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House authorizes study and reporting on air-ambulance charges to curb surprise bills
Summary
House passes first substitute SB 95 to create an air-ambulance committee and require annual reporting on charges, insurance coverage and patient responsibility (reports through 2019) to increase transparency and discourage balance billing; vote was 73–0.
The House approved first substitute SB 95 to create an air-ambulance advisory committee and require annual reporting on air-ambulance charges, insurance coverage and patient out-of-pocket responsibility. Sponsor Representative Ray said federal preemption (Airline Deregulation Act) limits state authority over routes and rates, so the bill focuses on transparency and data collection rather than direct rate regulation.
Under the bill, the committee will consist of clinicians and system stakeholders (licensed trauma physician, flight nurse, paramedic, representatives from Level 1 and Level 2 trauma centers and EMS directors) and will report annually through July 2019, providing data including number of flights, charges, insurance payment, patient personal-responsibility median amounts and the identities of any providers that billed above median personal-responsibility amounts. Providers will be allowed to respond before reports are finalized.
Sponsors framed the bill as a consumer-protection measure after instances of high balance billing (sponsors cited cases of bills in the tens of thousands), and urged members to support a better understanding of the market. The House passed the bill 73–0; it will return to the Senate for signature of the president.
