Legislators are proposing to make the prices for healthcare services and treatments available to patients up front. The legislation would require certain healthcare facilities and providers to post a list of all services provided with their cost. It would also mandate that any payments made in full within 30 days of services rendered be accepted if they match the listing price at the time of care.
The bill would regulate healthcare providers under title 63, except for veterinarians and occupational and physical therapists. State Representative Jason Hodges (D-Clarksville) first filed this bill last week. Freshman State Senator Sara Kyle (D-Memphis) filed the companion bill on Monday.
Neither legislator’s spokespersons responded to request for comment by press time.
In a tweet, Hodges insinuated that one of the main focuses for the Democrats would be affordable healthcare.
https://twitter.com/JasonAHodgesTN/status/1356786166549385222
Previous President Donald Trump enacted a similar transparency requirement in June of 2019, mandating that hospitals disclose their prices up front. The order also impacted the transparency of a patient’s burden for deductibles and copays. Of all the 29 executive orders he’s issued, President Joe Biden hasn’t reversed course on this order for pricing transparency in healthcare. It isn’t clear if he intends to do so.
Monday, Governor Bill Lee discussed in his State of the State Address the projected additional savings offered by the TennCare modified block grant waiver. Lee promised that an estimated $15 million would be reinvested into extending postpartum coverage for women and healthcare safety nets for struggling communities and school-aged children’s mental health. Biden hasn’t indicated whether he will allow this waiver to continue, either, although Tennessee Democrats have pleaded with the president to rescind it.
The bill passed on first consideration in Tennessee’s House on Monday and Senate on Wednesday. The companion bills currently await their committee assignments.
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Corinne Murdock is a reporter at The Tennessee Star and the Star News Network. Follow her latest on Twitter, or email tips to [email protected].
