What can be considered a regulatory requirement for operating hospitals?

Licensure is essential for operating hospitals because it serves as the legal authority that enables a healthcare facility to provide medical services to patients. Each state in the U.S. requires hospitals to obtain a license from the appropriate state regulatory agency. This licensing process ensures that hospitals comply with established standards for safety, quality, and operational practices, protecting the welfare of patients and the community.

Accreditation, while important for quality assessment and assurance, is a voluntary process that hospitals undergo to demonstrate their adherence to specific standards set by various organizations. Certification, too, pertains to specific programs or services within the hospital rather than the hospital as a whole and is also not universally required by law. Vertical integration refers to a business strategy of merging different levels of service within the healthcare continuum but does not address the legal operational requirements for a hospital. Thus, licensure is the regulatory requirement that must be met for a hospital to function legally and serve patients.