SB306

By Senator Ward

ENROLLED, An Act,

To specify that for purposes of municipal business licenses, a qualified provider that is a qualified home health care or hospice agency or a qualified provider of durable medical equipment, prosthetics, orthotics, or health care supplies could not be required to purchase a municipal or county business license in a municipality unless the provider maintains its headquarters or any branch office in the municipality or has a certain amount of gross receipts in the municipality per year; to further provide that a health care employee or other agent or representative of a qualified provider could not be required to purchase a business license from a municipality or its agent, including a private auditing firm, merely because the person visits a patient whose residence or the health care facility in which they are being treated is located within that municipality or because equipment or health care supplies are furnished within the municipality; to provide that a qualified provider that provides a service or product reimbursed by Medicare, Medicaid, or a health benefit plan could not be required to purchase in a municipality certain municipal licenses except where its headquarters or a branch office is located or unless it has a certain amount of gross receipts in the municipality per year; and for this purpose to add Section 11-51-90.4 to the Code of Alabama 1975.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF ALABAMA:

Section 1. Section 11-51-90.4 is added to the Code of Alabama 1975, to read as follows:

§11-51-90.4

(a) As used in this section, the term "qualified provider" means a qualified home health care or hospice agency or a qualified provider of durable medical equipment, prosthetics, orthotics, or health care supplies which is a corporation, limited liability company, or other business or nonprofit entity that provides either home health care or hospice services or durable medical equipment, prosthetics, orthotics, or health care supplies in this state and is licensed by the Alabama Board of Home Medical Equipment or by the Alabama State Board of Prosthetists and Orthotists, or holds a certificate of need issued by the State Health Planning and Development Agency, or its successor, or is exempt by law or administrative rule or ruling from the requirement to obtain a certificate of need.

(b) Notwithstanding anything in this chapter to the contrary, a qualified provider may not be required to purchase a municipal business license or delivery license from a municipality or its agents, unless the provider maintains its headquarters office or a branch office in the municipality or has gross receipts of seventy-five thousand dollars ($75,000) per year in the municipality.

(c) Notwithstanding anything in this chapter to the contrary, a health care employee or other agent or representative of a qualified provider shall not be required to purchase a municipal business or privilege license or otherwise be liable for a municipal business or privilege license tax or similar fee, including any delivery license or fee, from a municipality on account of one or more service visits to a patient of the agency at his or her residence or one or more visits to a patient at a health care facility or other facility where the patient resides, whether temporarily or indefinitely, or because durable medical equipment or prosthetics or orthotics or health care supplies are delivered or furnished to a patient.

(d) A qualified provider as defined in subsection (a) shall not be required to purchase a municipal license or pay a municipal license fee from or to any municipality, except where it maintains its headquarters office or where it maintains a branch office, for the delivery of any service or product which is reimbursed in whole or in part by Medicare, Medicaid, or other third party payer including, but not limited to, a health benefit plan, health insurance, workers' compensation, or similar third party payer unless the qualified provider has gross receipts of seventy-five thousand dollars ($75,000) per year in the municipality.

Section 2. All laws or parts of laws which conflict with this act are repealed.

Section 3. This act shall become effective immediately following its passage and approval by the Governor, or its otherwise becoming law.

Taxation

Business License Tax

Health

Home Health Agencies

Hospices

Code Added