National Nurses United

constitutes charity care (some hospitals have justified the expense of building parking lots toward that goal); require greater reporting requirements; and prohibits hospitals that do not meet these standards from issuing tax-exempt bonds. ���We have hospitals in California who are nonprofit hospitals that are not stepping up to the plate,��� said Corbett during a rally by RNs after the hearing. She said earlier at the hearing, ���We need to make sure they are meeting their obligations to the larger community.��� These tax benefits came in the form of Nonprofit Hospitals Reaping Far More in Tax Benefits Than They Sow in Providing Charity CALIFORNIA ook who���s the one receiving charity! A new report released in August by the research arm of the California Nurses Association/ National Nurses United revealed that California���s nonprofit hospitals are cashing in on $1.8 billion more in tax exemptions in 2010 than they provide in care for indigent or low-income populations���a finding that calls into question whether the tax-exempt status of these hospital chains is deserved or just a scam. Another report by the state auditor issued the same month also highlighted the lack of requirements, standards, and methodology in calculating what community benefits hospitals L are providing in exchange for not having to pay taxes. Other organizations have reported that some for-profit hospitals are actually providing more charity care than not-for-profit ones. Clearly, the state of California and local counties are losing millions in revenue from these entities that could help with their budget crises and preserve critical programs. A special committee of the Senate, chaired by Sen. Ellen Corbett, convened on Aug. 15 to tackle this problem and to begin considering possible fixes. CNA urged the committee to propose legislation that would set minimum amounts of charity care hospitals must deliver to maintain their taxexempt status (CNA suggested 8 percent of a hospitals��� combined operating and nonoperating revenues); clearly define what The $1.8 Billion Windfall for California Non-Profit Hospitals Federal Income Taxes on Net Income $ 1,628,939,581 State Income Taxes on Net Income 252,410,569 Property Taxes 369,982,515 Federal Income Taxes on Charitable Contributions 240,876,041 not only being exempted from paying federal and state income taxes, but also property taxes, sales taxes, taxes on bonds they issue, and the tax write-off their donors receive. Some other key findings of the report, which was conducted by the Institute for Health and Socio-economic Policy, showed that hospital chains Kaiser Permanente and Sutter Health dwarfed all other California nonprofits in reaping tax benefits. Individual hospitals that reaped the most in benefits beyond what they provided in charity care were led by Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles, Stanford University Hospital in Palo Alto, and California Pacific Medical Center in San Francisco. Half of California nonprofit (continued on page 6) PROFITS THE TOP SIX PROFITS TOP OVER OVER TA TAX AX EXEMPTIONS IN EXCESS CHARITY OF CHARITY CHARITY CARE CARE CARE CARE CARE PROVIDED PROVIDED $ 16,123,766 $ 104,327,297 $ 152,820,769 Stanford University Stanford University Hospital $ 19,124,975 $ 100,065,799 $ 186,165,663 California Pacific California Pacific Medical Center $ 16,063,125 $ 79,592,416 $ 199,699,801 Santa Barbara Cottage Hospital $ 12,917,174 $ 65,131,123 $ 109,338,526 John Muir Medical Center $ 15,054,293 $ 60,700,416 $ 131,627,459 EXCESS of Total Government Subsidies and Other Bene���ts Over Total Charity Alta Bates���Summit Medical Center ���Alta Bates, Herrick Herrick $ 4,802,839 $ 48,447,774 $ 111,679,854 Source: IHSP analysis Sources: OSHPD, IRS 990s, IHSP analysis OSHPD, State Income Taxes on Charitable Contributions Sales Taxes Bonds Total Taxes and Other Bene���ts for Not-for-Pro���ts Less Total Charity Care PROVIDED 43,544,746 701,082,464 34,778,174 $ 3,271,614,090 ($1,428,513,583) Cedars-Sinai Cedars-Sinai Medical Center NET INCOME 081412 J U LY | A U G U S T 2 0 1 2 W W W. N A T I O N A L N U R S E S U N I T E D . O R G 081412 N AT I O N A L N U R S E 5

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