Health, Dept. of - As introduced, requires hospitals that accept medicaid to inquire about a person's citizenship status and submit a quarterly report to the department on the number of hospital admissions and emergency department visits by persons lawfully and not lawfully present in the United States; requires the department to submit an annual report to the governor, speaker of the senate, and speaker of the house of representatives regarding the impact of uncompensated care for persons not lawfully present in the United States and other related information. - Amends TCA Title 33; Title 68 and Title 71.

SB 139 requires Tennessee hospitals that accept Medicaid to ask patients about their citizenship status (citizen, lawfully present, or not lawfully present) during registration and to submit quarterly reports to the state health department on admissions and emergency visits by these groups. The health department must then annually report to the governor and legislative leaders on costs of uncompensated care for patients not lawfully present, including impacts on hospital funding and service delivery. Hospitals must include a statement that responses won’t affect care or be shared with immigration authorities. The bill takes effect July 1, 2025, with the first annual report due July 1, 2026.