Source: Health Policy Institute of Ohio
President Trump recently spoke out against surprise medical bills, highlighting an issue that has received bipartisan concern in Congress (Source: “Trump Calls for Cracking down on Surprise Medical Bills,” The Hill, January 23, 2019).
“The health care system too often harms people with some unfair surprises … medical bills and the like,” Trump said at a roundtable at the White House, along with patients who had received unexpectedly large bills from hospitals.
Cracking down on surprise medical bills is seen as a rare area of possible bipartisan action on health care. Senator Bill Cassidy (R-LA.) unveiled bipartisan legislation to end surprise medical bills in September, and Senator Maggie Hassan (D-NH) has legislation on the topic as well.
Representative Lloyd Doggett (D-TX) also has a bill in the House to address the practice.