2006 Louisiana Laws - RS 40:1300.142 — Legislative findings; purpose

§1300.142.  Legislative findings; purpose

A.  The legislature finds that:

(1)  Small rural hospitals provide most of the health care services required by a substantial number of low income rural residents living in the state and therefore constitute an invaluable part of the health care delivery system of  the state.

(2)  Residents living in rural areas of the state, which consist of sixty-four percent of the state's parishes, are in poorer health than residents living in the urban areas of the state and lack adequate public transportation.

(3)  Small rural hospitals are in poor financial condition as a result of payment reductions in the Medicare and Medicaid programs and as a result of the advent and penetration of managed care in the state.

(4)  Small rural hospitals have a difficult time attracting physicians to practice in their service areas, thereby resulting in a continued shortage of primary health care in the state's rural areas.

(5)  Absent intervention, continued reductions in the Medicare and Medicaid programs, as well as changes in health care reimbursement methodologies and the continued spread of managed care, have caused and will continue to cause the closure of many of the state's small rural hospitals, thereby jeopardizing the very existence of a vital link in the health care delivery system for residents residing in rural areas of the state.

(6)  Rural hospitals constitute, in many instances, the largest single employer of residents in areas served by them and thus constitute a vital economic component of many rural parish economies.

B.  The legislature hereby declares that, absent the enactment of the following provisions, the very existence of Louisiana's small rural hospital is imperiled. The legislature hereby declares that the purpose of this Part is to assure the continued viability of rural hospitals.

Acts 1997, No. 1485, §1.