Sec. 19a-508c. Hospital and health system facility fees charged for outpatient services at hospital-based facilities. Notice re establishment of hospital-based facility at which facility fees billed.

(a) As used in this section:

(1) “Affiliated provider” means a provider that is: (A) Employed by a hospital or health system, (B) under a professional services agreement with a hospital or health system that permits such hospital or health system to bill on behalf of such provider, or (C) a clinical faculty member of a medical school, as defined in section 33-182aa, that is affiliated with a hospital or health system in a manner that permits such hospital or health system to bill on behalf of such clinical faculty member;

(2) “Campus” means: (A) The physical area immediately adjacent to a hospital's main buildings and other areas and structures that are not strictly contiguous to the main buildings but are located within two hundred fifty yards of the main buildings, or (B) any other area that has been determined on an individual case basis by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services to be part of a hospital's campus;

(3) “Facility fee” means any fee charged or billed by a hospital or health system for outpatient services provided in a hospital-based facility that is: (A) Intended to compensate the hospital or health system for the operational expenses of the hospital or health system, and (B) separate and distinct from a professional fee;

(4) “Health system” means: (A) A parent corporation of one or more hospitals and any entity affiliated with such parent corporation through ownership, governance, membership or other means, or (B) a hospital and any entity affiliated with such hospital through ownership, governance, membership or other means;

(5) “Hospital” has the same meaning as provided in section 19a-490;

(6) “Hospital-based facility” means a facility that is owned or operated, in whole or in part, by a hospital or health system where hospital or professional medical services are provided;

(7) “Professional fee” means any fee charged or billed by a provider for professional medical services provided in a hospital-based facility; and

(8) “Provider” means an individual, entity, corporation or health care provider, whether for profit or nonprofit, whose primary purpose is to provide professional medical services.

(b) If a hospital or health system charges a facility fee utilizing a current procedural terminology evaluation and management (CPT E/M) code for outpatient services provided at a hospital-based facility where a professional fee is also expected to be charged, the hospital or health system shall provide the patient with a written notice that includes the following information:

(1) That the hospital-based facility is part of a hospital or health system and that the hospital or health system charges a facility fee that is in addition to and separate from the professional fee charged by the provider;

(2) (A) The amount of the patient's potential financial liability, including any facility fee likely to be charged, and, where professional medical services are provided by an affiliated provider, any professional fee likely to be charged, or, if the exact type and extent of the professional medical services needed are not known or the terms of a patient's health insurance coverage are not known with reasonable certainty, an estimate of the patient's financial liability based on typical or average charges for visits to the hospital-based facility, including the facility fee, (B) a statement that the patient's actual financial liability will depend on the professional medical services actually provided to the patient, (C) an explanation that the patient may incur financial liability that is greater than the patient would incur if the professional medical services were not provided by a hospital-based facility, and (D) a telephone number the patient may call for additional information regarding such patient's potential financial liability, including an estimate of the facility fee likely to be charged based on the scheduled professional medical services; and

(3) That a patient covered by a health insurance policy should contact the health insurer for additional information regarding the hospital's or health system's charges and fees, including the patient's potential financial liability, if any, for such charges and fees.

(c) If a hospital or health system charges a facility fee without utilizing a current procedural terminology evaluation and management (CPT E/M) code for outpatient services provided at a hospital-based facility, located outside the hospital campus, the hospital or health system shall provide the patient with a written notice that includes the following information:

(1) That the hospital-based facility is part of a hospital or health system and that the hospital or health system charges a facility fee that may be in addition to and separate from the professional fee charged by a provider;

(2) (A) A statement that the patient's actual financial liability will depend on the professional medical services actually provided to the patient, (B) an explanation that the patient may incur financial liability that is greater than the patient would incur if the hospital-based facility was not hospital-based, and (C) a telephone number the patient may call for additional information regarding such patient's potential financial liability, including an estimate of the facility fee likely to be charged based on the scheduled professional medical services; and

(3) That a patient covered by a health insurance policy should contact the health insurer for additional information regarding the hospital's or health system's charges and fees, including the patient's potential financial liability, if any, for such charges and fees.

(d) On and after January 1, 2016, each initial billing statement that includes a facility fee shall: (1) Clearly identify the fee as a facility fee that is billed in addition to, or separately from, any professional fee billed by the provider; (2) provide the corresponding Medicare facility fee reimbursement rate for the same service as a comparison or, if there is no corresponding Medicare facility fee for such service, (A) the approximate amount Medicare would have paid the hospital for the facility fee on the billing statement, or (B) the percentage of the hospital's charges that Medicare would have paid the hospital for the facility fee; (3) include a statement that the facility fee is intended to cover the hospital's or health system's operational expenses; (4) inform the patient that the patient's financial liability may have been less if the services had been provided at a facility not owned or operated by the hospital or health system; and (5) include written notice of the patient's right to request a reduction in the facility fee or any other portion of the bill and a telephone number that the patient may use to request such a reduction without regard to whether such patient qualifies for, or is likely to be granted, any reduction.

(e) The written notice described in subsections (b) to (d), inclusive, and (h) to (j), inclusive, of this section shall be in plain language and in a form that may be reasonably understood by a patient who does not possess special knowledge regarding hospital or health system facility fee charges.

(f) (1) For nonemergency care, if a patient's appointment is scheduled to occur ten or more days after the appointment is made, such written notice shall be sent to the patient by first class mail, encrypted electronic mail or a secure patient Internet portal not less than three days after the appointment is made. If an appointment is scheduled to occur less than ten days after the appointment is made or if the patient arrives without an appointment, such notice shall be hand-delivered to the patient when the patient arrives at the hospital-based facility.

(2) For emergency care, such written notice shall be provided to the patient as soon as practicable after the patient is stabilized in accordance with the federal Emergency Medical Treatment and Active Labor Act, 42 USC 1395dd, as amended from time to time, or is determined not to have an emergency medical condition and before the patient leaves the hospital-based facility. If the patient is unconscious, under great duress or for any other reason unable to read the notice and understand and act on his or her rights, the notice shall be provided to the patient's representative as soon as practicable.

(g) Subsections (b) to (f), inclusive, and (l) of this section shall not apply if a patient is insured by Medicare or Medicaid or is receiving services under a workers' compensation plan established to provide medical services pursuant to chapter 568.

(h) A hospital-based facility shall prominently display written notice in locations that are readily accessible to and visible by patients, including patient waiting areas, stating: (1) That the hospital-based facility is part of a hospital or health system, (2) the name of the hospital or health system, and (3) that if the hospital-based facility charges a facility fee, the patient may incur a financial liability greater than the patient would incur if the hospital-based facility was not hospital-based.

(i) A hospital-based facility shall clearly hold itself out to the public and payers as being hospital-based, including, at a minimum, by stating the name of the hospital or health system in its signage, marketing materials, Internet web sites and stationery.

(j) A hospital-based facility shall, when scheduling services for which a facility fee may be charged, inform the patient (1) that the hospital-based facility is part of a hospital or health system, (2) of the name of the hospital or health system, (3) that the hospital or health system may charge a facility fee in addition to and separate from the professional fee charged by the provider, and (4) of the telephone number the patient may call for additional information regarding such patient's potential financial liability.

(k) (1) On and after January 1, 2016, if any transaction, as described in subsection (c) of section 19a-486i, results in the establishment of a hospital-based facility at which facility fees will likely be billed, the hospital or health system, that is the purchaser in such transaction shall, not later than thirty days after such transaction, provide written notice, by first class mail, of the transaction to each patient served within the previous three years by the health care facility that has been purchased as part of such transaction.

(2) Such notice shall include the following information:

(A) A statement that the health care facility is now a hospital-based facility and is part of a hospital or health system;

(B) The name, business address and phone number of the hospital or health system that is the purchaser of the health care facility;

(C) A statement that the hospital-based facility bills, or is likely to bill, patients a facility fee that may be in addition to, and separate from, any professional fee billed by a health care provider at the hospital-based facility;

(D) (i) A statement that the patient's actual financial liability will depend on the professional medical services actually provided to the patient, and (ii) an explanation that the patient may incur financial liability that is greater than the patient would incur if the hospital-based facility were not a hospital-based facility;

(E) The estimated amount or range of amounts the hospital-based facility may bill for a facility fee or an example of the average facility fee billed at such hospital-based facility for the most common services provided at such hospital-based facility; and

(F) A statement that, prior to seeking services at such hospital-based facility, a patient covered by a health insurance policy should contact the patient's health insurer for additional information regarding the hospital-based facility fees, including the patient's potential financial liability, if any, for such fees.

(3) A copy of the written notice provided to patients in accordance with this subsection shall be filed with the Health Systems Planning Unit of the Office of Health Strategy, established under section 19a-612. Said unit shall post a link to such notice on its Internet web site.

(4) A hospital, health system or hospital-based facility shall not collect a facility fee for services provided at a hospital-based facility that is subject to the provisions of this subsection from the date of the transaction until at least thirty days after the written notice required pursuant to this subsection is mailed to the patient or a copy of such notice is filed with the Health Systems Planning Unit, whichever is later. A violation of this subsection shall be considered an unfair trade practice pursuant to section 42-110b.

(l) Notwithstanding the provisions of this section, no hospital, health system or hospital-based facility shall collect a facility fee for (1) outpatient health care services that use a current procedural terminology evaluation and management (CPT E/M) code and are provided at a hospital-based facility located off-site from a hospital campus, or (2) outpatient health care services provided at a hospital-based facility located off-site from a hospital campus, received by a patient who is uninsured of more than the Medicare rate. Notwithstanding the provisions of this subsection, in circumstances when an insurance contract that is in effect on July 1, 2016, provides reimbursement for facility fees prohibited under the provisions of this section, a hospital or health system may continue to collect reimbursement from the health insurer for such facility fees until the date of expiration of such contract. A violation of this subsection shall be considered an unfair trade practice pursuant to chapter 735a. The provisions of this subsection shall not apply to a freestanding emergency department. As used in this subsection, “freestanding emergency department” means a freestanding facility that (A) is structurally separate and distinct from a hospital, (B) provides emergency care, (C) is a department of a hospital licensed under chapter 368v, and (D) has been issued a certificate of need to operate as a freestanding emergency department pursuant to chapter 368z.

(m) (1) Each hospital and health system shall report not later than July 1, 2016, and annually thereafter to the executive director of the Office of Health Strategy concerning facility fees charged or billed during the preceding calendar year. Such report shall include (A) the name and location of each facility owned or operated by the hospital or health system that provides services for which a facility fee is charged or billed, (B) the number of patient visits at each such facility for which a facility fee was charged or billed, (C) the number, total amount and range of allowable facility fees paid at each such facility by Medicare, Medicaid or under private insurance policies, (D) for each facility, the total amount of revenue received by the hospital or health system derived from facility fees, (E) the total amount of revenue received by the hospital or health system from all facilities derived from facility fees, (F) a description of the ten procedures or services that generated the greatest amount of facility fee revenue and, for each such procedure or service, the total amount of revenue received by the hospital or health system derived from facility fees, and (G) the top ten procedures for which facility fees are charged based on patient volume. For purposes of this subsection, “facility” means a hospital-based facility that is located outside a hospital campus.

(2) The executive director shall publish the information reported pursuant to subdivision (1) of this subsection, or post a link to such information, on the Internet web site of the Office of Health Strategy.

(P.A. 14-145, S. 1, 2; P.A. 15-146, S. 13; P.A. 16-77, S. 2; P.A. 17-241, S. 5; P.A. 18-91, S. 57; 18-149, S. 1.)

History: P.A. 15-146 added new Subsec. (d) re billing statements that include facility fee, redesignated existing Subsecs. (d) to (h) as Subsecs. (e) to (i), added Subsec. (j) re transaction that results in establishment of hospital-based facility at which facility fees will likely be billed, added Subsec. (k) re when collection of facility fees is prohibited, added Subsec. (l) re annual report, and made conforming changes; P.A. 16-77 amended Subsec. (d) by replacing “billing statement” with “initial billing statement”, amended Subsec. (d)(2) by replacing “Medicare facility fee” with “corresponding Medicare facility fee” and adding provisions re no corresponding Medicare facility fee, amended Subsec. (d)(5) by adding provision re whether patient qualifies for or is likely to be granted any reduction and amended Subsec. (g) by adding reference to Subsec. (k), effective June 2, 2016; P.A. 17-241 amended Subsec. (a)(3) by replacing “outpatient hospital services” with “outpatient services”, amended Subsec. (b)(2) by adding Subpara. (D) re telephone number patient may call for additional information, amended Subsec. (c)(2) by adding Subpara. (C) re telephone number patient may call for additional information, amended Subsec. (h) by adding new Subdiv. (2) re name of hospital or health system and redesignating existing Subdiv. (2) as Subdiv. (3), added new Subsec. (j) re informing patient when scheduling services for which facility fee may be charged, redesignated existing Subsecs. (j) to (l) as Subsecs. (k) to (m), and made technical and conforming changes; P.A. 18-91 amended Subsecs. (k)(3) and (k)(4) by replacing references to Office of Health Care Access with references to Health Systems Planning Unit, amended Subsec. (m)(1) by replacing “Commissioner of Public Health” with “executive director of the Office of Health Strategy” and amended Subsec. (m)(2) by replacing “commissioner” with “executive director” and “Office of Health Care Access” with “Office of Health Strategy”, effective May 14, 2018; P.A. 18-149 amended Subsec. (l) by deleting “on and after January 1, 2017,”, replacing “management code” with “management (CPT E/M) code” in Subdiv. (1), deleting references to hospital emergency department in Subdivs. (1) and (2), and adding provision re freestanding emergency departments.