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2003 SESSION


CHAPTER 472
An Act to amend and reenact § 32.1-276.8 of the Code of Virginia, relating to health care data reporting.
[S 1264]
Approved March 16, 2003

Be it enacted by the General Assembly of Virginia:

1. That § 32.1-276.8 of the Code of Virginia is amended and reenacted as follows:

§ 32.1-276.8. (Effective until July 1, 2008) Fees for processing, verification, and dissemination of data.

A. The Board shall prescribe a reasonable fee, not to exceed one dollar per discharge, for each health care provider submitting patient level data on inpatients pursuant to this chapter to cover the costs of the reasonable expenses in processing and verifying such data. The Board shall also prescribe a reasonable fee for each affected health care provider to cover the costs of the reasonable expenses of establishing and administering the methodology developed pursuant to § 32.1-276.7. The payment of such fees shall be at such time as the Board designates. The Board may assess a late charge on any fees paid after their due date.

In addition, the Board shall prescribe a tiered-fee structure based on the number of enrollees for each health maintenance organization to cover the costs of collecting and making available such data. Such fees shall not exceed $3,000 for each health maintenance organization required to provide information pursuant to this chapter. The payment of such fees shall also be at such time as the Board designates. The Board may also assess a late charge on any fees paid by health maintenance organizations after their due dates.

The Board shall (i) maintain records of its activities; (ii) collect and account for all fees and deposit the moneys so collected into a special fund from which the expenses attributed to this chapter shall be paid; and (iii) enforce all regulations promulgated by it pursuant to this chapter.

B. Except for the fees assessed pursuant to subsection A, the nonprofit organization providing services pursuant to an agreement or contract as provided in § 32.1-276.4 shall be authorized to charge and collect the fees prescribed by the Board in subsection A of this section when the patient level data on inpatients are provided directly to the nonprofit organization. Such fees shall not exceed the amount authorized by the Board as provided in subsection A of this section. The nonprofit organization, at its discretion, may grant a reduction or waiver of the patient level data submission fees upon a determination by the nonprofit organization that the health care provider or health maintenance organization has submitted processed, verified data. There shall be no fees for processing of outpatient surgical data for the first twelve months of data submission. Following that period, the nonprofit organization may charge a fee of up to one dollar for records that it determines are not processed, verified data not assess any fee against any health care provider that submits data under this chapter that is processed, verified, and timely in accordance with standards established by the Board. The Board shall establish penalties for submission of data in a manner that is inconsistent with such standards.

C. State agencies shall not be assessed fees for the submission of patient level data required by subsection C of § 32.1-276.6. Individual employers, insurers, and other organizations may voluntarily provide the nonprofit organization with outpatient data for processing, storage, and comparative analysis and shall be subject to fees negotiated with and charged by the nonprofit organization for services provided.

D. The nonprofit organization providing services pursuant to an agreement or contract with the Commissioner of Health shall be authorized to charge and collect reasonable fees for the dissemination of patient level data and Health Employer Data and Information Set (HEDIS) data or other approved quality of care or performance information set data; however, the Commissioner of Health, the State Corporation Commission, and the Commissioner of Mental Health, Mental Retardation and Substance Abuse Services shall be entitled to receive relevant and appropriate data from the nonprofit organization at no charge.

E. The Board shall (i) maintain records of its activities; (ii) collect and account for all fees and deposit the moneys so collected into a special fund from which the expenses attributed to this chapter shall be paid; and (iii) enforce all regulations promulgated by it pursuant to this chapter.