Bill > H1353

This bill directs the Health Policy Commission to conduct a comprehensive analysis and produce a report on acute care hospital stays that last longer than 60 days. The report will be developed in consultation with several state health agencies and must examine multiple aspects of extended hospital stays, including patient demographics, medical conditions, insurance coverage, and systemic challenges. Specifically, the analysis will investigate barriers related to reimbursement, immigration status, and patient discharge, as well as assess the average length of extended stays and the efforts hospitals make to transfer patients to appropriate care settings. The bill requires an examination of existing funding sources for hospital bad debt and calls for recommendations to ensure patients receive the most clinically appropriate care. The completed report, which must include any proposed legislative recommendations, is to be submitted to legislative committees within 180 days of the act's passage, with the act taking effect immediately upon enactment.

Health and Social Services

https://malegislature.gov/Bills/194/H1353