O.C.G.A. § 44-14-471 (2019)
Filing of verified statement; contents; notice
(a) In order to perfect the lien provided for in Code Section 44-14-470, the operator of the hospital, nursing home, physician practice, or provider of traumatic burn care medical practice: (1) Shall, not less than 15 days prior to the date of filing the statement required under paragraph (2) of this subsection, provide written notice to the patient and, to the best of the claimant’s knowledge, the persons, firms, corporations, and their insurers claimed by the injured person or the legal representative of the injured person to be liable for damages arising from the injuries and shall include in such notice a statement that the lien is not a lien against the patient or any other property or assets of the patient and is not evidence of the patient’s failure to pay a debt. Such notice shall be sent to all such persons and entities by first-class and certified mail or statutory overnight delivery, return receipt requested; and (2) Shall file in the office of the clerk of the superior court of the county in which the hospital, nursing home, physician practice, or provider of traumatic burn care medical practice is located and in the county wherein the patient resides, if a resident of this state, a verified statement setting forth the name and address of the patient as it appears on the records of the hospital, nursing home, physician practice, or provider of traumatic burn care medical practice; the name and location of the hospital, nursing home, physician practice, or provider of traumatic burn care medical practice and the name and address of the operator thereof; the dates of admission and discharge of the patient therefrom or with respect to a physician practice, the dates of treatment; and the amount claimed to be due for the hospital, nursing home, physician practice, or provider of traumatic burn care medical practice care, which statement must be filed within the following time period: (A) If the statement is filed by a hospital, nursing home, or provider of traumatic burn care medical practice, then the statement shall be filed within 75 days after the person has been discharged from the facility; or (B) If the statement is filed by a physician practice, then the statement shall be filed within 90 days after the person first sought treatment from the physician practice for the injury. (b) The filing of the claim or lien shall be notice thereof to all persons, firms, or corporations liable for the damages, whether or not they received the written notice provided for in this Code section. The failure to perfect such lien by timely complying with the notice and filing provisions of paragraphs (1) and (2) of subsection (a) of this Code section
shall invalidate such lien, except as to any person, firm, or corporation liable for the damages, which receives prior to the date of any release, covenant not to bring an action, or settlement, actual notice of a notice and filed statement made under subsection (a) of this Code section, via hand delivery, certified mail, return receipt requested, or statutory overnight delivery with confirmation of receipt.
History
Ga. L. 1953, Nov.-Dec. Sess., p. 105, § 2; Ga. L. 1978, p. 1371, § 1; Ga. L. 2002, p. 1141, § 2; Ga. L. 2002, p. 1429, § 2; Ga. L. 2003, p. 140, § 44; Ga. L. 2004, p. 394, § 2; Ga. L. 2006, p. 334, § 2/SB 306.
Annotations
Law reviews. For annual survey of trial practice and procedure, see 56 Mercer L. Rev. 433 (2004). For article with annual survey on torts, see 73 Mercer L. Rev. 243 (2021).
JUDICIAL DECISIONS “Best of the claimant’s knowledge” standard. - As for the “best of the claimant’s knowledge” standard of O.C.G.A. § 44-14-471(a)(1), the Georgia Court of Appeals, Fifth Division has held that the phrase describes the lienholder’s knowledge and imposes upon the lienholder the requirement to exercise at least some degree of diligence in acquiring the information necessary to send the notice. Allstate Fire & Casualty Insurance Company v. Kennestone Hospital, Inc., 348 Ga. App. 335, 822 S.E.2d 832, 2019 Ga. App. LEXIS 2 (2019). Medical lien created under Article 9 barred. - Georgia Court of Appeals held that both O.C.G.A. § 11-9-109(c)(2) and (d)(2) required a party asserting a medical lien to proceed under the medical lien statute, and expressly barred the creation of a medical lien through the process for creating an Article 9 security interest by agreement. Med-Care Solutions, LLC v. Bey & Assocs., LLC, 362 Ga. App. 861, 870 S.E.2d 456, 2022 Ga. App. LEXIS 107 (2022). Hospital lien resembles garnishment. - Hospital’s petition failed to allege a cause arising under the hospital lien law against the defendant patient, for the reason that O.C.G.A. § 44-14-471 gives no right of action against the patient to whom hospitalization is furnished, but only against those liable to pay the patient damages; the right created is analogous to the remedy provided by the garnishment laws. Hospital Auth. v. Boyd, 96 Ga. App.
705, 101 S.E.2d 207, 1957 Ga. App. LEXIS 668 (1957). Late filing still valid where actual notice. - A hospital lien not filed within the 30-day statutory time period was enforced against defendants who had actual notice of the lien. Macon-Bibb County Hosp. Auth. v. National Union Fire Ins. Co., 793 F. Supp. 321, 1992 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 9350 (M.D. Ga. 1992). Hospital could assert lien for full amount of charges, even if most were written off pursuant to managed healthcare contract. - Because a patient could have sought recovery of $24,794 from a tortfeasor of a hospital’s billed charges incurred for his injuries, the hospital was entitled to assert a lien under O.C.G.A. § 44-14-471(b) for the unpaid portion of those billed charges, even though the patient’s managed care insurer was not responsible to pay these charges in full. The court held that Constantine v. MCG Health, Inc., 275 Ga. App. 128, 619 S.E.2d 718 (2005), had been implicitly overruled in part. MCG Health, Inc. v. Kight, 325 Ga. App. 349, 750 S.E.2d 813, 2013 Ga. App. LEXIS 983 (2013), cert. denied, No. S14C0603, 2014 Ga. LEXIS 363 (Ga. May 5, 2014), cert. denied, No. S14C0603, 2014 Ga. LEXIS 427 (Ga. May 19, 2014), aff’d, 296 Ga. 687, 769 S.E.2d 923, 2015 Ga. LEXIS 154 (2015). Use of chargemaster rates does not result in viable claims for fraud, negligent representation and RICO claims. - Supreme court overrules Clouthier v. Med. Center of Central Ga.,
Inc., 351 Ga. App. 883 (2019), and Aguila v. Kennestone Hosp., 353 Ga. App. 17 (2019), to the extent that those cases hold that viable claims for fraud, negligent representation, and violations of the Georgia Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, O.C.G.A. § 16-14-1 et seq., can be maintained against hospitals that properly file liens based on standard chargemaster rates that reflect true market considerations such as hospital costs. Bowden v. Medical Ctr., Inc., 309 Ga. 188, 845 S.E.2d 555, 2020 Ga. LEXIS 464 (2020). Use of standard chargemaster rates by hospital. - Dismissal of the patient’s complaint for fraud was upheld because it could not be said that the hospital had no basis for using its charge master rates to come up with an amount claimed to be due for purposes of securing a lien. Aguila v. Kennestone Hospital, 359 Ga. App. 419, 858 S.E.2d 241, 2021 Ga. App. LEXIS 211 (2021). Fact that the hospital’s reasonable charges initially claimed due under O.C.G.A. § 44-14-471(a)(2)(A) was significantly higher than the actual amount that the hospital could collect on the hospital’s lien did not establish fraudulent intent. Aguila v. Kennestone Hospital, 359 Ga. App. 419, 858 S.E.2d 241, 2021 Ga. App. LEXIS 211 (2021). No false representation regarding charges. - Summary judgment was improperly denied to the medical center on the plaintiffs’ fraud and negligent misrepresentation claims because the center’s filing of a lien at the center’s chargemas-
ter rate in compliance with Georgia’s lien statutes did not amount to making a false representation; and there was nothing fraudulent about the center’s using its standard chargemaster rates as the amount claimed to be due for the hospital to perfect the hopsital’s lien as the plaintiff could contest the reasonableness of the amount. Bowden v. Medical Ctr., Inc., 309 Ga. 188, 845 S.E.2d 555, 2020 Ga. LEXIS 464 (2020). Diligence in identifying tortfeasor and insurer. - In an action to enforce a hospital lien, the trial court erred by granting summary judgment to an insurer because there was a question as to whether the medical center effectively used all of the information in its records to affirmatively obtain the police report and identify the alleged tortfeasor and its insurer. Phoebe Sumter Med. Ctr. v. Gov’t Emples. Ins. Co., 362 Ga. App. 483, 869 S.E.2d 123, 2022 Ga. App. LEXIS 58 (2022). Hospital exercised due diligence. - The grant of summary judgment to a hospital in the hospital’s action to perfect a medical services lien under O.C.G.A. § 44-14-471 against an insurance company was affirmed because in spite of the hospital’s undisputed exercise of due diligence, the hospital did not know the identity of the tortfeasor or the insurer until after the hospital had filed the lien, so the hospital was not required to send notice to the insurer to perfect the insurer’s lien. Allstate Fire & Casualty Insurance Company v. Kennestone Hospital, Inc., 348 Ga. App. 335, 822 S.E.2d 832, 2019 Ga. App. LEXIS 2 (2019).
RESEARCH REFERENCES ALR. Construction, operation, and effect of statute giving hospital lien against recov-
ery from tortfeasor causing patient’s injuries, 16 A.L.R.5th 262.