Does DCH receive tax dollars to help finance free care to those that can pay?
DCH Regional Medical Center receives 10 percent of the 2-cent county sales tax to help provide care for residents of Tuscaloosa County who have no money or insurance. In fiscal year 2006, the Regional Medical Center received $4.48 million in sales tax to provide health care for the poor. For every dollar ($1) received, DCH hospitals provided almost $7 in free care. Although the sales tax money does not nearly cover the cost of free care, the tax support is very important to DCH’s financial well-being. Because our major sources of reimbursement — the federal government and Blue Cross — pay us based on a set rate rather than billed charges, it would be very difficult for us to make up for the sales tax revenue if it were no longer provided.
