LAWMAKER WEIGHS PROS AND CONS

Serving on the Missouri Health Facilities Review Committee is a lawmaker's nightmare.

"It is absolutely the most no-win deal that I have ever been involved in," said state Sen. Peter Kinder, a committee member.

"There's no combat pay for attending the meetings," he said.

One senator resigned after one meeting and another resigned before ever attending a meeting.

The committee meets six times a year to review proposed building and equipment projects submitted by hospitals and nursing homes. The board's approval is required for the projects to proceed.

The Senate is looking at legislation that would eliminate the regulatory agency or at least reduce its role.

Sen. Marvin Singleton of Joplin wants to take lawmakers off a board they don't want to be on in the first place and remove hospitals from the committee's control.

The debate over the future of the regulatory board comes at a time when many states have eliminated their certificate-of-need programs.

Federal rules adopted in 1979 required states to have such programs, but the federal rules were later repealed.

Sixteen states have repealed their certificate-of-need laws or no longer review hospital additions or new medical equipment purchases.

Kinder philosophically favors less government regulation, but he said the issue is complex.

"There are points to be made in favor of continuation of the committee," he said, however, I am prepared to favor at least something like what Sen. Singleton is proposing, to trim back its scope of review."

Kinder said the committee has rejected few projects.

"When we consider several dozen applications a year and reject three or four each year, and approve the rest, you can make an argument that we are not performing much of a cost-control function."