Ending Surprise Medical Bills

Millions of Americans have faced the financial burden of surprise medical bills. Thankfully, bipartisan enactment of the No Surprises Act prevented over 9 million surprise bills in the first 9 months of 2022. Despite this success, 16 lawsuits have been filed challenging the law, implementing regulations, and IDR decision process. These lawsuits, often driven by private-equity backed providers, threaten to restrict and even do away with the protections put in place by the No Surprises Act. Recent polling has shown that a bipartisan majority of voters are concerned these lawsuits could delay or overturn the patient protections in the No Surprises Act (73%) and increase health care costs for patients (78%).

 

Our Mission

The Coalition Against Surprise Medical Billing represents leading employer groups, unions, health insurance providers, and the tens of millions of people they employ and serve each day. Together, we support comprehensive protections for Americans against surprise medical bills, including:

■  Ensuring that as implementation continues, the No Surprises Act regulations remain in place to serve patients and end the practice of out-of-network providers sending surprise medical bills – while also lowering costs.

■  Maintaining fair and market-based payments for out-of-network care.

■  Reducing Americans’ health insurance premiums and taxpayers’ costs by avoiding an arbitration process that adds unnecessary cost, delay, and red tape to the health system.

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    The Problem

    Surprise medical billing – also known as “balance billing” – made it harder for patients to afford necessary medical care, and even bankrupted families, often when they least expected it.

     

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    Role of Private Equity

    The growing presence of private equity-backed providers is becoming an all too common influence in the health system – and one of the leading drivers behind egregious surprise medical bills that bankrupt families across the country. Out-of-network providers backed by equity firms continue to exploit a market loophole that allow them to charge exorbitant rates at patients’ expense. View the Coalition’s latest advertising on the harmful tactics from private equity firms below and why this practice needs to stop for good at https://ssbn.wpengine.com/private-equity/

    The Solution

    Everyone in America deserves affordable, high-quality coverage and care, and control over their health care choices. Surprise medical bills undermine these values, putting the health and financial stability of millions of patients at risk every year. As organizations representing America’s employers, unions and health insurance providers, we all have a role to play in ensuring that patients are informed, engaged, and protected from excessive costs.

     

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    News

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