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LEGISLATURE
OF
THE
STATE
OF
IDAHO
Sixty-eighth
Legislature
Second
Regular
Session
-
2026
IN
THE
HOUSE
OF
REPRESENTATIVES
HOUSE
BILL
NO.
655
BY
HEALTH
AND
WELFARE
COMMITTEE
AN
ACT
1
RELATING
TO
PRECEPTOR
PRIOR
AUTHORIZATION
EXEMPTION;
AMENDING
CHAPTER
2,
2
TITLE
56,
IDAHO
CODE,
BY
THE
ADDITION
OF
A
NEW
SECTION
56
-
276,
IDAHO
3
CODE,
TO
ESTABLISH
PROVISIONS
REGARDING
PRECEPTORS
AND
PRIOR
AU
-
4
THORIZATION
EXEMPTIONS;
AND
DECLARING
AN
EMERGENCY
AND
PROVIDING
AN
5
EFFECTIVE
DATE.
6
Be
It
Enacted
by
the
Legislature
of
the
State
of
Idaho:
7
SECTION
1.
That
Chapter
2,
Title
56,
Idaho
Code,
be,
and
the
same
is
8
hereby
amended
by
the
addition
thereto
of
a
NEW
SECTION
,
to
be
known
and
des
-
9
ignated
as
Section
56
-
276,
Idaho
Code,
and
to
read
as
follows:
10
56
-
276.
PRECEPTORS
-
-
PRIOR
AUTHORIZATION
EXEMPTION.
(1)
A
physician
1
1
practicing
an
eligible
specialty
who
provides
three
hundred
sixty
(360)
12
hours
or
more
of
preceptorship
in
a
calendar
year,
with
at
least
sixty
per
-
13
cent
(60%)
of
those
hours
occurring
in
a
qualified
rural
area,
shall
qualify
14
for
a
twelve
(12)
month
exemption
from
prior
authorization
requirements
for
15
medically
necessary
services
billed
to
Idaho
medicaid
plans.
16
(2)(a)
A
physician
shall
be
responsible
for
tracking
the
physician's
17
preceptorship
hours
and
may
report
such
hours
to
the
department
of
18
health
and
welfare
upon
reaching
the
minimum
amount
of
hours
needed
to
19
qualify
for
the
exemption
described
in
subsection
(1)
of
this
section.
20
(b)
The
department
of
health
and
welfare
shall
verify
the
hours
sub
-
21
mitted
by
a
physician,
and
upon
verification
shall
exempt
the
physician
22
from
prior
authorization
requirements
as
described
in
subsection
(1)
of
23
this
section
at
the
start
of
the
next
calendar
year.
24
(3)
The
department
of
health
and
welfare
may
rescind
an
exemption
from
25
prior
authorization
requirements
if:
26
(a)
On
the
basis
of
a
review
of
a
random
sample
of
a
statistically
sig
-
27
nificant
number
of
claims
submitted
by
a
physician
during
an
exempted
28
period,
the
department
determines
that
the
physician
has
fallen
below
29
the
acceptable
risk
-
weighted
claim
sampling
score.
Such
a
review
may
30
not
be
conducted
more
than
once
per
year;
and
31
(b)
The
department
notifies
the
physician
at
least
twenty
-
five
(25)
32
days
before
the
proposed
rescinding
from
exemption
is
to
take
effect.
33
(4)
No
more
than
one
hundred
(100)
physicians
from
each
eligible
spe
-
34
cialty
shall
receive
an
exemption
from
prior
authorization
requirements
35
pursuant
to
this
section
per
year.
36
(5)
The
department
shall
promulgate
rules,
subject
to
legislative
ap
-
37
proval,
to
carry
out
the
provisions
of
this
section,
including
the
develop
-
38
ment
of
a
risk
-
weighted
sampling
methodology
and
scoring
system
that
incor
-
39
porates
both
the
number
and
dollar
amount
of
claims.
40
(6)
For
the
purpose
of
this
section,
the
following
definitions
apply:
41
2
(a)
"Eligible
specialty"
means
primary
care,
psychiatry,
or
obstetrics
1
and
gynecology.
2
(b)
"Graduate
student"
means
an
individual
matriculating
at
the
gradu
-
3
ate
level
at
any
accredited
Idaho
institution
of
higher
education
seek
-
4
ing
a
degree
in
any
of
the
areas
of
doctor
of
osteopathy
or
physician
as
-
5
sistant.
6
(c)
"Preceptorship"
means
an
uncompensated
mentoring
experience
in
7
which
a
preceptor
provides
a
program
of
personalized
instruction,
8
training,
and
supervision
that
is
offered
to
eligible
graduate
students
9
to
enable
the
students
to
obtain
professional
degrees
in
primary
care
10
fields.
1
1
(d)
"Qualified
rural
area"
means
a
primary
care
health
professional
12
shortage
area
or
a
medically
underserved
area,
as
those
terms
are
de
-
13
fined
in
section
39
-
5903,
Idaho
Code.
14
SECTION
2.
An
emergency
existing
therefor,
which
emergency
is
hereby
15
declared
to
exist,
this
act
shall
be
in
full
force
and
effect
on
and
after
16
July
1,
2026.
17