Bill > HB1810

This bill modifies the existing Missouri law regarding hospital trauma center designations by explicitly preventing the Department of Health and Senior Services from denying a hospital's trauma center status solely based on its proximity to other existing trauma centers. Specifically, the bill adds language that prohibits the department from denying a qualified hospital's designation as a Level I, II, or III trauma center based only on the distance or mileage between trauma centers. The legislation aims to ensure that hospitals meeting the necessary trauma center criteria can be designated regardless of their geographical relationship to other trauma centers. The bill maintains the existing requirements that hospitals must still meet all other applicable trauma center criteria, including those established by the American College of Surgeons, and must undergo proper application and potential site review processes. This change could potentially increase access to specialized emergency medical care by allowing more hospitals to become designated trauma centers, particularly in areas where existing centers might be geographically distant from each other.

https://house.mo.gov/Bill.aspx?bill=HB1810&year=2026&code=R