This text of Louisiana § 40:1189.2 (Legislative findings; purpose) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Louisiana primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.
§1189.2. Legislative findings; purpose
A. The legislature finds that:
(1)Small rural hospitals provide most of the healthcare services required by a
substantial number of low-income rural residents living in the state and therefore constitute
an invaluable part of the healthcare delivery system of the state.
(2)Residents living in rural areas of the state, which consist of sixty-four percent of
the state's parishes, are in poorer health than residents living in the urban areas of the state
and lack adequate public transportation.
(3)Small rural hospitals are in poor financial condition as a result of payment
reductions in the Medicare and Medicaid programs and as a result of the advent and
penetration of managed care in the state.
(4)Small rural hospitals have a difficult time attracti
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§1189.2. Legislative findings; purpose
A. The legislature finds that:
(1) Small rural hospitals provide most of the healthcare services required by a
substantial number of low-income rural residents living in the state and therefore constitute
an invaluable part of the healthcare delivery system of the state.
(2) Residents living in rural areas of the state, which consist of sixty-four percent of
the state's parishes, are in poorer health than residents living in the urban areas of the state
and lack adequate public transportation.
(3) Small rural hospitals are in poor financial condition as a result of payment
reductions in the Medicare and Medicaid programs and as a result of the advent and
penetration of managed care in the state.
(4) Small rural hospitals have a difficult time attracting physicians to practice in their
service areas, thereby resulting in a continued shortage of primary health care in the state's
rural areas.
(5) Absent intervention, continued reductions in the Medicare and Medicaid
programs, as well as changes in healthcare reimbursement methodologies and the continued
spread of managed care, have caused and will continue to cause the closure of many of the
state's small rural hospitals, thereby jeopardizing the very existence of a vital link in the
healthcare delivery system for residents residing in rural areas of the state.
(6) Rural hospitals constitute, in many instances, the largest single employer of
residents in areas served by them and thus constitute a vital economic component of many
rural parish economies.
(7) The enactment of the Rural Hospital Preservation Act has preserved Louisiana's
rural hospitals, a key component of the state's healthcare safety net which is essential to
ensuring access to healthcare for Louisiana's rural residents.
(8) The Rural Hospital Preservation Act requires the department to maximize
Medicaid reimbursement, including disproportionate share reimbursement, to rural hospitals.
(9) Congress has established a federal cap on each state's allotment of Medicaid
disproportionate share reimbursement, and Louisiana's disproportionate share expenditures
are approaching the federal cap.
(10) Unreimbursed rural hospital Medicaid inpatient and outpatient costs, including
the costs associated with the services provided at rural health clinics that are licensed as part
of a rural hospital, are currently eligible for reimbursement under Louisiana's Medicaid
disproportionate share program.
(11) There is no federal cap on Medicaid reimbursement unrelated to the
disproportionate share program.
(12) It is in the state's interest to reduce rural hospital dependence on Medicaid
disproportionate share reimbursement by increasing Medicaid reimbursement for rural
hospital inpatient and outpatient services, including costs associated with services provided
at rural health clinics that are licensed as part of a rural hospital.
(13) Increasing rural hospital inpatient and outpatient reimbursement under Medicaid
will increase the disproportionate share hospital funding available to the state for non-rural,
hospital-related disproportionate share hospital payments, thereby permitting the state to
meet additional hospital-related uncompensated care needs.
B. The legislature hereby declares that, absent the enactment of the following
provisions, the very existence of Louisiana's small rural hospital is imperiled. The legislature
hereby declares that the purpose of this Part is to assure the continued viability of rural
hospitals.