CHICAGO (WBBM) — The Illinois Hospital Association says a ruling from the Illinois Supreme Court today could push many hospitals into deeper financial trouble. SEE THE RULING CLICK HERE
WBBM’s Regine Schlesinger reports the justices agreed that the state could strip a downstate hospital of its tax exemption because it didn’t provide enough charity care.
The case involved Provena Covenant, a Catholic hospital in downstate Urbana. The Supreme Court affirmed an appealate court decision, denying Provena its property tax breaks for 2002 because that same year, it treated only about 300 patients as charity cases.
Its charitable care accounting for less than 1 percent of its revenue. Mark Deaton, a lawyer for the Illinois Hospital Association, says if the revenue department now goes after other tax-exempt hospitals, many could be in deep trouble.
If they have to pay hefty property tax bills, Deaton says, that will mean they’ll have less money to spend on patient care.
Statement from Illinois Department of Revenue: We’re pleased the Illinois Supreme Court upheld our decision denying Provena Hospital’s claim to a charitable exemption on local property taxes. It seems only fair that, when our communities are in serious financial difficulties, we carefully review exemption requests to ensure they meet the intent of both the Illinois Constitution and the law. In the case of Provena’s request for an exemption, the Court found that Director Hamer’s arguments against allowing the exemption were based on legal precedent that requires charities to actually demonstrate they are operating as charitable organizations . In this case, the Court found little evidence that Provena was providing free, charitable care in exchange for very generous tax exemptions.
Read the original article from WBBM News Radio.