Univ. of Med. and Dentistry of N.J. v. Grant,
No. A-3014-99T3 (N.J. Super. Ct. App. Div. June 7, 2001)
After
the Department of Health and Senior Services ("DHSS") decreased the
university hospital's charity care subsidy by approximately $9,000,000, the
hospital filed an appeal, arguing that the DHSS used the incorrect charity care
charges data and cost reports and failed to acknowledge the hospital's "nominal
charge provider" status (it charges charity care patients less than its
costs for outpatient services) when valuing the hospital's documented charity
care. While finding no other errors in DHSS's calculations, the superior court
did find that DHSS "arbitrarily" failed to consider the hospital's
nominal charge provider status, and therefore directed the DHSS to recalculate
and reallocate the hospital's charity care subsidy taking it into account.