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Providing 'charity care' to patients

11:32 AM CDT, June 17, 2008

As we continue to hear stories of this nation's health insurance crisis, and the two presidential candidates share their proposals on how to solve this problem, a very important decision is going to be made in Illinois in the coming months. This decision could potentially affect millions of uninsured and underinsured people long before the next president takes any action on this issue.

On June 18th in the Springfield Appellate Courts, the Illinois Department of Revenue will be making a case against Provena Covenant Medical Center and Provena Hospitals located in Champaign County. The state is making the case that this hospital should lose its non-profit status because they did not provide enough "charity care" or free and reduced care to the uninsured and underinsured patients entering their hospitals. In Chicago, the community organizations involved in the Charity Care Coalition hear countless stories of people who would qualify for charity care, but are never told of their options in the emergency room, and end up with large debts and letters from collection agencies. If the State wins, Provena will need to pay millions in taxes that they otherwise were exempt from. This would of course encourage Provena to do a much better job in providing free and reduced emergency room care to the people who cannot afford to pay, if they want to regain their tax-exempt status.

In Illinois, the law is clear about charity care: Non-profit hospitals must provide charity care to patients regardless of their ability to pay. In 2006, the Center for Tax and Budget Accountability found that non-profit hospitals receive annual tax breaks three times the value of the Charity Care they provide. Last year, Cook County Assessor James Houlihan reported that non-profit hospitals received $241 million dollars annually in tax breaks. With Cook County strapped for money, should it not be crystal clear that non-profit hospitals be responsible (in exchange for the huge tax breaks) for providing Charity Care to all patients that qualify for it?

If the court rules in favor of the state, Cook County Commissioners need to be ready to use this ruling as ammunition, and respond by using their leadership to ensure that hospitals in Cook County provide comprehensive charity care to everyone that qualifies. If the court rules in favor of Provena, our commissioners must raise the bar, and think creatively about how to address this important issue in order to ensure that if hospitals are passing the buck to us for their taxes, they meet their obligation to provide Charity Care for all who qualify, as the law intends.

--Diane Limas

Charity Care Coalition

Chicago, IL

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