Southern Legislative Conference

In recent years, Southern states have been inundated by major flooding events. According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), annual flood records are expected to be broken again in 2020 and beyond. Taken together, these repeated flood events can create a significant and long-term strain on states’ economies, both in terms of tangible losses and damages, as well as lost productivity. This SLC Regional Resource...

With decreasing rural populations and changing federal regulations, many rural hospitals have struggled to maintain financial viability in recent years. In 2017, 6,210 total hospitals operated in the United States; 2,250, of these are rural hospitals. Nationally, 113 rural hospitals have closed since January 2010. Furthermore, the rate of rural hospital closures from 2013 to 2017 was twice as high as the rate of the previous five years. In January 2010, SLC member states had approximately 831 rural hospitals. Since then, 81 rural...

The emergence of shared electric scooters is the latest development in the broader micromobility movement, defined by the use of light, often single-occupant modes of transportation for short distances. Along with electric scooters, station-based and dockless pedal and electric bicycles are the most commonly used micromobility vehicles, accounting for more than 80 million trips in 2018.

In the South, the introduction of shared electric scooters has been swift. With growing populations and favorable climates across much of...

For farmers in Florida, Alabama and Georgia, the timing of the Hurricane Michael could not have been worse. Just as harvest season for many vegetable and row crops was beginning, like a plague of locusts, Michael devoured nearly every farm in its path. This SLC Regional Resource, current as of April 15, 2019, reviews the agricultural impact of Hurricane Michael on Florida, Alabama and Georgia. Across the three states, cotton and timber were hardest hit, but damage to other agricultural products and infrastructure was equally devastating.

Balance billing is a common practice that occurs when a medically insured patient receives treatment from an out-of-network healthcare provider, either intentionally or inadvertently, and subsequently is billed the difference between the insurance company’s reimbursement rate and the amount charged by the provider. Not bound by contractual, in-network rate agreements with insurers, out-of-network providers are permitted to bill patients the remaining balance for services rendered after deductibles, copayments and coinsurance...