South Dakota 2020 Legislative Session: Week Two Update

On Wednesday, AARP South Dakota testified before the Senate Health and Human Services Committee in favor of Senate Bill (SB) 50 which updates the South Dakota Nurse Practice Act. SB 50 is being brought by the South Dakota Advanced Practice Registered Nurse Coalition (APRN), who are working to align SD's standards for Certified Registered Nurse Anestetists (CRNAs) with national standards.

CRNAs are crucial health care providers, especially in rural states like South Dakota. This bill would remove restrictive and outdated barriers that prevent patients from accessing the full range of care CRNAs are trained and educated to provide. Specifically, the bill modernizes state health care laws by:

• Removing outdated restrictions on practice locations so that CRNAs can work with a range of health care providers to improve patient access, especially in rural and underserved communities.
• Ensuring South Dakota CRNAs have the same prescriptive authority to treat patients as CRNAs who practice in our neighboring states.
• Updating the definition of collaboration for CRNAs so it is consistent with the definition adopted by the legislature in 2017 for Nurse Practitioners and Nurse Midwives.

In addition, SB 50 will also help family caregivers in South Dakota. Older adults frequently lack the ability and resources to get to their appointments because of mobility issues, long travel distances to see a provider and wait times for appointments. Lack of providers in the community puts patients’ health at risk and adds stress to their family caregivers.

AARP South Dakota has worked consistently to promote policy that provides all consumers access to high quality, affordable healthcare. Allowing Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetists (CRNA) to practice to the full extent of their training and education meets that goal.

On Wednesday, SB 50 passed unanimously in Senate Health and Human Services. On Thursday, SB 50 passed on the Senate floor and moves over to the House of Representatives for consideration.

Also, this week, the Senate Retirement Laws Committee held a hearing on the three bills being brought by the South Dakota Retirement System. Each bill passed out of committee and are on their way to the Senate floor. AARP South Dakota is monitoring these bills and will keep you posted on their progress.

Here’s an overview of the three SDRS bills:

• Senate Bill (SB) 31 – cleans up language that will have no material impact on the liabilites or assets of the SDRS.
• Senate Bill (SB) 32 – provides consistency in the commencement of benefits paid by SDRS.
• Senate Bill (SB) 34 – establishes a Qualified Benefit Preservation Arrangement to preserve a portion of the member’s SDRS benefit that is restricted by the Internal Revenue Code in certain, limited circumstances.

Many of your state legislators return home after each week in Pierre to reconnect with their communities and to hear from members of their constituency. AARP SD is one of the many groups who help to facilitate these conversations by sponsoring legislative coffees in cities across the state. Find an event near you and remember to let your lawmakers know you are watching what happens in Pierre!