What is IRS 501(r) charity care?

IRS 501(r) requires tax-exempt hospital facilities to maintain financial assistance policies and make them available to patients. Whether a specific bill qualifies depends on the hospital policy, household income, household size, dates, and documents.

Who qualifies for hospital charity care?

Who qualifies depends on the individual hospital's current policy. Many policies use Federal Poverty Level percentages, but thresholds and documentation rules vary. Use this matcher as a starting point, then verify with patient financial services.

Can I apply for charity care after I already received the bill?

Often, yes. IRS rules define an application period that generally runs at least 240 days after the first post-discharge billing statement. Confirm the hospital's current process and ask billing in writing how the account will be handled while the application is pending.

Free charity care matcher

That hospital bill may qualify for financial assistance.

Many nonprofit hospitals publish Financial Assistance Policies under IRS Section 501(r). Tell us your hospital, household size, and income, and we'll show whether the policy may be worth applying under and what to ask for next.

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2026 Federal Poverty Level math built in
Hospital-specific policy lookup

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We'll match against your hospital's published 501(r) Financial Assistance Policy.

Charity care match

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Hospital or health system *

Use the full system name. Many nonprofit hospitals publish a Financial Assistance Policy under IRS 501(r).

Household size *

Annual household income (USD) *

State (optional, for FPL math)

Where should we send this result? *

We will show the result here and email you a copy with plain-English follow-up steps. No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.

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How it works

Three things determine eligibility.

Is the hospital a non-profit? Many large U.S. hospital systems are. For-profit hospitals are not subject to 501(r), but some still offer financial assistance under different rules.
What does their FAP say? Each nonprofit policy sets its own income thresholds, covered services, documents, and application instructions. Verify the current policy before acting.
Where does your household income fall? We use the 2026 HHS FPL guidelines to compute your % of FPL. The eligibility tier comes from there.

If you qualify under the policy, ask how the hospital calculates any discount and whether amounts generally billed rules apply to your account.

Already paid or on a payment plan?

You may still have options. Ask the hospital whether you can apply now, whether any recent payments can be reviewed, and how the account will be handled while the application is pending.

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