§ 25.5-3-301 — Definitions

Colorado § 25.5-3-301

• Jurisdiction: Colorado
• Title 25.5: Health
• Art.: Indigent Care

Text

As used in this part 3, unless the context otherwise
requires:

(1) Comprehensive primary care means the basic, entry-level health care
provided by health-care practitioners or non-physician health-care practitioners
that is generally provided in an outpatient setting. Comprehensive primary care,
at a minimum, includes providing or arranging for the provision of the following
services on a year-round basis: Primary health care; maternity care, including
prenatal care; preventive, developmental, and diagnostic services for infants and
children; adult preventive services; diagnostic laboratory and radiology services;
emergency care for minor trauma; pharmaceutical services; and coordination and
follow-up for hospital care. Comprehensive primary care may also include
optional services based on a patient's needs. For the purposes of this subsection (1)
and subsection (2) of this section, arranging for the provision means
demonstrating established referral relationships with health-care providers for any
of the comprehensive primary care services not directly provided by an entity. An
entity in a rural area may be exempt from this requirement if it can demonstrate
that there are no providers in the community to provide one or more of the
comprehensive primary care services.

(2) Qualified provider means an entity that provides comprehensive
primary care services and that:

(a) Accepts all patients regardless of their ability to pay and uses a sliding
fee schedule for payments or that provides comprehensive primary care services
free of charge;

(b) Serves a designated medically underserved area or population, as
provided in section 330(b) of the federal Public Health Service Act, 42 U.S.C. sec.
254b, or demonstrates to the state department that the entity serves a population
or area that lacks adequate health-care services for low-income, uninsured
persons;

(c) Has a demonstrated track record of providing cost-effective care;

(d) Provides or arranges for the provision of comprehensive primary care
services to persons of all ages; and

(e) Completes initial screening for eligibility for the state medical assistance
program, the children's basic health plan, and any other relevant government
health-care program and referral to the appropriate agency for eligibility
determination.

(3) Uninsured or medically indigent patient means a patient receiving
services from a qualified provider:

(a) Whose annual household income is at or below two hundred percent of
the federal poverty guideline; and

(b) Who is not eligible for medicaid, medicare, or any other type of
governmental reimbursement for health-care costs; and

(c) Who is not receiving third-party payments.

Legislative History

Source: L. 2012: Entire part RC&RE, (HB 12-1203), ch. 5, p. 15, � 1, effective March 1. L. 2024: (3)(a) amended, (HB 24-1399), ch. 76, p. 248, � 2, effective July 1, 2025.