Hospitals - Financial Assistance Policies - Revisions

This Maryland law updates hospital financial assistance policies to help low-income patients access free or reduced-cost care and payment plans. It removes the previous requirement that these programs must align with a hospital's specific mission or service area, giving hospitals more flexibility in designing their aid. The bill also changes how hospitals evaluate a household's assets for eligibility, prohibiting them from looking only at savings over $100,000 and mandating that certain assets like retirement accounts, a primary home, and a car be excluded from the calculation. These changes take effect on October 1, 2024, and apply to all acute and chronic care hospitals regulated by the state.