N.Y. Attorney General Announces Creation of New Non-Profit Company to Develop Out-of-Network Reimbursement Database

New York State Attorney General Andrew Cuomo announced the creation of FAIR Health, new non-profit company, and an upstate research network headquartered at Syracuse University that will develop a new independent database for consumer out-of-network reimbursement and a new Web site where for the first-time consumers can compare prices before they choose their physicians, according to a release from Mr. Cuomo's office.

The upstate research network will consist of Syracuse, the State University of New York at Buffalo, Cornell University, University of Rochester and SUNY Upstate Medical University, according to the release. The new reimbursement system will be funded using nearly $100 million retrieved from settlements Mr. Cuomo made as a result of investigation into the faulty Ingenix database system.

"FAIR Health and the upstate research network headquartered at Syracuse University will bring much-needed transparency, accountability and fairness to a broken consumer reimbursement system," Mr. Cuomo said in the release.

The formation of FAIR Health is the culmination of a wide-ranging investigation by Mr. Cuomo's office into how the health insurance industry reimburses consumers for out-of-network healthcare charges, according to the release.

The research for the new database will be centered at Syracuse University's Maxwell School, a public affairs school which includes health policy, and the School of Information Studies. The other upstate research universities will bring a diverse and critical range of talents and expertise as members of the upstate research network, according to the release.

In addition to creating and managing the new database, FAIR Health and the upstate research network will design a new consumer Web site, which will allow patients across the nation to find out their likely reimbursements for out-of-network healthcare services in their area prior to seeking care, according to the release. Information in the new database will also be made available for academic research.

Read the release on the new consumer out-of-network reimbursement database.