Dear neighbors,
I hope everyone who celebrated holidays this past weekend had a joyful time with friends and family. Legislators just returned from a short break to observe the holidays and are now preparing to head into the second half of the legislative session.
Here’s a look at what we’ve been up to at the State Capitol recently:
Constituents at the Capitol
This week, I enjoyed meeting with constituents from Housing First Minnesota, who were at the Capitol as part of the Housing Day on the Hill, advocating to remove roadblocks that stand in the way of homeownership and the importance of building new housing in our state. Thank you for making the trip to Saint Paul!
I also had the privilege of meeting with a constituent member of AFSCME Council 5, Dakota County leaders, and members of the Ethiopian community from 52A and beyond.
House Floor Votes
This week the House began passing policy bill packages in major issue areas building on the work of our historically productive 2023 session and improving the lives of Minnesotans. The House passed two policy bills supporting our Departments of Military Affairs and Veterans Affairs, which passed with unanimous support!
We passed a higher education policy bill that includes the clean energy sector in our Workforce Development Scholarship Program and expands support in higher education for students who have a disability. We also passed an early education policy bill focused on strengthening our pre-kindergarten and school readiness programs. Finally, we passed a transportation policy package that improves road safety, DVS wait times, child passenger safety, and consumer protections.
Bills, Bills, Bills!
As we continue to hear and debate policy bills, I thought I’d share with you some of the bills I’ve authored that have either made it through the committee process, or are working their way through.
PACE Program
My bill, HF 4839, which was recently heard in the House Human Services Committee, would establish the Program of All-Inclusive Care for the Elderly program (PACE) in Minnesota. The goal of PACE is simple: to help people receive care at home rather than going into nursing homes. Funded by Medicare and Medicaid, PACE offers integrated long-term care to manage the complex medical, functional, and social needs of people at least 55 years old who qualify for nursing home admission and whose income and resources meet minimum income requirements. The bill was laid over for possible inclusion in a larger policy bill.
Ensuring Nonprofit HMOs
I had the opportunity to present my bill HF 3529 to the House Commerce Committee, which would require health maintenance organizations (HMOs) in Minnesota to be non-profit, restoring a change in 2017 that allowed for-profit HMOs to enter the market. There are fundamental differences between for-profit and non-profit health care organizations, the key difference being those for whom the organization exists and to whom it answers. For-profit organizations are often incentivized to prioritize profit over patients. My bill aims to ensure HMOs in Minnesota are accountable to patients, and that we keep health care affordable and high-quality.
Debt Fairness Act
Medical debt is the leading cause of bankruptcy in the country. The Minnesota Debt Fairness Act, HF 4100, aims to unburden Minnesotans from medical debt, and help working and middle class families make ends meet. Too many people are saddled with unmanageable debt, and our current laws have been insufficient at addressing this dilemma. Medical debt depletes rainy-day funds, causes patients or their families to incur credit card debt, and, in some cases causes patients to forgo medical treatment altogether. I also want to thank Attorney General Keith Ellison and Sen. Liz Boldon for partnering with me on this important legislation. The Debt Fairness Act is anticipated to be included in a larger policy bill.
HF 3474 was heard in the Environment and Natural Resources Committee. This bill would invest $4 million in the Board of Water and Soil Resources to complete an assessment of wetland restoration structures in need of repairs or replacement and to acquire additional easements in environmentally sensitive southeastern Minnesota counties.
In the House Health Finance and Policy Committee, I presented my bill HF 4210. Our health care workers provide an invaluable service to Minnesotans, and their safety is critical for them and for the patients they’re serving. This bill would implement vital de-escalation training and would establish Violence Interruption Intervention Teams that build skills and crisis management resources in hospitals.
Question of the Week
Listening to my constituents is the most important part of my job as state representative! Each week during this legislative session, I’ll pose a question to you to better inform my work.
This week’s question is:
How can we best help our seniors age at home?
You can send your answers in an email to rep.liz.reyer@house.mn.gov with the subject line “Question of the Week.” I’m looking forward to reading your responses and learning from your experiences. And thank you to all of you who have responded in past weeks!
Stay in Touch
As always, please feel free to contact me if you have any other questions or feedback you’d like to share. You can contact me by email at rep.liz.reyer@house.mn.gov or call (651) 296-4128. Please don’t hesitate to reach out.
Sincerely,
Liz Reyer
State Representative