PRA Sends Letter to Congress Requesting Greater Enforcement of Price Transparency
PatientRightsAdvocate.org sent a letter to U.S. Congress requesting greater enforcement of healthcare price transparency. The letter cites PRA’s recent report showing that only 14.3 percent of hospitals are complying with price transparency law. It also highlights new polling conducted by John Della Volpe and SocialSphere finding that healthcare price transparency is supported by an overwhelming bipartisan majority of around 90 percent of Americans.
The letter requests Congress to consider the following actions to empower healthcare consumers with price transparency:
Legislative Action:
• Pass comprehensive legislation that significantly strengthens and codifies the Hospital Price Transparency Rule and the Transparency in Coverage Rule.
Congressional Appropriations Process:
• Restrict federal funding for hospitals not compliant with price transparency requirements.
• Instruct HHS to use existing and future funds to raise public and employer awareness about the Hospital Price Transparency rule and their rights to obtain access to actual prices.
Congressional Oversight and Accountability:
• Conduct thorough hearings with committees of jurisdiction related to blatant hospital noncompliance with the healthcare transparency rules.
• Hold HHS accountable by requiring the Department to robustly enforce compliance and raise fines and penalties holding hospital executives accountable.
• Direct HHS to publicly release the list of hospitals it has communicated with regarding noncompliance.
• Prohibit hospitals from suing patients over bills they cannot plan for due to hospital noncompliance with price transparency law.
• Require hospital management to provide annual attestation that their price lists are complete, accurate, and will match the prices billed to patients.
• Insist HHS move forward with the July 2022 implementation of the Transparency in Coverage Rule without further delay.
Realizing true healthcare price transparency will make the cost of care truly affordable for American consumers at no cost to taxpayers. Systemwide healthcare price transparency will revolutionize the American healthcare system by allowing consumers to control both their health and financial wealth.
Read the full letter to Congress HERE.
Image credit: Wiki Commons.
