Bill > S4254

Introduced Session

This bill requires hospitals to publish a list of standard charges for certain items and services. Under the bill, a hospital is to publish: a machine-readable file containing a list of all "standard charges" for all "items and services," and a consumer-friendly list of "standard charges" for a limited set of "shoppable services," as these terms are defined in the bill. A hospital is to include corresponding data elements in its list of standard charges, as outlined in the bill. A hospital is to publish a total of at least 300 shoppable services or for as many shoppable services as it provides. The bill provides that the Department of Health (department) is to evaluate whether a hospital has complied with the bill's provisions. If the department concludes that a hospital is noncompliant with one or more of the bill's provisions, the department may take any of the following actions: (1) provide a written warning notice to a hospital of a specific violation; (2) request a corrective action plan from the hospital if its noncompliance constitutes a material violation; or (3) impose a civil monetary penalty on the hospital and publish the penalty on the department's Internet website if the hospital fails to respond to the department's request to submit a corrective action plan or comply with the requirements of the corrective action plan. A material violation may include a hospital's failure to publish its standard charges. A hospital's corrective action plan is to specify elements including: (1) the corrective actions or processes the hospital is to take to address the deficiency identified by the department; and (2) the timeframe by which the hospital is to complete the corrective action. The department may impose a civil monetary penalty on a hospital that violates the bill's provisions. A hospital is to pay the civil monetary penalty in full within 60 calendar days after the date of the notice of imposition of a civil monetary penalty. A hospital upon which the department has imposed a penalty may appeal that penalty. If a hospital does not request a hearing within 30 calendar days of the issuance of a notice of imposition of a civil monetary penalty, the department may impose the civil monetary penalty indicated in such notice and may impose additional penalties pursuant to continuing violations without the right of appeal.

AI Summary

Committee Categories

Joe Vitale (D)*, 

Introduced in the Senate, Referred to Senate Health, Human Services and Senior Citizens Committee (on 12/21/2023)

Official Document