Rural Mississippi community hospitals can enter into collaboration agreements with the state's teaching hospital and Medicaid postpartum care benefits for eligible women will expand, all on Saturday.
The two acts are among most of the bills signed into law by Gov. Tate Reeves that can go into effect the first day of the state's new fiscal year.
The state's teaching hospital is the University of Mississippi Medical Center in Jackson.
Other new laws will allow trained school employees to carry firearms; creation of a public database of those who steal or misuse taxpayer funds; and two others create study committees to examine agricultural land acquisition by foreign powers and mobile sports gaming.
Senate Bill 2695 reauthorized the Tourism Project Sales Tax Incentive Fund program, which would’ve ended without legislative action. The Mississippi Development Authority administers it and redirects sales taxes paid at a tourism project back to the developer to cover a percentage of the construction costs. The developer can receive 80% of the eligible sales tax collected at the site for 15 years or until those collections add up to 30% of the project’s construction costs.
Senate Bill 2323 was sponsored by Sen. Joey Fillingane, R-Sumrall, and will allow any rural hospital in the state to be acquired by the medical center. It will allow a collaborative relationship with the state's teaching hospital and other community hospitals, and it will not be subject to state and federal anti-trust laws.
