Bean Advances Legislation to Make Hospital Prices Clear

WASHINGTON—On Wednesday, July 12th, U.S. Congressman Aaron Bean (FL-04) offered an updated version of House Education and Workforce Committee Chairwoman Virginia Foxx’s (NC-05) Transparency in Billing Act. This legislation requires hospitals to have policies and procedures in place for accurate billing to ensure that no American lives in fear of his or her medical bill.

This legislation is part of a four-tiered bipartisan health care package that successfully passed out of the Education and Workforce Committee to empower patients, reduce costs, and increase transparency.

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Watch Congressman Bean’s full remarks here.

“Healthcare is the only industry where a consumer purchases something without knowing the price or value, and that needs to change.

The House Education and Workforce Committee is leading the charge to transform America’s health care system. This week we secured a health care package that speaks directly to these concerns. With the passage of these innovative bills, people across the nation will no longer have to navigate an inaccessible, unaffordable, and nontransparent health care system.

I applaud Chairwoman Foxx and my fellow members of the Education and Workforce Committee for making this a priority.”

The four-tiered package to strengthen America’s health care system includes:

• Transparency in Billing Actrequires accurate billing practices by hospitals, ensuring that group health plans pay for appropriately billed services.
   
• Transparency in Coverage Act codifies the "Transparency in Coverage” final rule, which provides consumers with price transparency for medical services and prescription drugs while bringing much needed light to Pharmacy Benefit Managers’ (PBMs) business practice.
   
• Health DATA Act ensures health plan fiduciaries are not contractually restricted from receiving cost or quality of care information about their plan.
   
• Hidden Fee Disclosure Actstrengthens requirements that PBMs and Third-Party Administrators (TPAs) disclose compensation to plan fiduciaries.

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