Listen Now: Surprise Medical Bills

Subscribe on iTunes

It’s a new year and for some people it’s a chance to breathe a sigh of relief. I’m Brian Banmiller on Business.

With the start of 2022 came a new federal law that banned many out-of-network medical bills and put pressure on doctors and insurance companies to resolve any outstanding issues. Basically, if you have a medical emergency and need to be taken to the nearest hospital in an air ambulance you won’t receive a hefty bill for it later. Regular ambulances were left out of the law because congress needs more time to figure out how to regulate them on a federal level. Right now, eleven states prevent ambulances from sending medical bills to people out-of-network. Even if the hospital you were taken to doesn’t accept your health insurance. According to the New York Times, this change is the result of bipartisan legislation passed during the Trump administration and fine-tuned by the Biden administration. It covers nearly all emergency medical services and most routine care. Behind the scenes, providers are still fighting over how to get paid, but it’s not coming out of your pocket. Brian Banmiller, CBS News.

About Brian

CBS News Radio national business journalist Brian Banmiller has spent more than 40 years in the news industry, covering business, politics and the economy on television, radio and in print. Currently, his “Banmiller on Business” reports are delivered to an audience of millions nationwide.