Sec. 3. (a) Any hospital entering into a merger agreement with another hospital may submit an application to the state department for a certificate of public advantage to govern the merger agreement in the manner prescribed by the state department. However, a hospital may not submit an application under this chapter after July 1, 2026.
(b) The application for a certificate of public advantage must include the following:
(1) A written copy of the merger agreement.
(2) A written description of the nature and scope of the merger.
(c) Any documentation submitted under this section with the application that is deemed to be proprietary information shall be clearly identified as proprietary information and a copy of the application with the proprietary information redacted for public records must be submitted by the applicant.
(d) An applicant must also file a complete copy of the application for a certificate of public advantage with:
(1) the office of the secretary of family and social services in a manner prescribed by the office of the secretary; and
(2) the office of the attorney general in a manner prescribed by the office of the attorney general.
(e) The state department shall assess a filing fee for an application for a certificate of public advantage that is reasonably sufficient to fully fund the costs of the review of the application and ongoing supervision if the application is granted, including any fees for consultants and experts. The state department may not spend any money on the implementation of this chapter until the state department has received a filed application and received the filing fee.
As added by P.L.104-2021, SEC.2.