Call to Order and Roll Call
The 1st meeting of the Budget Review Subcommittee on Justice and Judiciary of the Interim Joint Committee on Appropriations and Revenue was held on<Day> Thursday, June 18, 2015, at 10:00 AM, in Development Room A at The METS Center, 3861 Olympic Blvd., Erlanger, KY. Senator Wil Schroder, Chair, called the meeting to order, and the secretary called the roll.
Present were:
Members: Senator Wil Schroder, Co-Chair; Representative Denver Butler, Co-Chair; Senators Christian McDaniel and John Schickel; Representatives Ron Crimm and Thomas Kerr.
Guests: Mr. Russel Harper, Director of Government Relations, Coventry Health Care; Ms. Kimberly Richardson, Director of Behavioral Health Department, Coventry Health Care; Dr. Lynne Saddler, MD, MPH, District Director of Health, Northern Kentucky Health Department; and Ms. Ashel Kruetzkamp, Nurse Manager, Ft. Thomas Emergency Department, St. Elizabeth Health Care.
LRC Staff: Frank Willey, Zachary Ireland, and Benjamin Thompson.
Discussion on the Issue of Substance Abuse
Mr. Russel Harper and Ms. Kimberly Richardson testified on the cost of substance abuse treatments provided by Coventry Health Care.
In response to questions from Chair Schroder concerning the increase of requests for in-patient substance abuse treatment, Ms. Richardson said that requests for in-patient treatment had risen 73 percent in one year. Although not all requests are approved, a large percentage of them are. Many times requests that had previously been denied are approved on a second review.
In response to questions from Chair Schroder concerning the fiscal impact of increased substance abuse treatment, Ms. Richardson said that since there is a significant increase in the utilization of substance abuse treatment, there is a corresponding increase in cost to Medicaid.
Dr. Lynne Saddler provided an update on the substance abuse treatment provided by the Northern Kentucky Health Department.
In response to questions from Chair Schroder regarding the cost of a needle exchange program in northern Kentucky, Dr. Saddler stated that the estimated cost for putting a needle exchange program in place will be $216,000. Dr. Saddler said that the cost to sustain the program would be $216,000 per year.
In response to a question from Representative Crimm concerning plans for a needle exchange program, Dr. Saddler said that the Northern Kentucky Health Department is currently finalizing the plan for a needle exchange program in the district.
In response to a question from Senator Schickel regarding the Northern Kentucky Health Board, Dr. Saddler said that there are eight members on the Board from Boone County.
Ms. Ashel Kruetzkamp provided testimony on substance abuse treatment in northern Kentucky emergency departments.
In response to a question from Chair Schroder concerning babies born into addiction, Ms. Kruetzkamp said that there had been 22 babies that were addicted to heroin born in St. Elizabeth hospitals in the past month.
There being no further business before the subcommittee, the meeting was adjourned at 11:12 AM.