2002 Minnesota Statutes

     144.123 Fees for diagnostic laboratory services; 
  exceptions. 

    Subdivision 1.    Who must pay.  Except for the 
 limitation contained in this section, the commissioner of health 
 shall charge a handling fee for each specimen submitted to the 
 department of health for analysis for diagnostic purposes by any 
 hospital, private laboratory, private clinic, or physician.  No 
 fee shall be charged to any entity which receives direct or 
 indirect financial assistance from state or federal funds 
 administered by the department of health, including any public 
 health department, nonprofit community clinic, venereal disease 
 clinic, family planning clinic, or similar entity.  The 
 commissioner of health may establish by rule other exceptions to 
 the handling fee as may be necessary to gather information for 
 epidemiologic purposes. All fees collected pursuant to this 
 section shall be deposited in the state treasury and credited to 
 the state government special revenue fund. 

    Subd. 2.    Rules for fee amounts.  The commissioner of 
 health shall promulgate rules, in accordance with chapter 14, 
 which shall specify the amount of the handling fee prescribed in 
 subdivision 1.  The fee shall approximate the costs to the 
 department of handling specimens including reporting, postage, 
 specimen kit preparation, and overhead costs.  The fee 
 prescribed in subdivision 1 shall be $15 per specimen until the 
 commissioner promulgates rules pursuant to this subdivision. 

    HIST: 1979 c 49 s 1; 1982 c 424 s 130; 1987 c 403 art 2 s 8; 
 1992 c 513 art 6 s 2; 1Sp1993 c 1 art 9 s 19