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2018 Georgia Code 31-7-85 | Car Wreck Lawyer

Link to State of Georgia Official Statute 2018 Georgia Code Annotated (sourced from legal.resource.org)
O.C.G.A. 31-7-85 Case Law from Google Scholar Amendments to OCGA 31-7-85

TITLE 31 HEALTH

Section 7. Regulation and Construction of Hospitals and Other Health Care Facilities, 31-7-1 through 31-7-412.

ARTICLE 4 COUNTY AND MUNICIPAL HOSPITAL AUTHORITIES

31-7-85. Contracts with political subdivisions.

  1. For the purpose of using such facilities, any city or county is authorized by action of its governing body to enter into contracts with an authority for such periods of time not exceeding 40 years as shall be necessary to provide for the continued maintenance and use of the facilities of an authority. Sums due and payable under such contract shall be determined from year to year during the period of such contract and no sums shall be paid for the services in excess of the amounts necessary to provide for the maintenance and operation of projects of authorities and such sums as shall be necessary to provide adequate and necessary facilities for medical care and hospitalization of the indigent sick, including reasonable reserves necessary for expansion and necessary for the payment of the cost of facilities of the projects, provided that any such contract may obligate a city or county or any combination thereof to pay for such services a fixed and definite minimum sum each year based or calculated upon the anticipated cost of such services including the cost and expense of making the facilities of the authority available for the furnishing and performance of such services. The contracts authorized under this Code section to be entered into between cities or counties or any combination thereof and an authority may provide for the conveyance or lease of any existing hospital facilities or projects to an authority created by any such cities or counties for a nominal consideration only, provided that such conveyance shall contain a clause providing that, upon dissolution of the authority, such hospital facilities or projects shall revert to the city or county conveying the same to the authority and provided, further, that no property so conveyed may be mortgaged or in any way given as security for an indebtedness of the authority; this limitation is not to be construed as limiting the right of the authority to pledge or hypothecate revenues which may be realized by the authority from the operation of any property so conveyed to the authority.
  2. When, in accordance with this article, any county shall activate a hospital authority for such county and such authority shall acquire or construct or shall make preparations to acquire or construct a hospital in the county, any municipality in the county shall be authorized to contract with the hospital authority for the care in such hospital of indigent sick or injured persons who are residents of the municipality either on a per-patient-per-day basis or for a fixed amount of money payable at such time as the contracting parties may agree upon; and any such contract may, at the election of such municipality, be binding upon it for a period of not exceeding 40 years. Such contract and the amount to be received by the hospital authority thereunder may be pledged by the hospital authority as security for the payment of the principal and interest of any bonds or revenue anticipation certificates which it may issue in order to acquire or construct the hospital.

(Ga. L. 1941, p. 241, § 10; Ga. L. 1953, Jan.-Feb. Sess., p. 103, § 1; Ga. L. 1955, p. 618, § 2; Code 1933, § 88-1813, enacted by Ga. L. 1964, p. 499, § 1; Ga. L. 1964, Ex. Sess., p. 15, § 2.)

JUDICIAL DECISIONS

Promotion of public health constitutes public purpose for which powers of taxation can be exercised lawfully by state under Ga. Const. 1976, Art. VII, Sec. II, Para. I (see now Ga. Const. 1983, Art. VII, Sec. III, Para. I) and by counties under Ga. Const. 1976, Art. IX, Sec. V, Para. I (see now Ga. Const. 1983, Art. IX, Sec. IV, Para. I). Bradfield v. Hospital Auth., 226 Ga. 575, 176 S.E.2d 92 (1970).

Provision of funds under general taxing power for care of indigents.

- Under general taxing power, county can for purpose of public health provide the county's indigent sick the funds with which to obtain treatment, even if not by contract with hospital. Bradfield v. Hospital Auth., 226 Ga. 575, 176 S.E.2d 92 (1970).

General funds or special tax for care of indigents authorized.

- County or county's cities or towns are authorized to provide for care for indigents by use of their general funds or by levying a special ad valorem tax for this purpose. Bradfield v. Hospital Auth., 226 Ga. 575, 176 S.E.2d 92 (1970).

Use of public funds for treatment of indigent patients in private hospital not unconstitutional. Bradfield v. Hospital Auth., 226 Ga. 575, 176 S.E.2d 92 (1970).

County authority may provide for funding of the operation and maintenance of a hospital during renovation, a reserve fund for hospital operations, payment of currently outstanding hospital authority obligations, and such amounts as may be necessary to assure the continued operation and maintenance of the hospital during the term of the contract. Cheely v. State, 251 Ga. 685, 309 S.E.2d 128 (1983).

Cited in Cox Enters., Inc. v. Carroll City/County Hosp. Auth., 247 Ga. 39, 273 S.E.2d 841 (1981); United States v. Hosp. Auth. of Charlton County (In re Hosp. Auth. of Charlton County), 56 Bankr. Ct. Dec. (LRP) 220 (Bankr. S.D. Ga. July 3, 2012).

OPINIONS OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL

Hospital authority not within provisions of Constitution authorizing temporary loans.

- County hospital authority is not either a county, municipality, political subdivision of the state authorized to levy taxes, or county board of education so as to come within provisions of Ga. Const. 1976, Art. IX, Sec. VII, Para. IV (see now Ga. Const. 1983, Art. IX, Sec. V, Para. V). 1969 Op. Att'y Gen. No. 69-9.

Unemployment compensation coverage for authority employees.

- Inasmuch as creation and continued operation of a hospital authority is a joint venture of a hospital authority and the authority's supporting political subdivision or subdivisions, determination as to whether hospital authority's employees will be covered by unemployment compensation should be a joint determination made by both the hospital authority and the supporting political subdivision or subdivisions. 1971 Op. Att'y Gen. No. 71-55.

RESEARCH REFERENCES

Am. Jur. 2d.

- 40A Am. Jur. 2d, Hospitals and Asylums, § 8 et seq.

C.J.S.

- 41 C.J.S., Hospitals, §§ 5 et seq., 11.

Cases Citing Georgia Code 31-7-85 From Courtlistener.com

Total Results: 1

Cheely v. State of Ga.

Court: Supreme Court of Georgia | Date Filed: 1983-11-30

Citation: 309 S.E.2d 128, 251 Ga. 685, 1983 Ga. LEXIS 958

Snippet: incurred by such authorities." Moreover, OCGA § 31-7-85 (Code Ann. § 88-1813) provides that a county may