NASW-NC Legislative Session: COVID-19 Relief Bill and New Bills Introduced

Happy Social Work Month!

Thank you to everyone that participated in Social Work Advocacy Week. What a great way to have kicked off Social Work Month and to be able to emphasize how Social Workers are Essential!

If you missed any of the presentations live, they were all recorded and available to watch.

• Day 1 Recording: We heard from legislators currently serving in the North Carolina General Assembly about issues important to social work.
• Day 2 Recording: We heard from social workers serving on the Andrea Harris Social, Economic, Environmental, and Health Equity Task Force about their work and how you can lend your social work voice to statewide advocacy efforts. The Task Force meets this week! Their next meeting is Wednesday, March 10 from 10:00 am -12:30 pm. RSVP here.
• Day 3 Recording: We heard from the social workers at the North Carolina General Assembly: Representative Graig Meyer, MSW and Senator Sydney Batch, MSW, JD. Victor Armstrong, MSW, Director of the Division of Mental Health, Developmental Disabilities, Substance Abuse Services at NC DHHS talked about his role as a social work leader at the state and important updates from the Department.

Legislators passed another COVID-19 relief bill and sent it to Governor Cooper last week. House Bill 196 2021 COVID-19 Response & Relief spends $1.7 billion. Funding will go to schools to continue to help with reopening efforts and supporting students. More funding was also appropriated for the state to continue COVID-19 testing and vaccine roll out.
Additionally, the bill appropriates:

• $10 million to be used for school health support personnel to provide additional physical and mental health support services. This includes remote and in-person physical and mental health support services.
• $47,465,800 for mental health services.
• $11,249,046 to provide substance use disorder services.

Governor Cooper vetoed SB 37 In-Person Learning Choice for Families on Friday, February 26. The Senate attempted to override the veto but failed with a vote of 20-29. Last Thursday, the State Board of Education and the Department of Public Instruction adopted a resolution urging schools with remote only learning to reopen. This does not require in person learning and state legislators will likely attempt to keep pushing for requirements to be made despite SB 37’s veto.

Bills of interest to social workers

• SB 143 Juneteenth Observance Day in NC: This bipartisan legislation would officially recognize the nineteenth of June as Juneteenth Observance Day in North Carolina. 
• SB 154 Fully Fund School Social Workers & Psychologists: This legislation seeks to fully fund the instructional support allotment within the Department of Public Instruction. This funding will increase positions for school social workers and school psychologists over the next ten years. NASW-NC supports this legislation as it supports our 2021 Legislative Agenda.
• HB 149 Improving Access to Care Through Telehealth: This legislation would improve telehealth coverage for all health benefit plans offered by the state. It seeks to (1) guarantee coverage to a health care service or procedure regardless of whether it is offered in-person or through telehealth. (2) Reimburse provider-to-provider consultations conducted through telehealth as long as the health benefit plan would have reimbursed the consultation had it happened in-person. (3) The health benefit plan may require a co-payment for a health care service or procedure delivered through telehealth, however, it cannot exceed the co-payment amount had the service been provided in-person. (4) No health benefit plan can require prior authorization for health care services through telehealth if prior authorization is not required had the service been in-person. (5) There cannot be any limits on the originating site or the distant site for the delivery of telehealth services. (6) Lastly, the bill clarifies that telehealth services cannot be used for anything related to abortion except in the case of an emergency therapeutic abortion (this is already state law). NASW-NC supports this legislation as it supports our 2021 Legislative Agenda.
• HB 205 Abuse & Neglect Resources in Public Schools: This legislation would require schools to provide age-appropriate information and resources on child abuse and neglect, including sexual abuse.
• HB 214 Grant Program to Reduce COVID-19 Vaccine Hesitancy: This bill would provide grants of no more than $10,000 to help address vaccine hesitancy among historically marginalize populations.
• HB 232 LRC Study- Affordable Housing: This legislation would direct the Legislative Research Commission (LRC) to study affordable housing in the state and how are our state can improve access to affordable housing. NASW-NC supports this legislation as it supports our 2021 Legislative Agenda.

• HB 188 /SB 167  Remove Barriers/Gain Access to Abortion Act: This legislation seeks to remove existing barriers to abortion access by (1) repealing the ban on medication abortions provided via telehealth. (2) Allowing certified physician assistants, nurse practitioners, and/or nurse midwifes to administer abortions. (3) Repealing both the mandatory counseling and 72-hour waiting period requirements. (4) Removing the requirement of parental consent when a medical emergency exists that requires an immediate abortion. (5) Repealing insurance coverage bans that prohibit abortion care in North Carolina’s Affordable Care Act plans, the state employee health plan, local government employee health plans, and Medicaid.  NASW-NC supports this legislation as it supports our 2021 Legislative Agenda.

• HB 170 /SB 165 North Carolina CROWN Act: This legislation would amend the North Carolina General Statutes by adding a new section that prohibits workplace discrimination based on traits historically associated with race, hair texture, or hairstyle. 

• HB 179 Amend HIE Participation Enforcement Mechanism: This legislation would impose a civil penalty against any provider or entity that fails to submit mandatory demographic and clinical information through North Carolina’s Health Information Exchange (HIE) Network. NASW-NC is opposed to this legislation as it goes against our 2021 Legislative Agenda.