Sec 36-2907.06. Qualifying community health centers; contracts; requirements; definition

A. Subject to the availability of monies, the administration shall enter into an intergovernmental agreement pursuant to title 11, chapter 7, article 3 with the department of health services to contract with qualifying community health centers to provide primary health care services to indigent or uninsured Arizonans. The department of health services shall enter into one-year contracts with qualifying community health centers for the centers to provide the following primary health care services:

1. Medical care provided through licensed primary care physicians and licensed mid-level providers as defined in section 36-2907.05.

2. Prenatal care services.

3. Diagnostic laboratory and imaging services that are necessary to complete a diagnosis and treatment, including referral services.

4. Pharmacy services that are necessary to complete treatment, including referral services.

5. Preventive health services.

6. Preventive dental services.

7. Emergency services performed at the qualifying community health center.

8. Transportation for patients to and from the qualifying community health center if these patients would not receive care without this assistance.

B. A contract entered into pursuant to subsection A of this section may include urgent care services for walk-in patients.

C. Each contract shall require that the qualifying community health center provide the services prescribed in subsection A of this section to persons who the center determines:

1. Are residents of this state.

2. Are without medical insurance policy coverage.

3. Do not have a family income of more than two hundred percent of the federal poverty guidelines.

4. Have provided verification that the person is not eligible for enrollment in the Arizona health care cost containment system pursuant to this chapter.

5. Have provided verification that the person is not eligible for medicare.

D. The department of health services shall directly administer the program and issue requests for proposals for the contracts prescribed in this section. Contracts established pursuant to subsection A of this section shall be signed by the department and the contractor before the transmission of any tobacco tax and health care fund monies to the contractor.

E. Persons who meet the eligibility criteria established in subsection C or H of this section shall be charged for services based on a sliding fee schedule approved by the department of health services.

F. In awarding contracts, the department of health services may give preference to qualifying community health centers that have a sliding fee schedule. Monies shall be used for the number of patients that exceeds the number of uninsured sliding fee schedule patients that the qualifying community health center served during fiscal year 1994. Each qualifying community health center shall make its sliding fee schedule available to the public on request. The contract shall require the qualifying community health center to apply a sliding fee schedule to all of its uninsured patients.

G. The department of health services may examine the records of each qualifying community health center and conduct audits necessary to determine that the eligibility determinations were performed accurately and to verify the number of uninsured patients served by the qualifying community health center as a result of receiving tobacco tax and health care fund monies by the contract established pursuant to subsection A of this section.

H. Contracts established pursuant to subsection A of this section shall require qualifying community health center contractors to submit information as required pursuant to section 36-2907.07 for program evaluations.

I. For the purposes of this section, "qualifying community health center" means a community-based primary care facility that provides medical care in medically underserved areas as provided in section 36-2352, or in medically underserved areas or medically underserved populations as designated by the United States department of health and human services, through the employment of physicians, professional nurses, physician assistants or other health care technical and paraprofessional personnel.

(Conditionally Rpld.)