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2 Medicolegal News 1 (1974)

handle is hein.journals/medeth2 and id is 1 raw text is: medicolegal news A publication of the American Society of Law & Medicine, Inc. continuing medicolegal education January 1974 NEWS FROM THE SOCIETY- New Developments in Hospital Law With this edition, MEDICOLE- GAL NEWS Is being launched on a regular quarterly basis to be sent without charge to members of the AMERICAN SOCIETY OF LAW AND MEDICINE, INC. and available to others at $10.00 per annual subscription. The inaugural Issue of MEDICO- LEGAL NEWS has been distribu- ted to more than 25,000 persons and organizations believed to be Interested In the programs of the AMERICAN SOCIETY OF LAW & MEDICINE, INC. The response of readers and of those who have seen notices about our Society in other medical, paramedical, legal and insurance periodicals has far exceeded our expectations. New members are daily being added to our ranks as leading phy- sicians, attorneys, jurists, insur- ance personnel, nonphysician health-care providers, educators and others interested in medico- legal problems express support of our programs, projects and goals by written comment and completed membership applica- tions. We now boast members from almost every state in the country, from Canada and as far overseas as Israel. Regional activities and local membership programs of the Society are being promoted under the impe- tus of many inspired members such as Attorney Lawrence Smith of New Orleans and Attorney Myron W. Kronisch of Newark, New Jersey. Approved by the Executive Committee on October 13, 1973, and by the general membership at a duly called meeting on December 5, 1973, additions and amendments to the Society's By- Laws and Constitution now enable better and more efficient government and organization. The Council Is to be increased to fifty members to allow broader and Increased representation. Ten members-at-large will be elected annually by the general membership. Ten members will represent the field of medicine, ten the field of law, five the Judi- ciary, five the field of Insurance, five the field of education and five nonphysIclan health-care providers. The special category Council members will be elected by vote of members of the cate- gory in which they have pre- viously Indicated as their primary area of interest. The Officers of the Society will be elected by the newly-elected Council who will convene for this purpose at the time of the Annual Meeting. The new By-Laws also allow enrollment of insurers arid other corporate entitles as sponsor, nonvoting members to provide financial support needed to accomplish Society goals and projects. The Second Annual Symposium on Medicolegal Evaluation of Disability of the AMERICAN SOCIETY OF LAW AND MEDI- CINE, INC. was held In Boston on Wednesday, December 5, 1973. The program, presented with the cooperation of the Massachusetts Medical Society's Orthopedic Section, was a re- sounding success with record attendance. In continuation of this series, the Third Annual Symposium on Medicolegal Evaluation of Dis- ability will be devoted to the many problems arising In cases of pulmonary disorders, particu- larly when of occupational origin. The program will be under the direction of Dr. Howard A. Frank, Clinical Professor of Surgery, Harvard ,Mledical School, with the asslstanc6 of Dr. Edward A. Gaensler, Professor of Surgery, Boston University Medical School, and Dr. Thomas L. Delbanco, consultant In Thoracic (continued p. 7) The Hilt-Burton Act and Delivery of Uncompensated Medical Ser- vices - A Brief Analysis of the Federal Regulation by Francis H. Miller, J.D. Adjunct Professor of Law Boston University School of Law When the Hospital Construction and Survey Act of 19461, more popularly known as the Hill- Burton Act, was passed by Con- gress, facilities receiving federal funding were required to assure that they would provide a rea- sonable volume of services to persons unable to pay therefor. 2 The general legislative intent was that this requirement would help provide access to medical care to a segment of the population that had hitherto been denied care or had been reluctant to seek It be- cause of lack of financial re- sources.3 However, what consti- tuted a reasonable volume of uncompensated services was not spelled out in the Act, and the regulation originally designed to Implement the requirement 4 was hardly more specific. As became Increasingly appar- ent throughout the next two and one-half decades, many hospitals treated the statutory mandate to deliver uncompensated services as mere surplusage. If they were required to account at all for the volume of uncompensated care provided, they simply wrote off their bad debts for the year as Hill-Burton qualifying services. This was usually a fairly impres- sive figure, but not what the drafters of the statute had In mind. In the early 1970's a series of lawsuits alleged that certain facilities constructed or renova- ted with federal funds under the Act had consistently refused to honor their commitment to dis- burse free or below-cost service. A most Important aspect of six of these seven lawsuits was that (continued P. 4) ' American b ioety of Law and Medicine Vol 2, No. 1

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