(a) An application for a permit to establish a hospital shall be made to the Department upon forms provided by it. This application shall contain such information as the Department reasonably requires, which shall include affirmative evidence on which the Director may make the findings required under Section 6a of this Act.(b) An application for a license to open, conduct, operate, and maintain a hospital shall be made to the Department upon forms provided by it, accompanied by a license fee of $55 per bed (except as otherwise provided in this subsection), or such lesser amount as the Department may establish by administrative rule in consultation with the Department of Healthcare and Family Services to comply with the limitations on health care-related taxes imposed by 42 U.S.C. 1396b(w) that, if violated, would result in reductions to the amount of federal financial participation received by the State for Medicaid expenditures, and shall contain such information as the Department reasonably requires, which may include affirmative evidence of ability to comply with the provisions of this Act and the standards, rules, and regulations, promulgated by virtue thereof. The license fee for a critical access hospital, as defined in Section 5-5e.1 of the Illinois Public Aid Code, or a safety-net hospital, as defined in Section 5-5e of the Illinois Public Aid Code, shall be $0 per bed.(c) All applications required under this Section shall be signed by the applicant and shall be verified. Applications on behalf of a corporation or association or a governmental unit or agency shall be made and verified by any two officers thereof.Amended by P.A. 098-0683,§ 5, eff. 6/30/2014.