, HF2276, HF1644, HF99, HF2068, HF2707, HF2704, HF2406, HF1674, HF1579

Keywords: human services, aging services, disability services, behavioral health, long-term care, nursing home, nursing facility, assisted living, waiver services, medical assistance, Medicaid, case mix reimbursement, PDPM, RUG, direct care and treatment, developmental disabilities, day services, positive support, guardian, conservator

Transcript Highlights:

• are home to two Level 1 trauma centers, the only burn unit and hyperbaric chamber in the region, Children's
• are home to two Level 1 trauma centers, the only burn unit and hyperbaric chamber in the region, Children's
• are home to two Level 1 trauma centers, the only burn unit and hyperbaric chamber in the region, Children's
• removes the secretary's authority related to licensing the statewide voter registration system's source code
• removes the secretary's authority related to licensing the statewide voter registration system's source code

Bills: HF3698, HF4243, HF4239, HF4241, HF4242, HF4240

Keywords: libraries, electronic books, digital audiobooks, licensing agreements, public access, campaign finance, elections, political contributions, disclosure, reporting thresholds, economic interest statements, financial disclosure, ethics, public officials, local officials, metropolitan governmental unit, metropolitan area, candidate filings, principal campaign committee, political committee

Transcript Highlights:

• you for Hawaii children's Action Network you for Hawaii children's Action Network speaks<01:03:29.079
• Hawaiʻi Children's Action Network speaks in support.
• Hawaiʻi Children's Action Network speaks in support.
• Hawaiʻi Children's Action Network speaks in support.
• I think that's the um... with Hawaii children's Action Network with Hawaii children's Action Network

Keywords: 910, house, all

Summary: The committee first took up House Bill 707 on the College Savings Program. Members discussed a suggested amendment from the Hawaii State Council on Developmental Disabilities to include the Hawaii ABLE Savings Program. The chair said the Department of the Attorney General advised there was no title problem, so the bill could be broadened to cover both the College Savings Program and the ABLE program. The committee also noted technical, non-substantive changes and a defective date of July 1, 3000 for further discussion. HB 707 HD1 was then voted on and the recommendation to pass with amendments was adopted unanimously by the members present, with two members excused. The committee then heard House Bill 424, which would provide free breakfast and lunch beginning the next school year to students who currently qualify for free and reduced-price meals. The Department of Education supported the measure, and testimony in favor came from teachers, public health and food security advocates, and several organizations. Supporters described students being denied meals because of unpaid balances, said school meals should not depend on family debt, and argued that the bill would reduce stigma and help hungry students learn. Committee questions focused on meal pricing, the impact of raising prices on families who pay full price, and whether portion sizes could be increased; DOE said breakfast costs less than lunch, full-price students would bear any increase, and portion sizes must follow USDA rules. Hawaiʻi Public Health Institute and Hawaiʻi Children’s Action Network said many families above the free/reduced thresholds still cannot afford meals, citing estimates that the DOE collects about $20 million a year in meal payments and that federal reimbursement totals are much larger. The committee then heard House Bill 757, the universal free school breakfast and lunch bill. DOE and the Department of Health supported it, and testimony was overwhelmingly in favor from county officials, teachers, students, food banks, advocacy groups, and community organizations. Witnesses argued that universal meals would eliminate stigma, reduce paperwork and debt collection, and ensure students do not fall through the cracks because of income cutoffs, language barriers, or administrative hurdles. Several students from Castle High School described classmates asking for food and families struggling to keep meal accounts funded, while teachers said they regularly see negative meal balance notices and hungry students. Advocates also said the bill is the better equity vehicle because it avoids means testing and reaches students who are not currently receiving meals despite needing them. The hearing on HB 757 was still ongoing at the end of the transcript, and no final vote on that bill was shown.

Transcript Highlights:

• Weeks depending on code section.
• So, that is the code section we're talking about here for those of us that don't practice criminal law
• Section three is the Medicaid code section. It's rather lengthy.
• of School Counselor Association Code of Ethics, and this is new; it requires the State Department of
• codes if you are north of the six coastal counties.

Keywords: MS Senate Floor - 1 April, 2026; 10:00 AM, 925, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Unfortunately, we have too many gaps in our children's mental health system.
• Children's mental health care improves and saves lives. Thank you.
• our children's mental health system. our children's mental health system.
• Children's residential and elopement.
• Children's mental health care term.

Transcript Highlights:

• It requires us to update our land use and zoning code.
• It requires us to update our land use and zoning code.
• It requires us to update our land use and zoning code.
• It requires us to update our land use and zoning code.
• It requires us to update our land use and zoning code.

Keywords: 1183, house

Transcript Highlights:

• I support H.R. 4922, a bill providing commonsense reforms to the District of Columbia criminal code.
• I support H.R. 4922, a bill providing commonsense reforms to the District of Columbia criminal code.
• I SUPPORT H.R. 4922, A BILL PROVIDING COMMONSENSE REFORMS TO THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA CRIMINAL CODE.
• Code allows a criminal under the age of 25 to be given the same leniency that is afforded to minors.
• CODE ALLOWS A CRIMINAL UNDER THE AGE OF 25 TO BE GIVEN THE SAME LEANSENS SHY THAT IS AFFORDED TO MINORS

Keywords: U.S. House of Representatives Floor Proceedings on Tuesday, September 16, 2025, 1012, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• support and day treatment services, Children's Mental Health Services, Children's Mental Health Grants
• , School-Linked Behavioral Health Grants, and Children's Mental Health Integrated Fund.
• Mental Health Act um the Children's Mental Health Act um sections<00:36:28.640> relating<00:36
• um and Children's Mental Health Integrated<00:36:40.119> fund<00:36:41.119> they<00:36
• Sections listed in this document relate to adult and children's mental health services covered by MA

Keywords: 1183, house

Transcript Highlights:

• These safeguards help us ensure the children's environments remain stable while still respecting the
• > Fund In January, Children's Defense Fund In January, Children's Defense Fund Minnesota<00:39
• On January 11th, one of my children's teachers, Kati, and her husband were taken by ICE.
• She was part of our children's daily lives, and she was taken from us.
• <01:01:24.800> emotional safeguards children's emotional safeguards children's emotional well-being

Bills: HF3415

Keywords: child care, day care, licensed child care center, license-exempt child care, immigration enforcement, ICE, Customs and Border Protection, CBP, USCIS, Department of Homeland Security, DHS, judicial warrant, facility access, sensitive locations, immigrant families, Minnesota Statutes chapter 142B, 1183, house

Transcript Highlights:

• A big part of that is the children's cottages that would be constructed on the Southern Nevada Adult
• In its totality, I mean both the Campus for Hope project as well as the children's cottages element of
• In its totality, I mean both the Campus for Hope project as well as the children's cottages element of
• We applaud the leaders of the Campus for Hope for recognizing the needed investment in the children's
• Dan Musgrove, here today on behalf of the Clark County Children's Mental Health Consortium.

Keywords: 909, all