SF 1246 establishes a comprehensive Health Care Workforce Council.  SF 1246 also establishes a grant program to expand clinical training for advanced practice registered nurses, physician assistants, and mental health professionals; a grant program to expand primary care residency training; and a grant program to for health professions student preceptors and medical resident preceptors.

Section 1 (144.1504) establishes a comprehensive health care workforce plan for the state.

Subd. 1 establishes a health care workforce council to:  (1) provide ongoing policy and program monitoring and coordination; (2) provide health care workforce education and training, trends, changes in health care delivery, practice, and financing; and (3) recommend appropriate public and private sector efforts to address identified work force needs.

Subd. 2 describes the council’s membership.

Subd. 3 specifies that the public members' term is for four years.

Subd. 4, paragraph (a), requires the Commissioner of Health, in consultation with the Health Care Workforce Council, to prepare a comprehensive health care workforce plan every five years with the first plan to be submitted to the legislature by January 1, 2017.

Paragraph (b) describes what the work force plan must cover.

Paragraph (c) requires the Commissioner of Health, in consultation with the Health Care Workforce Council, to submit a report to the legislature and the governor each year in which a comprehensive health care workforce plan is not due, on the progress that is being made toward achieving the projected goals of the current comprehensive health care work force plan during the previous year.

Subd. 5 requires the Commissioner of Health to provide staff and administrative, research, and planning services to the Health Care Workforce Council.

Section 2 (144.1505) creates a primary care and mental health professions clinical training expansion grant program.

Subd. 1 defines the following terms:  eligible physician assistant program; eligible advanced practice registered nurse program; eligible mental health professional training program; eligible project; and mental health professional.

Subd. 2 requires the Commissioner of Health to award health professional training site grants to eligible physician assistant, advanced practice registered nurse, and mental health professional programs to plan and implement expanded clinical training.  Specifies that a planning grant may not exceed $75,000, and a training grant may not exceed $150,000 for the first year, $100,000 for the second year and $50,000 for the third year per program.  Specifies what the funds may be used for.

Subd. 3 requires grant applicants to apply to the Commissioner of Health.  Specifies what must be contained in the grant application.

Subd. 4 requires the commissioner to review each application to determine whether or not the application is complete and the program and the project are eligible for a grant that describes the scoring process to be used by the commissioner when evaluating the applications.

Subd. 5 requires the commissioner to determine the amount of the grant to be given to each eligible program.  Specifies that the appropriations made to the program do not cancel and are available until expended.  Authorizes the commissioner to require and collect from the programs receiving grants any information necessary to evaluate the programs.

Section 3 (144.1506) creates the primary care residency expansion grant program.

Subd. 1 defines the following terms:  eligible primary care residency program; eligible project; and new residency slot.

Subd. 2 requires the Commissioner of Health to award primary care residency expansion grants to eligible primary care residency programs to plan and implement new residency slots.  Specifies that a planning grant shall not exceed $75,000, and a training grant shall not exceed $150,000 per new residency slot for the first year, $100,000 for the second year, and $50,000 for the third year of the new residency slot.  Specifies what the funds may be used for.

Subd. 3 requires the grant applicants to apply to the commissioner.  Specifies what must be contained in the grant application.

Subd. 4 requires the commissioner to review each grant application to determine whether or not the residency program application is complete, and whether the proposed new residency program and any new residency slots are eligible for a grant.  Requires the commissioner to award grants to support up to six family medicine, general internal medicine, or general surgery residents.  Permits the funds to be redistributed if insufficient applications are received from any eligibility specialty.

Subd. 5 authorizes the commissioner to require and collect from the grantees any information necessary to evaluate the program.  Specifies that the appropriations made to this program do not cancel and are available until expended.

Section 4 (144.1507) creates the health professions preceptor incentive grant program.

Subd. 1 defines the following terms:  mental health professional; preceptor; sponsoring institution; and teaching institution.

Subd. 2 requires the Commissioner of Health to award grants to sponsoring institutions on behalf of those eligible preceptors who submit applications to the sponsoring institutions.  Specifies that funds awarded to grantees in a grant agreement do not lapse until expended by the grantee.  Requires sponsoring institutions receiving grants to distribute all funds directly to eligible preceptors.

Subd. 3 specifies that to be eligible for an incentive payment a preceptor must have served as a health professions student preceptor or medical resident preceptor for at least 12 weeks or 480 hours during the preceding year and received no compensation for preceptor services in the preceding year.

Subd. 4 requires eligible preceptors to apply to one sponsoring institution using forms provided by the commissioner.   Specifies what must be contained in the application.  Permits sponsoring institutions and teaching institutions to assist in completing preceptor applications.

Subd. 5 requires sponsoring institutions to compile all eligible preceptor applications and submit them to the commissioner.  Authorizes the commissioner to request additional information from sponsoring institutions that is necessary for verification of preceptor application data.  Requires the commissioner to review each sponsoring institution application to determine whether the preceptor application data is complete and whether the sponsoring institution is eligible for a grant.

Subd. 6 requires the commissioner to set a per preceptor award amount each year by dividing the available funds by the number of eligible preceptors.  Specifies that the maximum award to a preceptor shall be $1500.  Requires the commissioner to distribute available funds to all eligible sponsoring institutions proportionately based on the number of eligible preceptors included in the sponsoring institution’s application.  Requires the sponsoring institutions to distribute the per preceptor award amount to each eligible preceptor.

Subd. 7 authorizes the commissioner to require additional information or data from preceptors necessary for oversight of the program.  Authorizes the commissioner to require and collect from the sponsoring institutions receiving grants any information necessary to evaluate the program.

Section 5 appropriates funds to the Commissioner of Health for the primary care and mental health professions clinical training expansion grant program; the primary care residency expansion program; the health professions preceptor incentive grant program, and for the Minnesota Health Care Workforce Council.