Congress punts on health cost fixes with near-universal support

Originally posted February 27, 2024 by Chris Vanderwolk

I am heated this morning.

Congress is going to punt on policy fixes to help with our healthcare cost struggles that see near universal support.

“A United States of Care poll reveals that 74 percent of voters support banning facility fees everywhere for outpatient, same-day services regardless of the service or where care is being provided, and 81 percent of voters want more transparency through medical providers disclosing their facility fees upfront to patients before they are seen.”

73% of the House (and 81% of members voting) voted for HR 5378, the Lower Cost More Transparency Act, which would directly address that.

But last night “leadership” pulled it. Shame on you U.S. House of Representatives and United States Senate.

Serve the people, not PhRMA and the American Hospital Association.

This is disgraceful.

https://lnkd.in/eK_2dxXM

Sources

H.R. 5378, 118th Cong.

Originally posted on LinkedIn, where the discussion and source links live in the comments.

About the author

Chris Vanderwolk is Director of Compliance and Innovation at OneDigital | Kistler Tiffany Benefits General Agency, where he helps brokers and employers navigate the regulatory complexity of employee benefits. An ERISA attorney with more than 19 years in the benefits industry, he specializes in translating what the law actually requires into language people can use.