Religious hospitals and the federal community benefit standard--counting religious purpose as a tax-exemption factor for hospitals.

Distinguishing community benefits: tax exemption versus organizational legitimacy.

US policymakers continue to call into question the tax-exempt status of hospitals. As nonprofit tax-exempt entities, hospitals are required by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) to report the type and cost of community benefits they provide. Institutional theory indicates that organizations derive organizational legitimacy from conforming to the expectations of their environment. Expectations f...

The divergence of federal and state policies on the charitable tax exemption of nonprofit hospitals.

Nonprofit hospitals have traditionally enjoyed charitable exemption from real estate taxes because they provide specific social benefits. However, in the past three decades, major health policy changes at the federal level--most significantly, implementation of the Medicare and Medicaid programs--have weakened this rationale. Federal tax regulations during this period have changed in ways that ...

Health and Taxes: Hospitals, Community Health and the IRS.

The Affordable Care Act created new conditions of federal tax exemption for nonprofit hospitals, including a requirement that hospitals conduct a community health needs assessment (CHNA) every three years to identify significant health needs in their communities and then develop and implement a strategy responding to those needs. As a result, hospitals must now do more than provide charity care...

Comparing the Value of Nonprofit Hospitals’ Tax Exemption to Their Community Benefits

The tax-exempt status of nonprofit hospitals has received increased attention from policymakers interested in examining the value they provide instead of paying taxes. We use 2012 data from the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) Form 990, Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) Hospital Cost Reports, and American Hospital Association's (AHA) Annual Survey to compare the value of community ...

A veil of tax exemption?: A proposal for the continuation of federal tax-exempt status for "nonprofit" hospitals.