2019 Georgia Code
Title 31 - Health
Chapter 8 - Care and Protection of Indigent and Elderly Patients
Article 1 - Hospital Care for the Indigent Generally
§ 31-8-9.1. Eligibility to receive tax credits; obligations of rural hospitals after receipt of funds; posting information on website

• (a) As used in this Code section, the term:

  • (1) "Critical access hospital" means a hospital that meets the requirements of the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services to be designated as a critical access hospital and that is recognized by the department as a critical access hospital for purposes of Medicaid.

  • (2) "Rural county" means a county having a population of less than 50,000 according to the United States decennial census of 2010 or any future such census; provided, however, that for counties which contain a military base or installation, the military personnel and their dependents living in such county shall be excluded from the total population of such county for purposes of this definition.

  • (3) "Rural hospital organization" means an acute care hospital licensed by the department pursuant to Article 1 of Chapter 7 of this title that:

    • (A) Provides inpatient hospital services at a facility located in a rural county or is a critical access hospital;

    • (B) Participates in both Medicaid and medicare and accepts both Medicaid and medicare patients;

    • (C) Provides health care services to indigent patients;

    • (D) Has at least 10 percent of its annual net revenue categorized as indigent care, charity care, or bad debt;

    • (E) Annually files IRS Form 990, Return of Organization Exempt From Income Tax, with the department, or for any hospital not required to file IRS Form 990, the department will provide a form that collects the same information to be submitted to the department on an annual basis;

    • (F) Is operated by a county or municipal authority pursuant to Article 4 of Chapter 7 of this title or is designated as a tax-exempt organization under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code;

    • (G) Is current with all audits and reports required by law; and

    • (H) Has a three-year average patient margin, as a percent of expense, less than one standard deviation above the state-wide three-year average of organizations defined in subparagraphs (A) through (G) of this paragraph, as calculated by the department. For purposes of this subparagraph, the term "patient margin" means gross patient revenues less contractual adjustments, bad debt, indigent and charity care, other uncompensated care, and total expenses.

• (b)

  • (1) By December 1 of each year, the department shall approve a list of rural hospital organizations eligible to receive contributions from the tax credit provided pursuant to Code Section 48-7-29.20 and transmit such list to the Department of Revenue.

  • (2) Before any rural hospital organization is included on the list as eligible to receive contributions from the tax credit provided pursuant to Code Section 48-7-29.20, it shall submit to the department a five-year plan detailing the financial viability and stability of the rural hospital organization. The criteria to be included in the five-year plan shall be established by the department.

  • (3) The department shall create an operations manual for identifying rural hospital organizations and ranking such rural hospital organizations in order of financial need. Such manual shall include:

    • (A) All deadlines for submitting required information to the department;

    • (B) The criteria to be included in the five-year plan submitted pursuant to paragraph (2) of this subsection; and

    • (C) The formula applied to rank the rural hospital organizations in order of financial need.

• (c) (1) A rural hospital organization that receives donations pursuant to Code Section 48-7-29.20 shall:

  • (A) Utilize such donations for the provision of health care related services for residents of a rural county or for residents of the area served by a critical access hospital; and

  • (B) Report on a form provided by the department:

    • (i) All contributions received from individual and corporate donors pursuant to Code Section 48-7-29.20 detailing the manner in which the contributions received were expended by the rural hospital organization; and

    • (ii) Any payments made to a third party to solicit, administer, or manage the donations received by the rural hospital organization pursuant to this Code section or Code Section 48-7-29.20. In no event shall payments made to a third party to solicit, administer, or manage the donations received pursuant to this Code section exceed 3 percent of the total amount of the donations.

      • (2) The department shall annually prepare a report compiling the information received pursuant to paragraph (1) of this subsection for the chairpersons of the House Committee on Ways and Means and the Senate Health and Human Services Committee.

• (d) The department shall post the following information in a prominent location on its website:

  • (1) The list of rural hospital organizations eligible to receive contributions established pursuant to paragraph (1) of subsection (b) of this Code section;

  • (2) The operations manual created pursuant to paragraph (3) of subsection (b) of this Code section;

  • (3) The annual report prepared pursuant to paragraph (2) of subsection (c) of this Code section;

  • (4) The total amount received by each third party that participated in soliciting, administering, or managing donations; and

  • (5) A link to the Department of Revenue's website containing the information included in subsection (d) of Code Section 48-7-29.20.

Code 1981, § 31-8-9.1, enacted by Ga. L. 2017, p. 511, § 1/SB 180; Ga. L. 2017, p. 774, § 31/HB 323; Ga. L. 2019, p. 148, § 1-14/HB 186; Ga. L. 2019, p. 183, § 3/HB 321.