Title 42 — The Public Health and WelfareRelease 119-73
§291o Definitions
Title 42 › Chapter CHAPTER 6A— - PUBLIC HEALTH SERVICE › Subchapter SUBCHAPTER IV— - CONSTRUCTION AND MODERNIZATION OF HOSPITALS AND OTHER MEDICAL FACILITIES › Part Part D— - General Provisions › § 291o
Summary
Sets rules for important words used in this part of the law. It says the word "State" also covers the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, Guam, American Samoa, the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands, the Virgin Islands, and the District of Columbia. The "Federal share" is the part of a project the federal government will pay. For projects paid from a State allotment, the State agency picks the actual share but it cannot exceed 66⅔ percent or the State’s allotment percentage, whichever is less. If a State’s allotment percentage is under 50 percent, it is treated as 50 percent for this rule. Before approving the first project each fiscal year, the State agency must tell the Secretary in writing the maximum federal share for that year and how the actual share will be chosen, and that maximum and method cannot be changed after projects are approved. A State may add an extra incentive percent for certain rural or poverty-area projects or projects that lower health costs, as long as the total federal share does not go above 90 percent. Defines types of covered facilities in one line each: "hospital" covers general, tuberculosis, and related hospital parts and training units but not places mainly giving domiciliary care; "public health center" means a publicly owned place for public health services and related labs or clinics; "nonprofit" means owned and run by nonprofit groups with no private profit; "outpatient facility" means a place for diagnosing/treating ambulatory patients that meets one of three supervision or service tests; "rehabilitation facility" means a place mainly for rehabilitation with medical plus psychological/social/vocational services, mostly given on site, and linked to or supervised by licensed physicians; "facility for long-term care" means inpatient skilled nursing for chronic or convalescent patients, either a hospital or tied to one or under physician direction. "Construction" covers new buildings, additions, remodeling, and initial equipment (including medical transport) and architects’ fees but not off-site work or land purchase except for public health centers. "Cost" is the amount the Surgeon General finds necessary, but for certain modernization grants it excludes amounts for adding beds. "Modernization" covers major repairs, remodeling, replacement, renovation, and initial equipment. "Title" means ownership or an interest (including a lease with rent no more than 4 percent of land value) that the Surgeon General finds will protect at least 50 years of undisturbed use.
Full Legal Text
Title 42, §291o
The Public Health and Welfare — Source: USLM XML via OLRC
For the purposes of this subchapter—
(a)The term “State” includes the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, Guam, American Samoa, the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands, the Virgin Islands, and the District of Columbia.
(b)(1)The term “Federal share” with respect to any project means the proportion of the cost of such project to be paid by the Federal Government under this subchapter.
(2)With respect to any project in any State for which a grant is made from an allotment from an appropriation under section 291a of this title, the Federal share shall be the amount determined by the State agency designated in accordance with section 291d of this title, but not more than 66⅔ per centum or the State’s allotment percentage, whichever is the lower, except that, if the State’s allotment percentage is lower than 50 per centum, such allotment percentage shall be deemed to be 50 per centum for purposes of this paragraph.
(3)Prior to the approval of the first project in a State during any fiscal year the State agency designated in accordance with section 291d of this title shall give the Secretary written notification of the maximum Federal share established pursuant to paragraph (2) of this subsection for projects in such State to be approved by the Secretary during such fiscal year and the method for determining the actual Federal share to be paid with respect to such projects; and such maximum Federal share and such method of determination for projects in such State approved during such fiscal year shall not be changed after such approval.
(4)Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraphs (2) and (3) of this subsection, the Federal share shall, at the option of the State agency, be equal to the per centum provided under such paragraphs plus an incentive per centum (which when combined with the per centum provided under such paragraphs shall not exceed 90 per centum) specified by the State agency in the case of (A) projects that will provide services primarily for persons in an area determined by the Secretary to be a rural or urban poverty area, and (B) projects that offer potential for reducing health care costs through shared services among health care facilities, through interfacility cooperation, or through the construction or modernization of free-standing outpatient facilities.
(c)The term “hospital” includes general, tuberculosis, and other types of hospitals, and related facilities, such as laboratories, outpatient departments, nurses’ home facilities, extended care facilities, facilities related to programs for home health services, self-care units, and central service facilities, operated in connection with hospitals, and also includes education or training facilities for health professions personnel operated as an integral part of a hospital, but does not include any hospital furnishing primarily domiciliary care.
(d)The term “public health center” means a publicly owned facility for the provision of public health services, including related publicly owned facilities such as laboratories, clinics, and administrative offices operated in connection with such a facility.
(e)The term “nonprofit” as applied to any facility means a facility which is owned and operated by one or more nonprofit corporations or associations no part of the net earnings of which inures, or may lawfully inure, to the benefit of any private shareholder or individual.
(f)The term “outpatient facility” means a facility (located in or apart from a hospital) for the diagnosis or diagnosis and treatment of ambulatory patients (including ambulatory inpatients)—
(1)which is operated in connection with a hospital, or
(2)in which patient care is under the professional supervision of persons licensed to practice medicine or surgery in the State, or, in the case of dental diagnosis or treatment, under the professional supervision of persons licensed to practice dentistry in the State; or
(3)which offers to patients not requiring hospitalization the services of licensed physicians in various medical specialties, and which provides to its patients a reasonably full-range of diagnostic and treatment services.
(g)The term “rehabilitation facility” means a facility which is operated for the primary purpose of assisting in the rehabilitation of disabled persons through an integrated program of—
(1)medical evaluation and services, and
(2)psychological, social, or vocational evaluation and services,
(3)the major portion of the required evaluation and services is furnished within the facility; and
(4)either (A) the facility is operated in connection with a hospital, or (B) all medical and related health services are prescribed by, or are under the general direction of, persons licensed to practice medicine or surgery in the State.
(h)The term “facility for long-term care” means a facility (including an extended care facility) providing in-patient care for convalescent or chronic disease patients who require skilled nursing care and related medical services—
(1)which is a hospital (other than a hospital primarily for the care and treatment of mentally ill or tuberculosis patients) or is operated in connection with a hospital, or
(2)in which such nursing care and medical services are prescribed by, or are performed under the general direction of, persons licensed to practice medicine or surgery in the State.
(i)The term “construction” includes construction of new buildings, expansion, remodeling, and alteration of existing buildings, and initial equipment of any such buildings (including medical transportation facilities) and, in any case in which it will help to provide a service not previously provided in the community, equipment of any buildings; including architects’ fees, but excluding the cost of off-site improvements and, except with respect to public health centers, the cost of the acquisition of land.
(j)The term “cost” as applied to construction or modernization means the amount found by the Surgeon General to be necessary for construction and modernization respectively, under a project, except that such term, as applied to a project for modernization of a facility for which a grant or loan is to be made from an allotment under section 291b(a)(2) of this title, does not include any amount found by the Surgeon General to be attributable to expansion of the bed capacity of such facility.
(k)The term “modernization” includes alteration, major repair (to the extent permitted by regulations), remodeling, replacement, and renovation of existing buildings (including initial equipment thereof), and replacement of obsolete, built-in (as determined in accordance with regulations) equipment of existing buildings.
(l)The term “title”, when used with reference to a site for a project, means a fee simple, or such other estate or interest (including a leasehold on which the rental does not exceed 4 per centum of the value of the land) as the Surgeon General finds sufficient to assure for a period of not less than fifty years’ undisturbed use and possession for the purposes of construction and operation of the project.
Legislative History
Notes & Related Subsidiaries
Editorial Notes
Prior Provisions
A prior section 291o, act
July 1, 1944, ch. 373, title VI, § 641, as added
July 12, 1954, ch. 471, § 2, 68 Stat. 461, related to a declaration of purpose with respect to diagnostic or treatment centers, chronic disease hospitals, rehabilitation facilities, and nursing homes, prior to the general amendment of this subchapter by Pub. L. 88–443. See section 291 of this title. Provisions similar to those comprising this section were contained in section 291i(d) to (o), act
July 1, 1944, ch. 373, title VI, § 631, as added Aug. 13, 1946, ch. 958, § 2, 60 Stat. 1041; amended
June 19, 1948, ch. 544, § 1(b), 62 Stat. 531; Oct. 25, 1949, ch. 722, § 9, 63 Stat. 901;
July 12, 1954, ch. 471, § 4(c) to (f), 68 Stat. 465, 466; Aug. 1, 1956, ch. 852, § 19(b), 70 Stat. 911;
June 25, 1959, Pub. L. 86–70, § 31(c), 73 Stat. 149;
July 12, 1960, Pub. L. 86–624, § 29(d), 74 Stat. 419; Oct. 5, 1961, Pub. L. 87–395, § 5, 75 Stat. 826; Sept. 25, 1962, Pub. L. 87–688, § 4(a)(2), 76 Stat. 587, prior to the general amendment of this subchapter by Pub. L. 88–443.
Amendments
1970—Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 91–296, § 119(d), inserted reference to Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands. Subsec. (b). Pub. L. 91–296, § 113, provided that Federal share of any project be in such amount, not in excess of two-thirds, as the State agency determined and authorized a higher Federal share of up to 90 per centum, in case of rural or urban poverty projects, and facilities which might reduce health costs through shared services, interfacility cooperation, and free-standing ambulatory care centers. Subsec. (c). Pub. L. 91–296, § 114(a), inserted references to extended care facilities, facilities related to programs for home health services, and self-care units operated in connection with hospitals and education or training facilities for health professions personnel operated as an integral part of a hospital. Subsec. (f). Pub. L. 91–296, § 116(f), substituted “outpatient facility” for “diagnostic or treatment center”, inserted “(located in or apart from a hospital)” after “means at facility”, inserted “(including ambulatory inpatients)” after “ambulatory patients”, and added par. (3). Subsec. (h). Pub. L. 91–296, § 117, inserted “(including an extended care facility)” after “means a facility”. Subsec. (i). Pub. L. 91–296, § 118, inserted reference to equipment of any buildings in cases in which such equipment will help to provide a service not previously provided in the community. 1964—Subsec. (c). Pub. L. 88–581 substituted “nurses’ home facilities” for “nurses’ home and training facilities”.
Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries
Change of Name
“Secretary of Health and Human Services” substituted for “Secretary of Health, Education, and Welfare” in subsec. (b) pursuant to section 509(b) of Pub. L. 96–88, which is classified to section 3508(b) of Title 20, Education.
Effective Date
of 1970 Amendment Pub. L. 91–296, title I, § 113,
June 30, 1970, 84 Stat. 340, provided that the amendment made by that section is effective with respect to projects approved under this subchapter after
June 30, 1970. Pub. L. 91–296, title I, § 114(a),
June 30, 1970, 84 Stat. 341, provided that the amendment made by that section is effective with respect to applications approved under this subchapter after
June 30, 1970. Pub. L. 91–296, title I, § 116(g),
June 30, 1970, 84 Stat. 342, provided that: “The
Amendments
made by subsection (e) [amending this section] and paragraphs (2) and (3) of subsection (f) of this section [amending section 291e of this title] shall apply with respect to applications approved under title VI of such Act [42 U.S.C. 291 et seq.] after
June 30, 1970.” Pub. L. 91–296, title I, § 117,
June 30, 1970, 84 Stat. 342, provided that the amendment made by that section is effective with respect to applications approved under this subchapter after
June 30, 1970. Pub. L. 91–296, title I, § 118,
June 30, 1970, 84 Stat. 342, provided that the amendment made by that section is effective with respect to projects approved under this subchapter after
June 30, 1970. Amendment by section 119(d) of Pub. L. 91–296 applicable with respect to allotments and grants therefrom under part A of this subchapter for fiscal years ending after
June 30, 1970, and with respect to loan guarantees and loans under part B of this subchapter made after
June 30, 1970, see section 119(e) of Pub. L. 91–296, set out as a note under section 291b of this title.
Effective Date
of 1964 AmendmentAmendment by Pub. L. 88–581 effective with respect to applications for grants from appropriations for fiscal years beginning after June 30, 1965, see section 3(b) of Pub. L. 88–581, set out as a note under section 291c of this title.
Executive Documents
Transfer of Functions
Office of Surgeon General abolished by section 3 of Reorg. Plan No. 3 of 1966, eff. June 25, 1966, 31 F.R. 8855, 80 Stat. 1610, and functions thereof transferred to Secretary of Health, Education, and Welfare by section 1 of Reorg. Plan No. 3 of 1966, set out as a note under section 202 of this title. Office of Surgeon General reestablished within the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Health, see Notice of Department of Health and Human Services, Office of the Assistant Secretary for Health, Mar. 30, 1987, 52 F.R. 11754. Termination of Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands For termination of Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands, see note set out preceding section 1681 of Title 48, Territories and Insular Possessions.
Reference
Citations & Metadata
Citation
42 U.S.C. § 291o
Title 42 — The Public Health and Welfare
Last Updated
Apr 6, 2026
Release point: 119-73