Virginia Code 32.1-276.8: Fees for processing, verification, and dissemination of data
A. The Board shall 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.
Terms Used In Virginia Code 32.1-276.8
- Board: means the Board of Health. See Virginia Code 32.1-276.3
- Contract: A legal written agreement that becomes binding when signed.
- Corporation: A legal entity owned by the holders of shares of stock that have been issued, and that can own, receive, and transfer property, and carry on business in its own name.
- Health care provider: means (i) a general hospital, ordinary hospital, outpatient surgical hospital, nursing home or certified nursing facility licensed or certified pursuant to Article 1 (§ Virginia Code 32.1-276.3
- Health maintenance organization: means any person who undertakes to provide or to arrange for one or more health care plans pursuant to Chapter 43 of Title 38. See Virginia Code 32.1-276.3
- Nonprofit organization: means a nonprofit, tax-exempt health data organization with the characteristics, expertise, and capacity to execute the powers and duties set forth for such entity in this chapter. See Virginia Code 32.1-276.3
- State: when applied to a part of the United States, includes any of the 50 states, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands, and the United States Virgin Islands. See Virginia Code 1-245
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.
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 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 Behavioral Health and Developmental 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.
1996, c. 902; 1999, c. 764; 2000, c. 897; 2001, c. 341; 2003, c. 472; 2009, cc. 813, 840.