§ 36-2. Fees for treatment at city hospitals.

(a)

Payment generally. All patients in hospitals and clinics owned and operated by the city, able to pay, as determined by the director of health, shall be required to pay for their care and treatment insofar as they are able to do so, except that payment shall not be required from patients who are admitted upon the order of the director of health for isolation or who are admitted and maintained by order of any county court, and the compensation for whose care and support in such hospital is paid either jointly or severally by the state and any county.

(b)

Fee schedule; persons required to pay fees. The director of health is hereby authorized to set a schedule of fees for bed, board and routine nursing care based upon and not in excess of the operating cost of the hospital for the fiscal year immediately preceding and for all laboratory procedures, special treatment or drugs based upon the prevailing charges at private hospitals in the city, to those patients who:

(1)

Gain admission to the hospital facilities upon misrepresenting their ability to pay for care.

(2)

Are admitted as subjects for charity and whose financial status changes before discharge from the hospital, and who are no longer subjects for charity.

(3)

Benefit from the settlement of personal injury claims relating to injuries treated at a municipal hospital or have hospitalization insurance or will receive money in the form of medical or surgical benefits or any form of health and accident insurance.

(4)

Have communicable diseases and cannot be hospitalized elsewhere.

(5)

Are nonresidents of the city.

(6)

Are nonindigent emergency cases.

(c)

Physician's fees. These charges shall be in addition to any medical or surgical fees that may be charged by the attending physician.

(Code of Gen. Ords. 1967, § 19.2)

Annotation— No valid cause of action ever accrued in city's favor against individual for value of hospitalization and treatment city furnished free of charge to individual injured by city's negligence, notwithstanding judgment recovered for injuries against city and ordinance authorizing city's director of health to set schedule of fees for care and treatment to patients benefitting from settlement of personal injury claims relating to injuries treated. Kansas City v. Martin, 391 S.W. 2d 608. This case also held that ordinance could not contravene substantive law imposing upon city duty to pay such individual reasonable value of hospitalization and treatment for injuries or to provide services without cost to individuals, but that in instant case city was relieved of its obligation to pay money damages in view of individual's availing himself of direct reparation by requesting and receiving medical treatment from city's hospital.