Under existing law, criminal penalties are provided for receiving certain remuneration for certain referrals for Medicaid payments or in return for purchasing, leasing, ordering, or arranging certain goods or services to be paid by Medicaid.
This bill would provide that a person must knowingly engage in the prohibited conduct in order to be subject to the criminal penalties, would provide that the criminal penalties do not apply to certain safe harbor exceptions included in federal law, would define a person to include a corporation or other business entity, and would provide for a six-year statute of limitations for prosecution of the offenses.
Amendment 621 of the Constitution of Alabama of 1901, now appearing as Section 111.05 of the Official Recompilation of the Constitution of Alabama of 1901, as amended, prohibits a general law whose purpose or effect would be to require a new or increased expenditure of local funds from becoming effective with regard to a local governmental entity without enactment by a 2/3 vote unless: it comes within one of a number of specified exceptions; it is approved by the affected entity; or the Legislature appropriates funds, or provides a local source of revenue, to the entity for the purpose.
The purpose or effect of this bill would be to require a new or increased expenditure of local funds within the meaning of the amendment. However, the bill does not require approval of a local governmental entity or enactment by a 2/3 vote to become effective because it comes within one of the specified exceptions contained in the amendment.
Read for the first time and referred to the House of Representatives committee on Military and Veterans Affairs
Motion to Read a Third Time and Pass adopted Roll Call 434
Rules Petition to Cease Debate adopted Roll Call 433
Third Reading Passed
Read for the second time and placed on the calendar
Read for the first time and referred to the Senate committee on Finance and Taxation General Fund
Source: Alabama Legislature