Section 449.11 - Special studies and reports(a) Special studies.--Any Commonwealth agency may publish or contract for publication of special studies. Any special study so published shall become a public document.(b) Special reports.--(1) Any Commonwealth agency may study and issue a report on the special medical needs, demographic characteristics, access or lack thereof to health care services and need for financing of health care services of: (i) Senior citizens, particularly low-income senior citizens, senior citizens who are members of minority groups and senior citizens residing in low-income urban or rural areas.(ii) Low-income urban or rural areas.(iii) Minority communities.(vii) Veterans. The reports shall include information on the current availability of services to these targeted parts of the population, and whether access to such services has increased or decreased over the past ten years, and specific recommendations for the improvement of their primary care and health delivery systems, including disease prevention and comprehensive health care services. The department may also study and report on the effects of using prepaid, capitated or HMO health delivery systems as ways to promote the delivery of primary health care services to the underserved segments of the population enumerated above.
(2) The department may study and report on the short-term and long-term fiscal and programmatic impact on the health care consumer of changes in ownership of hospitals from nonprofit to profit, whether through purchase, merger or the like. The department may also study and report on factors which have the effect of either reducing provider revenue or increasing provider cost, and other factors beyond a provider's control which reduce provider competitiveness in the marketplace, are explained in the reports.1986, July 8, P.L. 408, No. 89, § 11, imd. effective. Reenacted and amended 1993, June 28, P.L. 146, No. 34, §1, imd. effective. Reenacted 2003 , July 17, P.L. 31, No. 14, § 5, imd. effective; 2009, June 10, P.L. 10, No. 3, §5, retroactive effective 6/29/2008.