§ 17B:30-41 — Findings, declarations relative to collection of unpaid hospital accounts.

1. The Legislature finds and declares that: a. The rising cost of hospital-based health care in this State impedes the ability of the State and insurers to provide reasonably priced, comprehensive health insurance to the citizens of the State. b. Hospitals located within the State report more than $1 billion annually in debts that they are unable to collect. c. The cost of covering the unpaid care represented by the debt is spread among citizens, private insurers, hospitals and the State in the form of higher bills for hospital-based care. d. A significant portion of the uncollected debt is related to copayments and deductibles that are difficult for hospitals to collect efficiently. e. The State's Set off of Individual Liability (SOIL) program has proven to be an administratively efficient means of collecting debts owed to State agencies. f. It is, therefore, in the public interest to create a system for using the State's SOIL program to collect valid hospital debts. L.2003, c.112, s.1; amended 2010, c.87, s.4.