Over 2/3 of hospitals are nonprofit hospitals. That means that in exchange for their massive savings in taxes, they must provide Financial Assistance to those patients who cannot afford it in accordance with the hospital’s policies. However, they must stay within the bounds of the law.

Here are some of the cool things about charity care:

If it has been under 240 days (8 months) since the date of the first bill, 

In some states like Oregon, the time limit is higher (1 year)

Even if they sent you to collections during that time, they must take the account out of collections upon receipt of a completed application while the charity care application is in process

 If you made payments and the result after charity care is that you overpaid, they must refund you if the refund is at least $5.