SB 18-155

Senate Bill 18-155 requires hospitals that don't pay state or local taxes to report on the community benefits they provide and the tax benefits they receive. This includes creating a council within the Department of Health Care Policy and Financing to review these reports and make recommendations for any necessary changes in reporting requirements. The bill also mandates annual reports from this council to specific legislative committees, with plans to review and potentially repeal the advisory council and reporting requirements by 2022. Since it has been signed into law, hospitals will now need to comply with these new reporting rules starting soon.

Official Summary

The bill requires hospitals, other than critical access hospitals, that are exempt from state or local taxes to report information about the tax benefits they receive and the community benefits they provide. The bill creates a hospital community benefits advisory council within the department of health care policy and financing to accept and analyze hospital reports. The executive director of the department is required to adopt rules, in consultation with the advisory council, specifying when hospitals are to submit the reports, the form and manner of reporting the required data, the categories of community benefits they provide and the services that constitute a community benefit, and related matters. Upon analyzing hospital data, the advisory council is to: Make recommendations to the executive director regarding any modifications needed to the hospital reporting requirements as specified in rules; and Provide annual reports to specified legislative committees regarding the hospital data and any legislative recommendations. The advisory council and hospital reporting requirements are subject to sunset review in 2021, with repeal of the advisory council and hospital reporting requirements scheduled for September 1, 2022. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as introduced.) , Read More