LEGISLATIVE BUDGET BOARD
Austin, Texas
 
FISCAL NOTE, 87TH LEGISLATIVE REGULAR SESSION
 
March 26, 2021

TO:
Honorable Lois W. Kolkhorst, Chair, Senate Committee on Health & Human Services
 
FROM:
Jerry McGinty, Director, Legislative Budget Board
 
IN RE:
SB1137 by Kolkhorst (Relating to the required disclosure by hospitals of prices for hospital services and items; providing administrative penalties.), Committee Report 1st House, Substituted

No significant fiscal implication to the State is anticipated.

The bill would require a hospital to compile and maintain a list of all standard charges for certain hospital items and services and make sure the list is available at all time to the public and updated at least once a year. The list would be required to be displayed in a prominent location of the hospital's Internet website.

The Health and Human Services Commission (HHSC) would be required to monitor hospital compliance with the bill's requirements by evaluating complaints, reviewing any analysis prepared regarding noncompliance and auditing the Internet websites of hospitals. If HHSC determined that a hospital is not in compliance, the commission would be able to provide a written notice to the hospital, request a corrective action plan from the hospital, or impose an administrative penalty on the hospital in an amount not to exceed $300 for each day in which one or more violations occurred.

The University of Texas and HHSC indicates any cost to implement provisions of the bill would be minimal and can be absorbed within available resources.

Local Government Impact

No significant fiscal implication to units of local government is anticipated.


Source Agencies:
529 Hlth & Human Svcs Comm, 720 UT Sys Admin, 768 Texas Tech Univ Sys Admin
LBB Staff:
JMc, AKI, JLI