The Georgia Senate approved assessing a fee on most hospitals to make up a nearly $700 million Medicaid funding shortfall in the state’s fiscal year 2014 budget on Thursday.The Georgia Department of Community Health is governed by a nine-person board appointed by the governor.Senate Bill 24 authorizes that board to create and assess a fee on hospitals to draw matching federal dollars for Medicaid providers. Medicaid payments to hospitals would rise by nearly 12 percent to offset the state fee. The legislature created the tax in 2010 with economic stimulus money, and it expires at the end of June.The fiscal year 2013 budget shows $235 million in hospital provider fee revenue and $454 million in federal Medicaid revenue given to the state because of the fee, totaling $689 million, according to an information sheet about the legislation.The issue isn’t just about hospitals, said Sen. Renee Unterman, R-Buford, who chairs the Health and Human Services Committee.