How the IRA helps hospitals go green

By Ariel Wittenberg | 02/29/2024 06:48 AM EST

The Inflation Reduction Act allows nonprofits to take advantage of renewable tax credits that were otherwise out of reach.

Ambulances are used to evacuate patients from a hospital in Santa Rosa, California.

Ambulances are used to evacuate patients from a hospital in Santa Rosa, California, during a wildfire in 2019. Ethan Swope, file/AP

Officials at Valley Children’s Healthcare wanted to build a renewable energy microgrid after rolling blackouts swept across parts of California due to wildfires six years ago.

But as a nonprofit, the facility wasn’t eligible for renewable energy tax credits.

The Inflation Reduction Act changed that by allowing nonprofits and local governments to take advantage of tax credits that had previously been available only to the private sector.

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“Our organization, by definition, is about protecting the future, because children are the future, but when you’re a not-for-profit, tax credits are of no value to you,” Valley Children’s CEO Todd Suntrapak said in an interview. “The IRA dramatically changed our financial picture.”

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