An Act To Establish the Health Technology Clinical Committee
Maine Legislature, Session 124, LD 0257
Committee: Insurance and Financial Services
Sponsors: PRIEST, BOWMAN, BEAUDOIN, BECK, FOSSEL, GOODE, MILLER, PERRY, TREAT
Amends: 5 MRSA §12004-I

MAINE STATE LEGISLATURE 
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FIRST REGULAR SESSIO:r~-2009 
Legislative Document 
No. 257 
H.P.203 
House of Representatives, January 27,2009 
An Act To Establish the Health Technology Clinical Committee 
Reference to the Committee on Insurance and Financial Services suggested and ordered 
printed. 
Presented by Representative PRIEST of Brunswick. 
Cosponsored by Senator BOWMAN of York and 
77/J.-~ 1n.11ltLC~~ul 
MILLICENT M. MacFARLAND 
Clerk 
Representatives: BEAUDOIN of Biddeford, BECK of Waterville, FOSSEL of Alna, GOODE 
of Bangor, MILLER of Somerville, PERRY of Calais, TREAT of Hallowell. 
Primeu on l'l!cyt:iL'U paper 
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows: 
Sec. 1. 5 MRSA §12004-I, sub-§30-B is enacted to read: 
30-B. 
Health Care 
Health Technology 
Expenses Only 
24-A MRS A §6953 
Clinical Committee 
Sec. 2. 24-A MRS A §6951, sub-§6, as enacted by PL 2003, c. 469, Pt. A, §8, is 
amended to read: 
6. 
Technology assessment; health technology and health care services. The 
forum shall conduct technology assessment reviews to guide the use and distribution of 
new technologies in this State establish a program to assess health technology and health 
care services that uses scientific evidence to make coverage determinations for 
participating state agencies that purchase health care with public funds, including, but not 
limited to, MaineCare, the state employee health insurance program and Dirigo Health. 
The program must include a process for selecting health technologies and health care 
services for assessment. The forum shall make recommendations to the certificate of 
need program under Title 22, chapter 103 A may contract with a 3rd party to conduct 
research and produce health technology assessments for use by the Health Technology 
Clinical Committee under section 6953. 
Sec. 3. 24-A MRS A §6953 is enacted to read: 
§6953. Health Technology Clinical Committee 
The Health Technology Clinical Committee, as established in Title 5, section 
12004-1, subsection 30-B, referred to in this section as "the committee," shall make 
coverage determinations for the health technology and health care services assessment 
program described under section 6951, subsection 6 based on an assessment of a 
particular health technology or health care service that includes a review of scientific 
evidence of the relative safety, efficacy and cost of that health technology or service. 
1. 
Members. 
The executive director, in consultation with participating state 
agencies described under section 6951, subsection 6, shall appoint 5 members to the 
committee. Members serve 3-year terms and serve until a successor is appointed. The 
members must be licensed health care providers appointed from a pool of those who have 
submitted letters of interest. 
The executive director shall consider the following 
qualifications in making appointments: 
A. Practitioner specialty type and use of health technologies; 
B. Practice location and community knowledge; 
C. Length of practice experience; 
D. Knowledge of and experience with evidence-based medicine; 
E. Medical quality assurance experience; and 
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F. Health technology assessment experience. 
2. Duties of committee. TI1e committee shall: 
A. 
Select health technology or health care services for review by considering 
nominations from participating state agencies described under section 6951, 
subsection 6, committee members and interested parties; 
B. Determine the conditions, if any, under which a health teclmology or health care 
service will be included as a covered benefit in health care programs of participating 
state agencies described under section 6951, subsection 6; 
C. 
Identify whether the determination is consistent with identified Medicare 
decisions and expert guidelines and, if decisions are inconsistent with those decisions 
and guidelines, specify the reasons and evidentiary basis; 
D. 
Specify criteria for participating state agencies described under section 6951, 
subsection 6 to use when deciding whether a covered health technology or service is 
medically necessary; and 
E. Publish [mal committee determinations on coverage of health technologies and 
health care services on a publicly accessible website within 10 days of each 
determination. 
SUMMARY 
This bill requires the Maine Quality Forum to establish a health technology 
assessment program to make determinations as to which health technologies and health 
care services will be included as covered benefits in publicly funded health care plans. 
The bill establishes the Health Technology Clinical Committee, a 5-member committee 
of health care providers, to conduct the assessments and make the coverage 
determinations based on reviews of scientific evidence.