A bipartisan bill has been introduced in the Senate to strengthen consumer protections and improve transparency related to medical debt collection, including waiting 180 days after an initial bill is sent to an individual before engaging in “extraordinary” collection activities.
A copy of S. 2483, the Strengthening Consumer Protections and Medical Debt Transparency Act, can be accessed by clicking here. The bill was introduced by Sen. Chris Murphy [D-Conn.] and co-sponsored by Sen. Mike Braun [R-Ind.]. Both Senators serve on the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee.
If enacted, the Department of Health and Human Services would be required to create a database that would track whether hospitals, freestanding facilities, and large provider practices use collection agents, the process for how debts are assigned to collection agents, and the number of extraordinary collection actions, as defined by the IRS, those facilities have initiated.
Healthcare providers would also be required to ensure that all insurance coverage appeals have been resolved and determine whether a patient qualifies for financial assistance before sending a debt to a collection agency. Healthcare entities and collectors would be barred from engaging in extraordinary collection activities for 180 days after an initial bill is sent and the individual’s identity has been confirmed. Healthcare providers would be required to provide patients with itemized statements of the debt as well as detailed receipts of payments within 30 days. The bill also includes a private right of action for individuals, who can recover up to $1,000 as well as actual damages.
“No one should be forced into bankruptcy simply because they got sick,” Sen. Murphy said in a statement
