The House Energy and Commerce Committee today held a hearing on its discussion draft of bipartisan legislation to address surprise medical bills.
 
Testifying at the hearing, AHA Executive Vice President Tom Nickels said patients “should not be subject to balance billing when they have accessed emergency services outside their network or have acted in good faith to obtain in-network care. They also shouldn’t be surprised by coverage denials from their insurers when they access any emergency services – in network or out of network.”
 
He said AHA agrees with the committee that the legislation “should explicitly prohibit balance billing” in those scenarios and “make sure that patients are kept out of any process to determine reimbursement between the payer and the provider. We would encourage you to also help improve the standards for provider networks and ensure adequate oversight to prevent incidence of out-of-network care. Once the patient is protected, we believe Congress should allow providers and payers to determine fair and appropriate reimbursement.”
 
AHA submitted comments on the discussion draft to the committee last month.
 
Also testifying at the hearing were a patient advocate and representatives from Physicians for Fair Coverage, the Association of Air Medical Services, The ERISA Industry Committee, America's Health Insurance Plans, Families USA, and American College of Emergency Physicians.
 

Related News Articles

Headline
The American Society for Health Care Engineering July 28 announced the recipients of its annual member awards during the 2025 Health Care Facilities Innovation…
Headline
The American Society for Health Care Engineering July 1 announced 87 health care facilities as winners of the 2025 Energy to Care Sustainability Champions…
Headline
The U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Tennessee June 30 denied a motion for a preliminary injunction by AbbVie in its lawsuit against the state’s…
Headline
The departments of Health and Human Services, Labor, and the Treasury have certified two more independent dispute resolution entities, bringing the total…
Headline
A new AHA video highlights how Corewell Health is transforming youth behavioral health care access in rural Michigan through school-based clinics and…
Perspective
Public
One year ago, a nurse at Children’s Hospital Colorado went above and beyond in a way that a very young patient and her family will never forget. Kayla…