Sec. 5906.

(1) The hepatitis C advisory task force is created in the department. The task force shall be appointed by the governor. The task force shall consist of 11 members including the director and his or her designee as an ex officio member, 1 member from an association representing local public health, and 9 members appointed from the following categories:

(a) Business and industry.

(b) Labor.

(c) Health care providers.

(d) The legal community.

(e) Religious organizations.

(f) State and local government.

(g) The education community.

(2) A health care provider member appointed pursuant to subsection (1) shall not be an employee of a state executive department or local health department, nor represent a facility or agency which is owned or operated by a state executive department or a local health department. To the extent practicable, the members appointed pursuant to subsection (1), except the director, shall be representative of the demographic composition and geographic regions of this state.

(3) The term of each member, other than the director, shall be 3 years, except that of the members first appointed, 4 shall serve for 3 years, 3 shall serve for 2 years, and 3 shall serve for 1 year. A member shall not serve more than 2 consecutive terms, whether partial or full. A vacancy on the task force shall be filled for the balance of the unexpired term in the same manner as the original appointment. The task force biannually shall elect a chairperson and other officers and committees as considered appropriate by the task force. The actual and necessary per diem compensation and the schedule for reimbursement of expenses for the public members of the task force shall be the same as is established annually by the legislature for similar commissions or task forces that are reimbursed from the general fund.

(4) The business which the task force performs shall be conducted at a public meeting of the task force held in compliance with the open meetings act, 1976 PA 267, MCL 15.261 to 15.275. Public notice of the time, date, and place of the meeting shall be given in the manner required by the open meetings act, 1976 PA 267, MCL 15.261 to 15.275. A writing prepared, owned, used, in the possession of, or retained by the task force in the performance of an official function shall be made available to the public in compliance with the freedom of information act, 1976 PA 442, MCL 15.231 to 15.246.

(5) The task force shall do all of the following:

(a) Meet not less than quarterly at the call of the chairperson.

(b) Advise the governor and the legislature on policies regarding hepatitis C and risk reduction.

(c) Annually report to the governor and the legislature on major risk factors and preventable diseases or conditions including, but not limited to, hepatitis C.

(d) Make recommendations to the department regarding the allocation of money, if available, from the Michigan health initiative fund or any other source, including, but not limited to, the level of funding for grants under section 5925.

(e) Review and comment to the department on topics determined by the task force to be appropriate for the media campaign conducted under this part.

(f) Review and identify potential additional funding mechanisms and sources to cover the costs of outreach, awareness, available treatment options, and testing, for HCV.

(g) Make recommendations to the department regarding information to be utilized and incorporated into the HCV information package, including, but not limited to, information regarding the status of HCV in this state, state-supported testing and counseling programs, and research findings.

(6) The hepatitis C advisory task force created under this section is abolished effective June 30, 2010.

History: Add. 2006, Act 238, Imd. Eff. June 26, 2006 Popular Name: Act 368