(1) On or before January 1, 1997, the state department shall make preparations for the implementation of a statewide medically correctable program, referred to in this section as the "program". Such preparations shall include but are not limited to staff training, policy development, and rule-making pursuant to article 4 of title 24, C.R.S.

(2) On and after January 1, 1997, the program shall be applicable to a person who:

(a) Has been approved for state aid to the needy disabled;

(b) Is determined to be unlikely to meet the disability criteria for supplemental security income;

(c) Has a disability that can be corrected with medical treatment at a cost that does not exceed twenty thousand dollars so that the person can return to employment; and

(d) Is not otherwise receiving workers' compensation benefits.

(3) The program shall consist of the following features:

(a) A process by which the state department shall determine whether a person qualifies to receive medical treatment so that the person can return to work;

(b) A set of procedures for monitoring a person's recovery from the medical treatment and return to work after participating in the program; and

(c) Annual reports to the joint budget committee and the house and senate committees on health and human services, or any successor committees, that identify the number of persons who received medical treatment pursuant to the program in the preceding fiscal year, their recovery rates and return to the workforce, and the amount of moneys spent on the program.

(4) The cost of the medical treatment identified in paragraph (c) of subsection (2) of this section shall not be a benefit for purposes of articles 40 to 47 of title 8, C.R.S.

(5) (Deleted by amendment, L. 99, p. 699, § 4, effective July 1, 1999.)