2023 Colorado Revised Statutes › Title 25 - PUBLIC HEALTH AND ENVIRONMENT (§§ 25-1-101 — 25-59-106) › HOSPITALS (§§ 25-3-100.5 — 25-3.5-1401) › Article 3 - HOSPITALS (§§ 25-3-100.5 — 25-3-801) › Part 1 - HOSPITALS (§§ 25-3-100.5 — 25-3-131) › Section 25-3-101 - [Effective 7/1/2026] Hospitals - health facilities - licensed - definitions

(1)
It is unlawful for any person, partnership, association, or corporation to open, conduct, or maintain any general hospital; hospital unit; freestanding emergency department as defined in section
25-1.5-114
; critical access hospital as defined in section 25-1.5-114.5; psychiatric hospital; community clinic; rehabilitation hospital; convalescent center; facility for persons with developmental disabilities as defined in section
25-1.5-103 (2)(c)
; nursing care facility; hospice care; assisted living residence, except an assisted living residence shall be assessed a license fee as set forth in section
25-27-107
; dialysis treatment clinic; ambulatory surgical center; birthing center; home care agency; or other facility of a like nature, except those wholly owned and operated by a governmental unit or agency, without first having obtained a license from the department.
(2)
As used in this section, unless the context otherwise requires:
(a)
(I)
"Community clinic" means a health-care facility that provides health-care services on an ambulatory basis, is neither licensed as an on-campus department or service of a hospital nor listed as an off-campus location under a hospital's license, and meets at least one of the following criteria:
(A)
Operates inpatient beds at the facility for the provision of extended observation and other related services for not more than seventy-two hours;
(B)
Provides emergency services at the facility and is not otherwise required to obtain licensure as a freestanding emergency department in accordance with section
25-1.5-114
; or
(C)
Is not otherwise subject to health facility licensure under this section or section
25-1.5-103
but opts to obtain licensure as a community clinic in order to receive private donations, grants, government funds, or other public or private reimbursement for services rendered.
(II)
"Community clinic" includes a prison clinic operated by the department of corrections.
(III)
"Community clinic" does not include:
(A)
A federally qualified health center, as defined in the federal "Social Security Act",
42 U.S.C. sec. 1395x(aa)(4)
;
(B)
A rural health clinic, as defined in section 1861 (aa)(2) of the federal "Social Security Act",
42 U.S.C. sec. 1395x(aa)(2)
;
(C)
A facility that functions only as an office for the practice of medicine or the delivery of primary care services by other licensed or certified practitioners; or
(D)
A freestanding emergency department, as defined in and required to be licensed under section
25-1.5-114
.
(b)
"Hospital unit" means a physical portion of a licensed or certified general hospital, psychiatric hospital, maternity hospital, or rehabilitation hospital that is leased or otherwise occupied pursuant to a contractual agreement by a person other than the licensee of the host facility for the purpose of providing outpatient or inpatient services.
(3)
Nothing in this section shall be construed to require the licensing of individual services provided by a licensed or certified provider on its own premises.
(4)
A health-care facility is not required to be licensed as a community clinic solely due to the facility's ownership status, corporate structure, or engagement of outside vendors to perform nonclinical management services. This section permits regulation of a physician's office only to the extent the office is a community clinic as defined in this section.
Amended by 2024 Ch. 439,§ 3, eff. 7/1/2026.
Amended by 2023 Ch. 206,§ 45, eff. 5/16/2023.
Amended by 2022 Ch. 222, § 228, eff. 1/1/2025.
Amended by 2020 Ch. 70, § 22, eff. 9/14/2020.
Amended by 2019 Ch. 413, § 12, eff. 7/1/2022.
Amended by 2019 Ch. 324, § 3, eff. 8/2/2019.
L. 09: p. 411, § 1. C.L. § 1053. CSA: C. 78, § 133. CRS 53: § 66-4-1. C.R.S. 1963: § 66-4-1. L. 71: p. 631, § 1. L. 78: Entire section amended, p. 440, § 3, effective May 18. L. 83: Entire section amended, p. 1051, § 1, effective May 25. L. 84: (1) amended, p. 338, § 4, effective April 25. L. 94: (1) amended, p. 2750, § 404, effective July 1. L. 95: Entire section amended, p. 1023, § 2, effective July 1. L. 2002: (1) amended, p. 1329, § 16, effective July 1. L. 2006: (1) amended, p. 1391, § 23, effective August 7. L. 2008: (1) amended, p. 2233, § 2, effective August 5. L. 2011: (1) and (2) amended, (HB 11 -1101), ch. 277, p. 277, § 2, effective April 8; (2)(a) amended, (HB 11-1323), ch. 1198, p. 1198, § 2, effective June 2. L. 2012: (1) and (2)(a) amended and (4) added, (HB 12-1294), ch. 252, p. 1253, § 3, effective June 4. L. 2019: (1), (2)(a)(I)(B), and (2)(a)(III)(C) amended and (2)(a)(III)(D) added, (HB 19-1010), ch. 2998, p. 2998, § 3, effective August 2; (1) amended, (HB 19-1237), ch. 3641, p. 3641, § 12, effective 7/1/2022. L. 2020: (2)(a)(III)(A) amended, (SB 20 -136), ch. 287, p. 287, § 22, effective September 14.
Amendments to subsection (1) by HB 19-1010 and HB 19-1237 were harmonized, effective July 1, 2022.
2024 Ch. 439, was passed without a safety clause. See Colo. Const. art. V, § 1(3).
This section is set out more than once due to postponed, multiple, or conflicting amendments.
For the legislative declaration contained in the 1994 act amending subsection (1), see section 1 of chapter 345, Session Laws of Colorado 1994. For the legislative declaration in the 2012 act amending subsections (1) and (2)(a) and adding subsection (4), see section 1 of chapter 252, Session Laws of Colorado 2012. For the legislative declaration in SB 20-136, see section 1 of chapter 70, Session Laws of Colorado 2020.