FOR-PROFIT HOSPITAL CONVERSIONS: STATES TAKE AIM
Alarmed that the growing number of nonprofit communityThis is part of the California Healthline Daily Edition, a summary of health policy coverage from major news organizations. Sign up for an email subscription.
hospitals being purchased by for-profit concerns may have a
negative impact on health services in the community as well as
the provision of charitable care, states have begun to enact laws
and issue regulations to regulate such conversions. These
measures usually give the attorney general or the state health
department the power to review for-profit conversions and decide
if they are in the public interest. They often contain
disclosure provisions that attempt to bring the review process --
including financial terms of the deal and any possible conflicts
of interest -- into the open. Eleven states and the District of
Columbia now have laws regulating for-profit conversions. Only
Georgia's law applies to both nonprofit and for-profit hospitals;
Indiana's law also applies to non-profit HMOs. A non-profit
conversion law has passed the Ohio House and is currently pending
in the Senate; a bill has been prefiled in Kentucky for the 1998
session. In addition, numerous for-profit conversion bills that
died in various state legislatures are expected to be
reintroduced next year (Miller, American Health Line, 8/15).
Non-Profit Hospital
Conversion Laws Passed Pending
California x
District of Columbia x
Georgia x
Indiana x
Kentucky x
Louisiana x
Massachusetts x
Nebraska x
New York x
Ohio x
Rhode Island x
Texas x
West Virginia x
Washington x