Tennessee Bills

HB 819 removes a regulatory requirement for acute care hospitals in Tennessee. It exempts these hospitals - defined as facilities treating patients with an average stay of 25 days or less - from needing state approval (a "certificate of need") to open or operate new facilities or expand services. The exemption takes effect on July 1, 2028, and applies to all acute care hospitals under Tennessee law. This change directly affects hospital operators by reducing one layer of state oversight for their facility planning.

SB 225 requires Tennessee health insurers to reimburse chiropractic physicians at the same rate as medical doctors for identical services, amending Tennessee Code Annotated Titles 56 and 63. It prohibits insurers from using separate payment codes or methodologies for chiropractic services compared to physician services, ensuring equal reimbursement based on nationally recognized coding systems like the CPT book. This applies to private health insurance plans but excludes TennCare, CoverKids, and government-provided insurance. The bill aims to eliminate reimbursement disparities for chiropractors offering equivalent services to medical doctors. It was scheduled to take effect July 1, 2025, but failed in committee on March 25, 2025.

HB 2125 requires Tennessee's Department of Education to work with the Department of Safety to create mandatory guidelines for public schools and charter schools offering driver education courses. These guidelines must include specific safety content: road safety tips, use of the Department of Safety's driver manual, and education on the dangers of driving under the influence and distracted driving. The bill amends Tennessee Code Sections 49-1-204 and 55 to implement this requirement, directly affecting all Local Education Agencies (LEAs) and public charter schools providing driver training. The guidelines will take effect July 1, 2026.

HB 2014 amends Tennessee law to increase sentencing for drivers convicted of vehicular homicide due to intoxication who also flee the scene of the accident. If convicted of both offenses under the same incident, the driver must be sentenced as a Range II offender (minimum) for the vehicular homicide charge, per the new Section 39-13-213(b)(2)(H). This applies to cases where a driver causes death while intoxicated and violates §55-10-101 (leaving the scene). The bill takes effect July 1, 2026, and directly affects individuals convicted of both specific traffic-related offenses.

HB 1934 requires the Tennessee public charter school commission to notify the chairs of the education committees in both the Tennessee Senate and House of Representatives when a new opportunity public charter school opens in the state, including the school's specific location. This notification must occur at the time the school opens. The bill adds this reporting requirement to existing law without changing charter school rules or operations. It directly affects the commission (which must send the notice) and the legislative education committees (which receive the information).

HB 2160 would require Tennessee counties to transition from at-large elections for county commissioners to district-based elections by the 2030 federal census. The bill prohibits counties from having a single district covering the entire county and bans the election of commissioners in at-large districts. Counties currently using at-large systems must amend their charters to create districts before the 2030 census. This directly affects Tennessee counties that currently elect their county legislative body members by the entire county rather than by geographic districts.

HB 2443 modifies Tennessee's child support laws by changing the age at which parental support obligations typically end from 18 to 19 years. The bill specifies that parents must continue paying support until a child turns 19, unless the child is disabled or has a handicap, as defined in existing law. This change directly affects parents legally responsible for child support payments and modifies Tennessee Code Annotated Sections 34-1-102 (parental responsibility), 36-5-101 (support case documentation), and references Title 37, Chapter 1. The key provision replaces previous language allowing support beyond 18 only for high school students, now setting a firm 19-year cutoff with the disability exception.

HB 2206 requires Tennessee's Department of Children's Services to send its annual report on "zero to three courts" and "safe baby courts" to the Commission on Children and Youth. The bill amends Tennessee Code Annotated, Title 37, by adding the Commission on Children and Youth to the list of entities that receive this report (alongside court officials and legislative committee chairs). This change ensures the Commission receives the report annually, providing transparency about court programs for infants and newborns. The bill does not alter the report's content or create new programs, only adjusting who receives it.

HB 2429 requires unmarried parents in juvenile court cases involving custody or parenting schedules to complete a mandatory 4-hour parent education seminar before final court orders. The seminar must cover child well-being, co-parenting skills, conflict reduction, and adverse childhood experiences, and cannot be attended by minors. Parents pay the fee unless indigent (with court waiver), and must submit proof of completion to the court. The bill applies to cases where parentage is established or custody is modified, and courts may waive the requirement for safety concerns or impracticality, but noncompliance may factor into custody decisions.

HB 2078, the "Parental Rights Protection Act," requires courts to hold a quick court review within 15 days if a criminal defendant's bond restricts their contact with, custody of, or visitation with a minor child (who isn't a victim of the crime). The government must prove, with clear evidence, that a serious threat to the child exists, less restrictive options won't work, and the restriction is truly in the child's best interest. If the court doesn't hold the review on time, the bond condition automatically cancels. The bill also presumes that parental contact is generally in a child's best interest. This directly affects criminal defendants in Tennessee facing bond conditions involving their children.

HB 2313 authorizes Tennessee's Department of Health to establish a voluntary, home-based mental health program for children from birth to age five and their families. It directly affects families facing stressors like poverty, trauma, or parental mental health challenges by providing evidence-based home visits from licensed clinicians. Key provisions include home-based therapy, care coordination to connect families with services, developmental assessments, and strict quality standards to ensure program effectiveness. The program must prioritize at-risk families, coordinate with existing services, and report annually on outcomes and funding to the legislature.

HB 2243, the "SHIELD Act," prohibits health insurance companies from including patients with legally recognized vaccine exemptions (based on religion or medical reasons) in vaccination-related quality metrics used to determine provider reimbursement rates. It directly affects healthcare providers who treat such patients and health insurance entities that set payment structures. The bill requires insurers to exclude exempt patients from calculations of vaccination rates and bans them from penalizing providers - through reduced payments, network removal, or withheld bonuses - for having these patients in their practice. This ensures providers aren’t financially penalized for following state law on vaccine exemptions. The law takes effect July 1, 2026, for new or renewed insurance contracts.