The bill, Substitute House Bill No. 5320, as amended by House Amendment Schedule "A," is an act concerning hospital financial assistance, set to be effective from July 1, 2024. It mandates the Office of the Healthcare Advocate (OHA) to contract with a vendor to create an online portal that will help patients and their families navigate and apply for financial assistance programs offered by hospitals in Connecticut. The portal is expected to include technical assistance, tools to streamline the application process, a screening tool to determine eligibility for financial assistance, and information to help avoid future medical debt. The bill also allows the OHA to publish information about the state's medical debt erasure initiative and develop recommendations to assist patients in avoiding future medical debt.
Starting July 1, 2025, hospitals with financial assistance programs must provide the OHA with internet links to these programs. If a hospital revises its financial assistance application or establishes a new program, it must notify the OHA and provide the new internet links within 30 days. The bill includes insertions that specify the development of the online portal, the tools and assistance it should provide, and the requirements for hospitals to notify the OHA of changes to their financial assistance programs. The fiscal impact statement indicates that the OHA will incur at least $50,000 in one-time contract costs to develop the portal, with potential ongoing costs for maintenance. The bill does not specify a deadline for the initial cost, and the ongoing fiscal impact is subject to the timing of the contract and the need for portal maintenance. House Amendment "A" replaces the underlying bill with the current provisions, eliminating previous requirements for hospitals regarding financial assistance policies and training.
Statutes affected: Raised Bill:
PH Joint Favorable Substitute:
File No. 149:
FIN Joint Favorable: