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Senate advances bill to track balance billing and surprise medical bills
Summary
Senate Bill 155, described by the sponsor as a stakeholder‑driven compromise, would centralize data on balance billing and surprise billing and include air ambulance incidents as part of ongoing study; the third substitute passed and was recorded as receiving 27 yea votes, 0 nay, 2 absent.
Salt Lake City — The Utah Senate advanced Senate Bill 155, a third substitute the sponsor described as the product of extended stakeholder negotiations aimed at reducing balance billing and surprise medical bills.
Sponsor Senator Maine described the bill as establishing a central data repository so regulators and stakeholders can identify where surprise billing problems are occurring and who is responsible. The proposal would aggregate reports of balance billing and create a data clearinghouse to facilitate oversight and possible self‑regulation by industry actors.
Senator Maine singled out air‑ambulance charges as an area that can produce particularly large and unexpected bills (he cited examples in the tens of thousands of dollars) and said the bill’s framework can help surface those problems for policy response. Multiple senators commended the sponsor for bringing stakeholders together, including insurers, providers and the Department of Insurance.
The Senate moved the bill to third reading; the transcript records Third Substitute SB155 as having received 27 yay votes, 0 nay votes, 2 absent. The sponsor and supporters characterized the measure as a data‑driven way to identify problem areas and encourage resolution among stakeholders rather than as an immediate rate or coverage mandate.
Next steps: The bill was placed on the third reading calendar for further floor consideration.
