SB1193 - 472R - Senate Fact Sheet

ARIZONA STATE SENATE

Forty-seventh Legislature, Second Regular Session

FINAL AMENDED

FACT SHEET FOR S.B. 1193

appropriation; trauma services

Purpose

Appropriates $2 million from the Medically Needy Account of the Tobacco Tax and Health Care Fund to the primary trauma center in southern Arizona for costs associated with maintaining trauma center services.

Background

A trauma center is a hospital program that offers treatment to injuries 24 hours a day. Trauma medical staff may include trauma surgeons, anesthesiologists, operating room teams, emergency medicine physicians and trauma nurses. There are four different levels of trauma care ranked by the nationally recognized American College of Surgeons (ACS). A Level 1 center is a facility that, in addition to acute care responsibilities, has a responsibility to provide leadership in education, research and system planning. Level 1 trauma centers treat patients with emergency trauma care, immediate surgical intervention, intensive care, medical/surgical care and post discharge follow-up. In order to fulfill its duties, a Level 1 trauma center must have 24-hour availability of all necessary medical staff. A Level 2 trauma center is able to treat emergency injuries, but does not offer the same comprehensive care as a Level 1 facility. Trauma centers that rank at Levels 3 and 4 are emergency stabilizing centers that provide life support until a seriously injured patient can be transferred to a Level 1 or Level 2 treatment center. In some cases, a Level 4 trauma center may be a rural clinic that does not have a licensed doctor on site, but is able to give primary care to its population. The Department of Health Services (DHS) has also begun to designate facilities as trauma center based on the ACS standards.

The University Medical Center (UMC) is a not-for-profit academic medical center located in Tucson, Arizona. Due to the closure of Tucson Medical Center’s (TMC) trauma center in June 2003, UMC is the only Level 1 trauma center located in Southern Arizona. DHS reports that it would therefore be considered the “primary” southern Arizona trauma center for the purposes of this bill. The UMC Level 1 trauma center currently serves a population of 1.2 million citizens from southern Arizona as well as portions of western New Mexico. UMC reports that due to the closure of TMC’s trauma center, its facility has experienced a 41 percent increase in the most serious levels of trauma visits.

Currently, trauma hospitals in the state receive a share of tribal gaming funding pursuant to Proposition 202, which was approved by the voters in the 2002 general election. In FY 2004-2005, UMC’s trauma center received a reported amount of just over $3 million from tribal gaming.

The fiscal impact to the Medically Needy Account of the Tobacco Tax and Health Care Fund will be $2 million in FY 2006-2007. Typically, unobligated Medically Needy Account monies are used to offset state General Fund expenditures in the Arizona Health Care Cost Containment System.

Provisions

1. Appropriates $2 million in FY 2006-2007 from the Medically Needy Account of the Tobacco Tax and Health Care Fund to DHS for distribution to the primary trauma center in southern Arizona for costs associated with maintaining trauma center services. Exempts the appropriated monies from lapsing.

2. Prohibits DHS from keeping any of the appropriated $2 million for any reason.

3. Becomes effective on the general effective date.

Amendments Adopted by House of Representatives

· Shifts the fund source of the appropriation from the state General Fund to the Medically Needy Account of the Tobacco Tax and Health Care Fund.

Senate Action House Action

HEALTH 1/30/06 DP 6-0-1-0 HEALTH 3/15/06 DP 6-1-1-1

APPROP 2/14/06 DP 9-1-1-0 APPROP (B) 3/28/06 DP 9-2-0-4

3^rd Read 3/2/06 20-9-1-0 3^rd Read 6/20/06 43-13-4-0

Signed by the Governor 6/21/06

Chapter 360

Prepared by Senate Research

June 29, 2006

BKL/jas