(a) The Commissioner of Social Services shall extend the provisions of § 17-134d-11 of the regulations of Connecticut state agencies to monitor and control Medicaid recipient utilization of outpatient mental health services. The commissioner shall contract, through a competitive bidding process, for recipient surveillance and review services. Such contract shall authorize the imposition of utilization controls, including but not limited to, prior authorization requirements based on medical appropriateness and cost effectiveness.

(b) Notwithstanding the provisions of subsection (c) of § 17b-239, the commissioner shall establish a service-specific fee schedule for hospital outpatient mental health therapy services, except for partial hospitalization and other comprehensive services as defined by the commissioner. Payment for partial hospitalization services shall be considered payment in full for all outpatient mental health services.