| 1 | 1 | | 81R11240 TJS-F |
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| 2 | 2 | | By: Coleman H.B. No. 4503 |
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| 3 | 3 | | |
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| 4 | 4 | | |
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| 5 | 5 | | A BILL TO BE ENTITLED |
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| 6 | 6 | | AN ACT |
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| 7 | 7 | | relating to charity care and government-sponsored indigent health |
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| 8 | 8 | | care provided by certain hospitals. |
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| 9 | 9 | | BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
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| 10 | 10 | | SECTION 1. Subchapter D, Chapter 311, Health and Safety |
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| 11 | 11 | | Code, is amended by adding Section 311.0435 to read as follows: |
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| 12 | 12 | | Sec. 311.0435. DUTY OF FOR-PROFIT HOSPITALS TO PROVIDE |
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| 13 | 13 | | COMMUNITY BENEFITS. (a) For purposes of this section, "political |
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| 14 | 14 | | subdivision" means a county, municipality, special district, |
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| 15 | 15 | | school district, or other governmental subdivision of this state. |
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| 16 | 16 | | (b) A hospital that receives a tax abatement from a |
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| 17 | 17 | | political subdivision, other than a nonprofit hospital to which |
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| 18 | 18 | | Section 311.043 applies or a hospital owned or operated by a |
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| 19 | 19 | | political subdivision, shall provide charity care and |
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| 20 | 20 | | government-sponsored indigent health care as provided by this |
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| 21 | 21 | | section. |
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| 22 | 22 | | (c) Subject to Subsection (d), a hospital to which this |
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| 23 | 23 | | section applies shall provide charity care in an amount equal to at |
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| 24 | 24 | | least five percent of the hospital's gross patient revenue, and |
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| 25 | 25 | | government-sponsored indigent health care in an amount equal to at |
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| 26 | 26 | | least four percent of the hospital's gross patient revenue. A |
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| 27 | 27 | | hospital's gross patient revenue and the amount of charity care and |
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| 28 | 28 | | government-sponsored indigent health care provided is determined |
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| 29 | 29 | | by the hospital's most recently completed, audited fiscal year. |
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| 30 | 30 | | (d) A hospital may reduce the amount of charity care and |
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| 31 | 31 | | government-sponsored indigent care that it is required to provide |
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| 32 | 32 | | under this section as reasonably necessary due to a natural |
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| 33 | 33 | | disaster or other emergency that requires the hospital |
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| 34 | 34 | | substantially to curtail its operations. |
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| 35 | 35 | | (e) A hospital's admissions policy shall provide for the |
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| 36 | 36 | | admission of financially indigent and medically indigent persons, |
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| 37 | 37 | | as those terms are defined by Section 311.031. |
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| 38 | 38 | | (f) The department may deny, suspend, or revoke a hospital's |
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| 39 | 39 | | license for a violation of this section in accordance with Section |
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| 40 | 40 | | 241.053. |
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| 41 | 41 | | SECTION 2. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives |
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| 42 | 42 | | a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as |
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| 43 | 43 | | provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this |
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| 44 | 44 | | Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this |
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| 45 | 45 | | Act takes effect September 1, 2009. |
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