Party Lines Fall By The Wayside During Hearing Over What To Do About Surprise Medical Bills
Although many lawmakers agree that surprise medical bills are an urgent problem, the devil is in the details of how to determine who gets stuck with the costs. "I worry that if Congress chooses the wrong approach, consumers will simply end up paying those costs through higher premiums," Rep. Frank Pallone (D-N.J.) said at the opening of the House Energy and Commerce health subcommittee hearing. "We simply cannot allow this to happen."
Modern Healthcare:
Arbitration For Surprise Medical Bills Splits House Panel
Lawmakers of the House Energy and Commerce health subcommittee appeared split on Wednesday over whether they should give physicians and hospitals a chance to appeal to an arbiter in a balance billing dispute. The divisions over how to handle balance billing didn't fall along party lines and peeled both Democratic and GOP representatives from the committee leaders' bipartisan proposal to set a benchmark price according to the patient's in-network rate. Committee Chair Rep. Frank Pallone (D-N.J.), who produced a draft policy with ranking member Greg Walden (R-Ore.), put his stake in the ground for transparency and price concerns. (Luthi, 6/12)
KTVZ:
Walden Bill Targets Surprise Medical Bills
During an Energy and Commerce Committee hearing on Walden's draft version of the No Surprises Act, Walden recalled horror stories of patients who follow the rules and yet "to no fault of their own, following an emergency situation or surgery receive a six-digit bill in the mail weeks later, which they have no way of paying. It is not fair, it should not happen." [Rep. Greg] Walden (R-Ore.) drafted the bipartisan No Surprises Act alongside Energy and Commerce Chairman Frank Pallone, Jr. (D-NJ), both vocal advocates for the critical need to put an end to surprise medical billing. (6/12)
In other news on health care costs —
The New York Times:
Florida Company Sued Over Sales Of Skimpy Health Plans
One Ohio resident paid $240 a month for health insurance that she later learned didn’t cover her knee replacement. Saddled with $48,000 in medical bills, she decided not to get the other knee replaced. “It’s been devastating to me,” said Elizabeth Belin, who lives in Columbus. The bills totaled more than her annual salary. A Kansas resident paid premiums on a policy for two years, then found out his insurance would not cover surgery for a newly diagnosed cancer. (Abelson, 6/12)
NPR:
NPR Rural Health Poll Finds Financial Insecurity Plagues Many Who Have A Disability
Carol Burgos is worried her neighbors think she is bringing the neighborhood down. She lives in a mobile home park in a woodsy part of Columbia County, N.Y, just off a two-lane highway. The homes have neat yards and American flags. On a spring Saturday, some neighbors are out holding yard sales, with knickknacks spread out on folding tables. Others are out doing yardwork. (Simmons-Duffin, 6/12)
