SB 23-031

Senate Bill 23-031, titled "Improve Health-care Access For Older Coloradans," aims to enhance healthcare for elderly residents in Colorado by creating a training program focused on geriatric care. This initiative will be developed and run by the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus and will provide specialized training to students pursuing careers as doctors, nurses, therapists, and other health professionals. The bill also establishes an advisory committee to oversee the program's development and ensure it meets the needs of older patients across urban, rural, and underserved areas. With $784,269 allocated from the state budget, this program is now active following its approval by Governor Jared Polis on June 5, 2023.

Official Summary

The act creates the Colorado multidisciplinary health-care provider access training program (program) to improve the health care of medically complex, costly, compromised, and vulnerable older Coloradans. The university of Colorado Anschutz medical campus shall develop, implement, and administer the program. The program may be offered to Colorado institutions of higher education with clinical health professions graduate degree programs. The program coordinates and expands geriatric training opportunities for clinical health professions graduate students (students) enrolled in participating Colorado institutions of higher education (participating institutions) across Colorado studying to become advanced practice providers; dentists; nurses; occupational therapists; pharmacists; physicians, including medical doctors and doctors of osteopathy; physical therapists; psychologists; social workers; and speech-language therapists. Students who successfully complete the program are awarded certificates and issued letters authorizing those students to become trainers for the program in clinics across the state. The act creates the Colorado multidisciplinary health-care provider access training program advisory committee (committee) to ensure that the training for the program is consistent and collaborative across the fields of study. The committee is required to: Appoint a program chair; Set the program's standards for training and delivery of multidisciplinary medical care to medically complex, costly, compromised, and vulnerable older Coloradans; Establish requirements for the program; Identify and invite institutions of higher education that offer appropriate clinical health professions graduate degree programs to become participating institutions; Collaborate with participating institutions across Colorado to enhance recruitment of students to enter a field specific to geriatrics and select students with an interest in geriatric care to participate in the program; Assist with updating the program's curricula; Analyze data collected by the program; Build a multidisciplinary network of trained geriatric clinicians to collaborate and provide opportunities for clinicians to work together to better understand the roles of each health-care discipline in urban, rural, and underserved communities when caring for older Coloradans; Improve placement of students in experiential clinical training opportunities, prioritizing rural and underserved communities; Coordinate with graduates of the program to become geriatric trainers for future students; and Increase the number of clinical training sites across Colorado, specifically in rural and underserved communities. The act requires a representative of the program to submit a report on July 1, 2025, and no later than July 1 each year thereafter, summarizing program data to the health and human services committee of the senate and the health and insurance committee of the house of representatives, or their successor committees. The report must include the following: The number of students participating in the program; The number of students who successfully complete the program; The subsequent locations and job placements of program graduates; The number of program graduates who become trainers; and The description of facilities where program graduates become trainers. The act appropriates $784,269 to the department of higher education from the general fund. APPROVED by Governor June 5, 2023 EFFECTIVE June 5, 2023 (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

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