The AHA and Federation of American Hospitals “strongly believe that any public policy solution to resolve surprise bills must protect patients by prohibiting balance billing and by limiting patients’ cost-sharing to an in-network amount,” the organizations today told members of Congress. “We appreciate that this is a high-priority issue for Congress, as it is for us, and we intend to provide more specific feedback to policymakers early in the new Congress,” the organizations said in a letter to Congressional leadership, members of the Bipartisan Senate Working Group on Health Care Price Transparency and other interested members of Congress. AHA and FAH said they are evaluating, for example, how to protect the broadest range of patients, including those in self-insured plans; how cost-sharing should be determined for out-of-network care so that patients have certainty about their financial obligations; the role of network adequacy requirements and enforcement in ensuring patients have sufficient access to in-network care; and whether policy interventions are needed to determine fair provider payment.

Related News Articles

Headline
The Senate Appropriations Committee July 31 advanced the fiscal year 2026 appropriations bill for the Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services,…
Perspective
House members are back in their districts for the August recess and senators are likely to return to their states soon.While lawmakers are home, it’s important…
Headline
The Trump administration today announced steps drug manufacturers must take to lower prescription drug prices in the U.S. to "most favored nation" pricing, the…
Headline
The Department of Health and Human Services today issued a notice announcing a 340B Rebate Model Pilot Program as a voluntary mechanism for qualifying drug…
Headline
The AHA’s Next Generation Leaders Fellowship July 29 announced its 36 fellows for the class of 2026, who will each work with mentors to address a specific…
Headline
AHA Chair-elect Marc Boom, M.D., president and CEO of Houston Methodist, and AHA Immediate-past Chair Joanne Conroy, M.D., president and CEO of Dartmouth…