It’s time to freshen up on new laws

The state rolled out new rules for Hoosiers last week, and for the first time in months the directives didn’t center around COVID-19.

During the 2020 legislative session, which ran from Jan. 6 to March 11, Gov. Eric Holcomb signed 167 bills into law. Some of the policy immediately went into effect, but most of the laws went live on July 1.

Now’s the time for citizens to catch up on the new regulations, as local officials and law enforcement agencies start enforcing the changes.

While some laws, like the ban on using cellphones while driving, and increased fines for selling tobacco products to buyers under the age of 21, have made headlines, they’re just a fraction of the changes coming to the state.

One piece of legislation, House Enrolled Act 1004, will protect patients from receiving surprise medical billing from out-of-network providers, and also require good-faith estimates for elective procedures. Among similar lines, Senate Enrolled Act 5 requires hospitals, outpatient surgery centers and urgent care clinics to publish their average prices online by next spring, which will lead to the creation of a HIPAA-compliant database of all health insurance claims.

House Enrolled Act 1129, authored by State Rep. Ryan Lauer, R-Columbus, added Adrenoleukodystrophy (ALD), a genetic disease predominantly affecting males that causes injury to the brain and leads to behavioral and neurological issues, to newborn screening practices.

Another new law, House Enrolled Act 1006, restricts 15-year-olds from marrying with parental consent. Now, only 16- and 17-year-olds may get married — to someone no more than four years older than them — after obtaining approval from a juvenile court judge.

In Senate Enrolled Act 255, it repeals a provision requiring individuals to possess a prescription to purchase insulin, and in House Enrolled Act 131, the law raises the maximum value of a case in small claims court from $6,000 to $8,000.

It’s difficult to know each and every new law, but essential to take the time to look through them. To view all of the new laws, and also see how local representatives voted on said acts, visit http://iga.in.gov/legislative/2020/bills/.