Notice of assessment.

(a)(1) The department shall send a notice of assessment to each privately operated hospital informing the hospital of the assessment rate, the hospital's net patient revenue calculation, and the estimated assessment amount owed by the hospital for the applicable fiscal year.

(2) Annual notices of assessment shall be sent at least 30 days before the due date for the first quarterly assessment payment of each fiscal year.

(b)(1) The privately operated hospital shall have 30 days from the date of its receipt of a notice of assessment to review and verify the assessment rate, the hospital's net patient revenue calculation, and the estimated assessment amount.

(2) If a privately operated hospital disputes the hospital's net patient revenue calculation and the estimated assessment amount, the hospital shall notify the department of the disputed amounts within 15 business days of notification of the assessment by the department. The hospital and the department shall attempt to resolve the dispute on an informal basis initially. If the hospital and department cannot informally resolve the dispute, the dispute resolution process described in Chapter 2A of this title, the Alabama Taxpayer's Bill of Rights and Uniform Revenue Procedures Act and any subsequent amendatory acts shall be followed to resolve the dispute.

(c)(1) If a hospital provider operates, conducts, or maintains more than one privately operated hospital in the state, the hospital provider shall pay the assessment for each hospital separately.

(2) However, if the hospital provider operates more than one privately operated hospital under one Medicaid provider number, the hospital provider may pay the assessment for the hospitals in the aggregate.

(d) The total annual assessment amount for all private hospitals shall not exceed the amount of funds necessary to obtain federal funds needed to pay private hospital payments.

(e) (1) For a privately operated hospital subject to the assessment imposed under this article that ceases to conduct hospital operations or maintain its state license or did not conduct hospital operations throughout a state fiscal year, the assessment for the state fiscal year in which the cessation occurs shall be adjusted by multiplying the annual assessment computed under this article by a fraction, the numerator of which is the number of days during the year that the hospital operated and the denominator of which is 365.

(2)a. Immediately prior to ceasing operations, the hospital shall pay the adjusted assessment for that state fiscal year to the extent not previously paid.

b. The hospital also shall receive payments from Medicaid under this article, which shall be adjusted by the same fraction as its annual assessment.

(f) A privately operated hospital subject to an assessment under this article that has not been previously licensed as a hospital in Alabama and that commences hospital operations during a state fiscal year shall pay the required assessment computed under this article and shall be eligible for hospital access payments under this article on the date specified in rules promulgated by Medicaid under the Alabama Administrative Procedure Act.

(g) A hospital that is exempt from payment of the assessment under this article at the beginning of a state fiscal year, but during the state fiscal year experiences a change in status so that it becomes subject to the assessment shall pay the required assessment computed under this article and shall be eligible for hospital access payments under this article on the date specified in rules promulgated by Medicaid under the Alabama Administrative Procedure Act.

(h) A privately operated hospital that is subject to payment of the assessment computed under this article at the beginning of a state fiscal year, but during the state fiscal year experiences a change in status so that it becomes exempted from payment under this article shall be relieved of its obligation to pay the hospital assessment on the date specified in rules promulgated by Medicaid under the Alabama Administrative Procedure Act.

(Act 2009-549, p. 1454, §2; Act 2011-615, p. 1383, §1; Act 2017-382, §1.)