County sets indigent care payment rate

The county on Tuesday set the rate for the mandatory payments it receives from hospitals to help pay for uncompensated care costs. 

At its Tuesday morning meeting, the Hays County Commissioners Court held a public hearing on the amount of the payments required from all local hospitals pursuant to the County Health Care Provider Participation Program and how those funds are to be spent. The funds collected from hospitals through this program go into the county’s Local Provider Participation Fund (LPPF), which the county can then use to fund certain intergovernmental transfers and indigent care programs. The program was established by House Bill 3175 in the Texas Legislature in 2015 — a bill that Central Texas Medical Center and Seton Medical Center Hays supported. The county has participated in the program since 2015.

“We’ve done this every year since the creation of the LPPF except, I believe, one year,” Precinct 3 Commissioner Lon Shell said.

He explained that the commissioners’ vote would set the mandatory payments from hospitals into the LPPF —- figures based on the hospitals’ net patient revenue — for the state Fiscal Year 2019. Regulations allow the county to assess payments of up to 6 percent of net patient revenue, he said.

During the public hearing, commissioners heard from speakers representing CTMC, Seton-Hays and Adelanto Healthcare, a firm that assists providers in Hays County relating to the LPPF. 

“We do appreciate the opportunity to work with Hays County and especially the opportunity to participate in the LPPF,” said Eric Weatherford, representing CTMC. Weatherford said the hospitals had met and agreed to ask the county to assess LPPF payments at 4.35 percent of net patient revenue.

CTMC CEO Anthony Stahl emphasized the importance of the county’s program.

“We are grateful for this collaboration,” he said. “Without this it would be hard for Seton and CTMC to provide the care for this county that we are able to do.”

Geronimo Rodriguez, representing Seton, also spoke of how well the partnership between the hospitals and the county works, especially with the hospitals working together.

“As Anthony mentioned, it’s very rare to see two competitors coming together, but I think this collaboration works for the Hays County Community,” he said.

Shell made a motion to assess the mandatory payments at 4.35 percent of net patient revenue. The motion passed unanimously, with County Judge Ruben Becerra absent to attend training.