305 ILCS 5/5J-20: Application evaluation.

(This Section may contain text from a Public Act with a delayed effective date)

(Section scheduled to be repealed on June 30, 2033)

(a) In collaboration with the Governor's Office of Management and Budget and the Department of Public Health, the Department shall develop a methodology to evaluate a hospital's application for a loan through the Program.

(b) The methodology shall consider factors including, but not limited to, whether the hospital is in financial distress as solely determined by the State; whether the hospital is small, rural, a safety-net hospital, a critical access hospital, a trauma center, an urban hospital providing access for an underserved area, a hospital that serves a disproportionate share of Medicaid patients, or serving a rural catchment area; and whether closure of the hospital or service line reduction as a result of the financial distress would significantly impact access to services in the hospital's health service area.

(c) The methodology for determining financial distress may consider such factors as the hospital's prior and projected performance on financial metrics, including the amount of cash on hand, and whether the hospital has experienced, or is projected to experience, negative operating margins.

(d) Subject to appropriation and the availability of funds, any loan to a hospital with an approved loan application shall be issued as soon as reasonably practicable following approval of an application. Approved applications shall receive funding on a first-come, first-served basis until funding appropriated by the General Assembly for this purpose has been expended. The Department maintains discretion to determine the amount of a loan approved for a hospital and may approve less than the amount requested by a hospital. The Department may consider the amount of appropriations available to this Program in the exercise of its discretion.

(e) Hospitals ineligible for State assistance under the Program include:

(1) Hospitals that belong to integrated health care systems with more than 3 separately licensed hospital facilities.

(2) A hospital that maintains unpaid hospital assessment liability owed to the State and either does not have a negotiated tax repayment agreement with the State or is delinquent under an existing negotiated assessment repayment agreement.

(3) A hospital that is not current on a repayment schedule for a prior advance issued in accordance with 89 Ill. Adm. Code 140.71.

(4) A hospital that has not provided required reporting on its finances as mandated by State law or administrative rule.

(5) A hospital that is subject to a stop payment order, as defined by the Grant Accountability and Transparency Act, with the State for any reason.

(6) A hospital that has been under investigation or been issued an immediate jeopardy by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services in the prior 12 months from the time of loan application.

(f) The Department shall give preference to not-for-profit and public hospitals. Hospitals owned and operated by a for-profit entity shall be subject to a maximum funding limit, expedited repayment time frames, and additional financial and operational transparency requirements as defined in rule.

(g) The Department shall determine the application process, underwriting review, and methodology for approval and distribution of the loans under the Program.

(h) The Department shall have the authority to determine service provision requirements in approving, and for the duration of, loans to eligible hospitals. In making its determination, the Department shall consider the impact of any changes to the hospital's service delivery or access to necessary medical care, particularly for beneficiaries of the State's medical assistance Program.

(i) The application process shall allow for at least 30 days for the Department to issue an initial response to any loan application.