Two more bills that I am the House author of passed the Oklahoma House of Representatives: the Second Century Opportunity Fund, Senate Bill 1892, and the Second Century Growth Fund, Senate Bill 1957. These measures are designed to increase funding for scientific research in the state and would finance efforts to promote research in the areas of biotechnology, aviation, weather science and medicine.
The objective of SB 1892 is to establish a premier biotechnology center in Oklahoma while SB 1957 will focus on funding the research or commercialization of science and technology. I believe both bills will ultimately help attract technology-based businesses, offer highly paid jobs, and lead to the creation of new products and markets, all of which will greatly benefit Oklahoma.
A Board of Directors for Research Initiatives would develop requests for proposals and select strategic research alliances for funding and support of research proposals.
The measures now head to a Joint House and Senate Conference Committee for further action and final consideration before the Legislature's May 26 adjournment.
New Law Will Save Taxpayer Dollars
Legislation recently signed into law will eliminate more than half-a-million dollars in waste from state government.
House Bill 2518 allows state prisons to hire certified medication aids instead of nurses to dispense medicine to inmates. The bill, recently signed into law by the governor, will save taxpayers an estimated $577,000 per year.
Certified medication aids have medical training but are not licensed nurses. Because there is a nursing shortage in Oklahoma, it is much cheaper to use medication aids and it also frees up nurses to perform more for medically serious work.
House Bill 2518 passed the Oklahoma House of Representatives and the state Senate without opposition and was quickly signed into law by Gov. Brad Henry.
Bill Protecting Medical Personnel
Who Participate in Executions Headed to Governor
Legislation protecting Oklahoma doctors and nurses from losing their license if they participate in a state execution is one step away from becoming law.
House Bill 2660would prevent any “licensing entity, board, commission, association, or agency” from taking any action to “revoke, suspend, or deny” a license to any medical professional because that person participated in an execution.
The bill was requested by the State Department of Corrections following a fiasco in California in which several anesthetists refused to comply with a federal court order to ensure that a man scheduled to die by lethal injection was properly anesthetized before the lethal doses of medicine were administered.
The DOC wants to ensure if similar actions take place in Oklahoma, medical professionals will feel they can participate in an execution without fear of retaliation by a medical board or organization.
HB 2660 passed in the House by a vote of 93-4 and now goes to Gov. Brad Henry for his signature.
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