Since the No Surprises Act took effect Jan. 1, several healthcare agencies have released resources to help healthcare professionals understand the new rules.
Six things to know:
1. The American Hospital Association on Jan. 14 released a 15-page advisory and summary of the No Surprises Act. "The hospital and health system field strongly supports protecting patients from surprise medical bills," the advisory said. "The AHA is pleased that Congress rejected approaches that would impose arbitrary rates on providers, which could have significant consequences far beyond the scope of surprise medical bills and impact access to hospital care."
2. The AHA provided key takeaways of the act in the advisory, including that it protects patients from receiving surprise medical bills because of gaps in coverage for emergency services and particular services by out-of-network providers at in-network facilities.
3. The Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection also released a bulletin to remind debt collectors, consumer reporting agencies and information furnishers of their legal requirements to follow the No Surprises Act.
4. HHS posted a video Jan. 11 with five things to know about the new rules.
5. The American Medical Association released a toolkit for physicians this month. It focuses on three operational challenges: nonemergency services at in-network facilities; emergency and post-stabilization care at hospitals and freestanding emergency departments; and good faith estimates for self-pay and uninsured patients.
6. CMS also has policies and resources on its website, as well as guidance on resolving out-of-network payment disputes and consumers' rights.