Hospital Charity Care:
Recent Research on Defining, Policy, and Market Impact
Author(s)
Wendy Dyer, MSBiyi Adesina, MPH
Rachael Kagan, MA
Richard Scheffler, PhD
Abstract
In this paper, we review the literature on charity care with respect to three topics that we have deemed integral to any discussion of the issue. These topics are (1) defining charity care, (2) policy on charity care, and (3) the market impact on charity care. Together, these topics encompass many of the most contentious and difficult questions that policymakers grapple with in trying to understand what is happening to charity care and what, if anything, should be done to address the charity care issue. We hope to provide insight into the issue of charity care by describing the various definitions and measurements of charity and their implications, discussing the alternative policies proposed to address charity care, and examining what is happening to charity care as hospitals respond to competition.
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