Nicki Pogue is a healthy person with good health insurance. She even ran a high-altitude race to celebrate her 50th birthday. When Nicki felt ill shortly after she did what any of us in her situation would do – go to the doctor and take some medicine. When she got worse, waking up from a nap with ringing ears, a pounding heart and dizziness, she went to the hospital, got treated and went home. ... read more.
El 1 de enero de 2022, entró en vigencia una nueva ley que ayuda a proteger a las personas de cargos inesperados por algunos tipos de atención médica. Esta ley, la Ley Sin Sorpresas, se aplica a las personas con seguro médico que obtienen a través de un empleador, a través de Marketplace o que han comprado ellos mismos, así como a las personas que no tienen seguro. En esta hoja informativa ... read more.
On January 1, 2022, a new law went into effect that helps protect people from unexpected charges for some types of medical care. This law, the No Surprises Act, applies to people with health insurance they get through an employer, through the Marketplace, or that they have purchased themselves, as well as people who are uninsured. This fact sheet describes the new protections against out-of-networ... read more.
COVID-19, Health System Distortions, and Surprise Medical Bills: Congress Must Act Now By Natasha Kumar and Jane Sheehan The growing burden of the COVID-19 pandemic has revealed fundamental cracks in our health care system that we have accepted for far too long. It is well-documented that millions of Americans lack comprehensive health coverage and access to affordable care, and thousands of fam... read more.
Claudia Knafo, a Families USA storyteller from New York City, submitted this letter to the editor of the New York Post in response to a May 9 article, “Lawmaker Wants to Limit Insurance Reimbursements to Healthcare Workers.” In the letter, Claudia details her harrowing experience after receiving a surprise medical bill. To read more about Claudia’s story, check out this interview she did... read more.
Now more than ever, families are vulnerable to unexpected health care costs due to both the spread of COVID-19 and rising unemployment rates. Americans should not have to fear or manage the financial impact of receiving a surprise medical bill for putting the health of themselves, their family members, and all in our nation first. Moreover, according to a recent poll, one out of every seven U.S. a... read more.
As our nation confronts a public health and economic threat greater than any we’ve seen in a century, every family is struggling to understand and manage the devastating and far-ranging effects of COVID-19. During this crisis, families need unfettered access to health care services. And, with unemployment higher than it’s been in decades and widespread economic uncertainty, we also must ensure... read more.
The current Congress, with the support of the Administration, is taking real action to ban the abusive practice of surprise billing. No Surprises: People Against Unfair Medical Bills assesses various legislative proposals based on three clear principles: Principle 1: Protect Patients In All Care Settings All of the proposals ban surprise bills in hospitals, cl... read more.
The Congressional Budget Office has completed analysis of four committee-passed policy proposals related to surprise medical bills. This fact sheet describes each of the proposals and its CBO score. Proposals that rely more heavily on arbitration to determine out-of-network provider payments are shown to save less due to the effect of higher premiums, reduced wages, and administrative costs. Cli... read more.
https://familiesusa.org/resources/families-need-congress-to-stop-surprise-medical-bills-now/ read more.
Now that the No Surprises Act protections are in effect, we continue to provide resources about the statute. See our resources tab to learn more about the new law and our efforts to keep it strong for consumers. You can also visit the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services’ website on the law for more information: https://www.cms.gov/nosurprises.
Jane Sheehan, Director of Federal Relations
JSheehan@familiesusa.org
