Ed. note: This post was originally published on Treasury Notes, the official blog of the US Department of the Treasury. You can read it here
The Affordable Care Act not only protects patients from hidden and high prices and unreasonable collections actions – it also requires charitable hospitals to take an active role in improving the health of the communities they serve. Today, the Department of the Treasury took the next step in refining new policies already in place that hold charitable hospitals to a higher standard when it comes to addressing the health needs in their communities. The proposed rules issued today add details on how hospitals should conduct community health needs assessments and define how the IRS will enforce any violations of the new standards.