PRINTER'S NO. 3744
THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF PENNSYLVANIA
HOUSE BILL
No. 2591
Session of
2024
INTRODUCED BY R. MACKENZIE, BERNSTINE, HAMM, M. MACKENZIE,
PICKETT AND SCIALABBA, OCTOBER 9, 2024
REFERRED TO COMMITTEE ON HEALTH, OCTOBER 9, 2024
AN ACT
1 Amending the act of July 19, 1979 (P.L.130, No.48), entitled "An
2 act relating to health care; prescribing the powers and
3 duties of the Department of Health; establishing and
4 providing the powers and duties of the State Health
5 Coordinating Council, health systems agencies and Health Care
6 Policy Board in the Department of Health, and State Health
7 Facility Hearing Board in the Department of Justice;
8 providing for certification of need of health care providers
9 and prescribing penalties," in licensing of health care
10 facilities, providing for reporting costs associated with
11 health care for illegal migrants.
12 The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
13 hereby enacts as follows:
14 Section 1. The act of July 19, 1979 (P.L.130, No.48), known
15 as the Health Care Facilities Act, is amended by adding a
16 section to read:
17 Section 806.5. Reporting costs associated with health care for
18 illegal migrants.
19 (a) Annual hospital report.--Within 30 days after the end of
20 each calendar year, a hospital licensed under this act shall
21 submit a report to the department detailing the number of
22 hospital admissions and emergency department visits made by
 1 illegal migrants within the previous calendar year.
2 (b) Annual department report.--
3 (1) By March 1 of each year, the department shall post
4 a report on the department's publicly accessible Internet
5 website with the total number of hospital admissions and
6 emergency department visits made by illegal migrants within
7 the previous calendar year. In the report, the department
8 shall also include information relating to the costs of
9 uncompensated care for illegal migrants, the impact of
10 uncompensated care on the cost or ability of hospitals to
11 provide services to the public, hospital funding needs and
12 other related information.
13 (2) The department shall submit the report under
14 paragraph (1) to all of the following:
15 (i) The Governor.
16 (ii) The President pro tempore of the Senate.
17 (iii) The Speaker of the House of Representatives.
18 (iv) The Majority Leader and Minority Leader of the
19 Senate.
20 (v) The Majority Leader and Minority Leader of the
21 House of Representatives.
22 (vi) The chairperson and minority chairperson of the
23 Health and Human Services Committee of the Senate.
24 (vii) The chairperson and minority chairperson of
25 the Health Committee of the House of Representatives.
26 (c) Regulations.--The department shall promulgate
27 regulations necessary to implement this section.
28 (d) Definitions.--As used in this section, the following
29 words and phrases shall have the meanings given to them in this
30 subsection unless the context clearly indicates otherwise:
20240HB2591PN3744 - 2 -
1 "Illegal migrant." An individual who is present in the
2 United States in violation of 8 U.S.C. Ch. 12 (relating to
3 immigration and nationality).
4 "Uncompensated care." The cost of care provided to patients
5 financially unable or unwilling to pay for services provided by
6 a hospital.
7 Section 2. This act shall take effect in 60 days.
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Statutes/Laws affected:
Printer's No. 3744: P.L.130, No.48