…The federal financial assistance policy requires all tax-exempt hospitals to establish a written policy offering free or discounted care to qualifying patients. This policy exists because nonprofit hospitals receive billions in tax breaks each year. In 2021 alone, U.S. nonprofit hospitals benefited from $37.4 billion in tax exemptions. In return, they are required to provide community benefits, including financial assistance.
Yet, every year, low-income patients like my father receive medical bills they should never have gotten — bills that, in some cases, push families into bankruptcy.