Tennessee 2025-2026 Regular Session

Tennessee House Bill HB0144 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.

Old	New	Differences
1	1
2	2	SENATE BILL 139
3	3	By Lowe
4	4
5	5	HOUSE BILL 144
6	6	By Zachary
7	7
8	8
9	9	HB0144
10	10	001193
11	11	- 1 -
12	12
13	13	AN ACT to amend Tennessee Code Annotated, Title 33;
14	14	Title 68 and Title 71, relative to healthcare.
15	15
16	16	BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF TENNESSEE:
17	17	SECTION 1. Tennessee Code Annotated, Title 68, Chapter 1, Part 1, is amended by
18	18	adding the following as a new section:
19	19	(a)
20	20	(1) Each hospital that accepts medicaid must include on a patient's
21	21	admission or registration forms a provision for the patient or the patient's
22	22	representative to indicate whether the patient is:
23	23	(A) A citizen of the United States;
24	24	(B) Lawfully present in the United States; or
25	25	(C) Not lawfully present in the United States.
26	26	(2) The provision must be followed by a statement that the response will
27	27	not affect patient care or result in a report of the patient's citizenship status to law
28	28	enforcement or to the bureau of immigration and customs enforcement of the
29	29	United States department of homeland security.
30	30	(b) Within thirty (30) calendar days after the end of each quarter, each hospital
31	31	that accepts medicaid shall submit a report to the department of health with the number
32	32	of hospital admissions and emergency department visits within the previous quarter that
33	33	were made by a patient who:
34	34	(1) Was:
35	35
36	36
37	37	- 2 - 001193
38	38
39	39	(A) A citizen of the United States or lawfully present in the United
40	40	States; and
41	41	(B) Not lawfully present in the United States; and
42	42	(2) Declined to answer.
43	43	(c)
44	44	(1) On or before July 1, 2026, and on or before July 1 of each
45	45	subsequent year, the department of health shall submit to the governor, the
46	46	speaker of the senate, and the speaker of the house of representatives a report
47	47	of the total number of hospital admissions and emergency department visits for
48	48	the previous year for which the patient or patient's representative reported that
49	49	the patient:
50	50	(A) Was:
51	51	(i) A citizen of the United States or lawfully present in the
52	52	United States; and
53	53	(ii) Not lawfully present in the United States; and
54	54	(B) Declined to answer.
55	55	(2) The report must describe information relating to the costs of
56	56	uncompensated care for a person who is not lawfully present in the United
57	57	States, the impact of uncompensated care on the cost or ability of hospitals to
58	58	provide services to the public, hospital funding needs, and other related
59	59	information.
60	60	(d) The department of health is authorized to promulgate rules to effectuate this
61	61	section. The rules must be promulgated in accordance with the Uniform Administrative
62	62	Procedures Act, compiled in title 4, chapter 5. Any rules promulgated by the department
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64	64
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66	66
67	67	of health to effectuate this section must not require the disclosure of patient names or
68	68	other personal identifying information to the department of health.
69	69	SECTION 2. For purposes of promulgating rules, this act takes effect upon becoming a
70	70	law, the public welfare requiring it. For all other purposes, this act takes effect July 1, 2025, the
71	71	public welfare requiring it.