GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF NORTH CAROLINA

SESSION 2011

SESSION LAW 2011-102

SENATE BILL 316

AN ACT to Authorize DHHS to Implement Additional 1915(b)(c) Medicaid Waiver Sites and To allow  State facilities to disclose certain information for purposes of collecting payment and to direct the distribution of a fund balance upon the dissolution of an area authority.

The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:

SECTION 1.  Section 10.24 of S.L. 2010-31 is repealed.

SECTION 2.  The Department of Health and Human Services shall implement additional capitated 1915(b)(c) Medicaid waivers during the 2011-2012 fiscal year through a Request for Application (RFA) process for LME applicants who prove readiness. The Department shall consult with stakeholders during the approval process. The waiver program shall include all Medicaid-covered mental health, developmental disabilities, and substance abuse services. Expansion of the waiver is contingent upon approval by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.

SECTION 3.  G.S. 122C-55(g) reads as rewritten:

"(g)       Whenever there is reason to believe that the client is eligible for financial benefits through a governmental agency, a facility may disclose confidential information to State, local, or federal government agencies. Except as provided in G.S.122C-55(a3), subsections (a3) and (g1) of this section, disclosure is limited to that confidential information necessary to establish financial benefits for a client. After Except as provided in subsection (g1) of this section, after establishment of these benefits, the consent of the client or his legally responsible person is required for further release of confidential information under this subsection."

SECTION 4.  G.S. 122C-55 is amended by adding a new subsection to read:

"(g1) A State facility operated under the authority of G.S. 122C-181 may disclose confidential information for the purpose of collecting payment due the facility for the cost of care, treatment, or habilitation."

SECTION 5.  G.S. 122C-115.3(e) reads as rewritten:

"(e)       Any budgetary surplusfund balance available to an area authority at the time of its dissolution shall be distributed to those counties comprising the area authority on the same pro rata basis that the counties appropriated and contributed funds to the area authority's budget during the current fiscal year. Distribution to the counties shall be determined on the basis of an audit of the financial record of the area authority. The area authority board shall select a certified public accountant or an accountant who is subsequently certified by the Local Government Commission to conduct the audit. The audit shall be performed in accordance with G.S. 159-34. The same method of distribution of funds described in this subsection shall apply when one or more counties of an area authority withdraw from the area authority."

SECTION 6.  This act is effective when it becomes law.

In the General Assembly read three times and ratified this the 24^th day of May, 2011.

                                                                    s/  Walter H. Dalton

                                                                         President of the Senate

                                                                    s/  Thom Tillis

                                                                         Speaker of the House of Representatives

                                                                    s/  Beverly E. Perdue

                                                                         Governor

Approved 9:05 a.m. this 2^nd day of June, 2011