Serving Georgia's Community Hospitals for 25 years.

Legislative Agenda

2/19/2010 Perdue's hospital tax strongly opposed
2/19/2010 Critics pummel hospital tax
2/4/2010 Georgia expects $608 million Medicaid deficit
2/4/2010 Lawmakers in a corner on hospital tax
2/4/2010 Georgia lawmakers rail at hospital tax
2/4/2010 Georgia budget calls for hospital bed tax
2/4/2010 Hospital ‘bed tax’ looming

Certificate of Need

Save: Defend against any efforts to repeal or weaken the CON program, including the further expansion of the LNR loophole.

Strengthen: Advocate for the elimination of the LNR loophole thereby making all providers subject to CON review.

Streamline: Support the elimination of CON review for certain non-clinical services, such as parking decks and laundry facilities. Develop a more efficient and meaningful appeals process for CON applicants.

Trauma

Funding: Advocate for a sustainable funding source which can be dedicated solely to the support of a comprehensive, statewide trauma system. Possible funding sources are: motor vehicle fines, vehicle tag tax, motor vehicle fuel tax, or a trauma license plate.

Coordination: Support the creation of a statewide system for coordinating trauma services, showing bed availability and diversion status, perhaps under the purview of the state EMS.

Reporting: Support the requirement that trauma data be submitted to a centralized registry so that the state can better facilitate trauma care. Workforce: Advocate for programs that increase the supply of healthcare providers in this state, including the development of more medical school and graduate medical education slots, more nursing school faculty and retention measures for EMS workers.

Medicaid

Provider Rates: Advocate for enhancements to and oppose any reductions in the Medicaid reimbursement rates paid to hospitals.

Managed Care: Continue to educate Legislators and other policy makers on the effects of the implementation of the Medicaid Managed Care program. Advocate for improvements to the program when possible.

Upper Payment/Disproportionate Share Hospital Program

Legislative: Educate Legislators as to the importance of these two programs to our facilities, including impending changes at the federal level that may have a negative impact on these programs.

Regulatory: Advocate for the continued use of intergovernmental transfers by all hospitals currently deemed to be public, at least until an agreeable alternative funding source can be implemented.

Senate Healthcare Transformation Study Committee

Transparency: Monitor recommendations that may arise from the Study Committee regarding the posting of quality and cost data for medical services including hospitals.

Consumerism: Support the objectives of innovative and consumer driven improvements to the delivery of healthcare while carefully monitoring and guarding against provisions which might undermine and disrupt quality healthcare or adversely impact hospital reimbursement rates.

Tax Issues

Study Committee: Monitor recommendations from the House Tax Reform Study Committee to ensure the maintenance of the current sales and use tax exemption for not-for-profit hospitals.

Volunteer Clinics: Support legislation that provides an exemption from state sales and use taxes for not-for-profit, volunteer health clinics.

Civil Justice Reform

Defense: Oppose efforts to weaken the protections granted to hospitals by the enactment of Senate Bill 3 (2005). StatCounter - Free Web Tracker and Counter