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South Dakota House Bill HB1058

South Dakota 2025 Regular Session

South Dakota House Bill HB1058 Compare Versions

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1-25.173.31 100th Legislative Session 1058
1+25.173.30 100th Legislative Session 1058
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44 2025 South Dakota Legislature
55 House Bill 1058
6-HOUSE HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES ENGROSSED
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1212 Introduced by: Representative Mulder
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1414 Underscores indicate new language.
1515 Overstrikes indicate deleted language.
16-An Act to prohibit the reporting of medical debt to a consumer reporting agency and 1
17-to provide a penalty therefor. 2
16+An Act to prohibit the collecting and reporting of medical debt in certain situations 1
17+and to provide a penalty therefor. 2
1818 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF SOUTH DAKOTA: 3
1919 Section 1. That a NEW SECTION be added to chapter 54-1: 4
2020 A medical creditor or medical debt collector may not report any information 5
2121 regarding medical debt to a consumer reporting agency. A violation of this section is a 6
2222 Class 2 misdemeanor. 7
2323 For purposes of this section, the following terms mean: 8
2424 (1) "Consumer reporting agency," a person who, for consideration or on a cooperative 9
2525 nonprofit basis, regularly engages in whole or in part in the practice of assembling 10
2626 or evaluating consumer credit information or other information on consumers for 11
2727 the purpose of furnishing consumer reports to third parties; 12
2828 (2) "Medical creditor," a person who provides health care services and to whom a 13
2929 consumer owes money for health care services; 14
3030 (3) "Medical debt," a debt arising from health care services or treatments; and 15
3131 (4) "Medical debt collector," a person who collects or attempts to collect medical debts. 16
32+Section 2. That a NEW SECTION be added to chapter 54-1: 17
33+A hospital, as defined in ยง 34-12-1.1, is prohibited from pursuing the collection of 18
34+medical debt, as defined in section 1 of this Act, against an individual: 19
35+(1) If the individual informs the hospital of an appeal pertaining to a denial of coverage 20
36+by the individual's insurance provider, provided the prohibition terminates when 21
37+the individual receives a final determination from the insurance provider; 22
38+(2) Before the hospital has made reasonable efforts to determine whether the 23
39+individual is eligible for assistance under the hospital's financial assistance program 24 25.173.30 2 1058
40+ Underscores indicate new language.
41+ Overstrikes indicate deleted language.
42+and, if eligible, before a decision is made by the hospital on the individual's 1
43+application for financial assistance; 2
44+(3) Before the hospital has provided the individual with an itemized statement; 3
45+(4) For thirty days after notifying the individual in writing, by certified mail, or by other 4
46+traceable delivery method, that a collection action will commence, absent 5
47+additional action by the individual; 6
48+(5) While the individual negotiates, in good faith, with the hospital on the final amount 7
49+of a bill for services or treatments provided; or 8
50+(6) While the individual is in compliance with all terms of a payment plan entered into 9
51+with the hospital. 10