House Bill 2041 requires freestanding emergency rooms to give patients a printed-out disclosure that lists the in-network health plans and the average price a patient may be charged for a procedure, including facility fees. Patients can choose whether to sign it. Under the bill, freestanding emergency rooms will also be barred from advertising that it “takes” or “accepts” certain insurers or health plans if the facility is not an in-network provider.
The disclosures will be required for both independent and hospital-affiliated freestanding emergency rooms.
In an emergency situation, patients should not be expected to have previously researched and figured out if a facility is in-network. We think that this information should be provided upfront in an unambiguous format.
The days of “accept” or “take” your insurance are gone. Patients will now have certainty about “in-network” or “out-of-network”!
Read the bill in full here.
