SLS 10RS-944 ORIGINAL
Page 1 of 3
Coding: Words which are struck through are deletions from existing law;
words in boldface type and underscored are additions.
Regular Session, 2010
SENATE BILL NO. 401
BY SENATOR THOMPSON AND REPRESENTATI VE KATZ
HOSPITALS. Provides relative to rural hospital reimbursement. (8/15/10)
AN ACT1
To enact R.S. 40:1300.144(A)(4), relative to rural hospitals; to provide for rural hospital2
reimbursement; to provide for the development of payment methods that optimize3
federal funds to reduce or eliminate small rural hospitals' reliance upon4
uncompensated care costs funding; to provide for rules and regulations; and to5
provide for related matters.6
Be it enacted by the Legislature of Louisiana:7
Section 1. R.S. 40:1300.144(A)(4) is hereby enacted to read as follows: 8
ยง1300.144. Medical assistance programs; rural hospital reimbursement9
A. The department shall adopt rules and regulations in accordance with the10
Administrative Procedure Act that provide the following:11
* * *12
(4)(a) Effective for services provided on or after July 1, 2010, or as soon13
thereafter as may be permitted by federal law, the department shall develop and14
implement, by emergency rule, a payment methodology which optimizes15
Medicaid inpatient and outpatient payments to rural hospitals. Payments shall16
be developed utilizing available Medicare upper payment limits for inpatient17 SB NO. 401
SLS 10RS-944 ORIGINAL
Page 2 of 3
Coding: Words which are struck through are deletions from existing law;
words in boldface type and underscored are additions.
and outpatient services in accordance with state and federal law. Calculated1
payments shall be distributed to qualifying rural hospitals no less than2
quarterly, or as authorized by federal law.3
(b) After federal funds are optimized, the remaining appropriated funds4
for rural hospitals may be utilized to develop a state-only funded program to5
provide direct funds to qualifying rural hospitals to support access to services6
that would not be available otherwise. In the event the amount appropriated for7
such state-only funded program is insufficient in any state fiscal year to meet8
the total payments required by all rural hospitals to recover payment9
reductions, the payments to qualifying rural hospitals under this state-only10
funded program may be reduced proportionately.11
(c) The department shall review Medicaid and uninsured cost12
information, payment information, patient charges, and hospital financial13
statements to the extent required by state or federal law to determine the14
optimal combination of payments.15
(d) Rural hospitals that do not provide the minimum set of16
documentation required in Paragraph (4)(c) of this Section to determine the17
optimal combination of payments shall not be eligible for additional payments.18
(e) The department is hereby authorized to publish and promulgate19
rules, in accordance with the Administrative Procedures Act, to implement the20
provisions of this Paragraph.21
* * *22
The original instrument and the following digest, which constitutes no part
of the legislative instrument, were prepared by Greg Waddell.
DIGEST
Proposed law provides that effective for services provided on or after July 1, 2010, or as
soon thereafter as may be permitted by federal law, DHH shall develop and implement, by
emergency rule, a payment methodology which optimizes Medicaid inpatient and outpatient
payments to rural hospitals.
Proposed law provides that payments shall be developed utilizing available Medicare upper
payment limits for inpatient and outpatient services in accordance with state and federal law
and calculated payments shall be distributed to qualifying rural hospitals no less than SB NO. 401
SLS 10RS-944 ORIGINAL
Page 3 of 3
Coding: Words which are struck through are deletions from existing law;
words in boldface type and underscored are additions.
quarterly, or as authorized by federal law.
Proposed law provides that after federal funds are optimized, the remaining appropriated
funds for rural hospitals may be utilized to develop a state-only funded program to provide
direct funds to qualifying rural hospitals to support access to services that would not be
available otherwise. In the event the amount appropriated for such state-only funded
program is insufficient in any state fiscal year to meet the total payments required by all
rural hospitals to recover payment reductions, the payments to qualifying rural hospitals
under this state-only funded program may be reduced proportionately.
Proposed law provides that the department shall review Medicaid and uninsured cost
information, payment information, patient charges, and hospital financial statements to the
extent required by state or federal law to determine the optimal combination of payments.
Proposed law provides that rural hospitals that do not provide the minimum set of
documentation required by proposed law to determine the optimal combination of payments
shall not be eligible for additional payments.
Proposed law provides that DHH is hereby authorized to publish and promulgate rules, in
accordance with the APA, to implement the provisions of proposed law.
Effective August 15, 2010.
(Adds R.S. 40:1300.144(A)(4))