71-465 Moratorium on new hospital licenses; health care in Nebraska; Health and Human Services Committee of Legislature; study; report.
71-465. Moratorium on new hospital licenses;health care in Nebraska; Health and Human Services Committee of Legislature;study; report.(1)The Legislature finds that Nebraska's general acute and critical access hospitalsprovide a foundation of health care throughout the state. This long-establishedmeans of providing health care is changing. Because health care delivery isevolving, it is important to assess needs in Nebraska and determine whetherlicensure and regulation should be changed to reflect current and future practices.(2) The departmentshall not accept an application for or issue a license for a new hospitalbeginning on April 15, 2010, and continuing through September 15, 2011, exceptthat this prohibition shall not apply to an application for or issuance ofa license as a critical access hospital or an application for or issuanceof a license for any hospital which has begun construction prior to May 1,2010.(3) The Health and Human Services Committee of the Legislature shallstudy health care in Nebraska. The study shall include, but not be limitedto:(a) A comparison of the roles of Nebraska's general acute hospitals,critical access hospitals, ambulatory surgical centers, and other limitedservice facilities, such as physician-owned hospitals and investor-owned hospitals,and the impact of such hospitals, centers, and facilities on access to services,quality of health care, and cost, including medicaid costs and insurance premiums;(b) Compliancewith the federal Emergency Medical Treatment and Active Labor Act, 42 U.S.C.1395dd, as such act existed on January 1, 2010;(c) Referral practices;(d) Ownershipdisclosure;(e) Uncompensated and under-compensated patient care;(f) Joint venturesamong or between hospitals, physicians, and investors;(g) Reinvestmentin facilities;(h) Examination and definition of community benefits;(i) Clarificationand definition of limited service facilities, such as physician-owned hospitalsand investor-owned hospitals, and other definitions as needed; and(j) The impactof federal health care reform on the items in subdivisions (a) through (i)of this subsection.(4) The committee shall seek information from resources, including,but not limited to, physicians; representatives of hospitals, ambulatory surgicalcenters, physician-owned hospitals, investor-owned hospitals, public healthagencies, the department, and allied professions such as behavioral healthservice providers, nurses, pharmacists, and emergency care providers; businesses;consumers; insurers; communities; the Legislative Fiscal Analyst; and theoffice of Legislative Research.(5) The committee shall report its findingsto the Legislature by December 31, 2010. SourceLaws 2010, LB999, § 2.Effective Date: April 15, 2010