The American College of Radiology (ACR) has endorsed H.R. 4710/S. 2420, the No Surprises Enforcement Act, which will fine health insurance companies that fail to pay physicians within 30 days after losing the independent dispute resolution (IDR) process laid out in the No Surprises Act (NSA).
The ACR joined the American College of Emergency Physicians (ACEP) and the American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) in releasing a joint statement in which the organizations said that they “strongly support” the new bipartisan, bicameral bill.
The House legislation was introduced by Rep. Greg Murphy, MD (R-NC); Rep. Jimmy Panetta (D-CA); Rep. John Joyce (R-PA); Rep. Kim Schrier, MD (D-WA); Rep. Bob Onder, MD (R-MO); and Rep. Raul Ruiz, MD (D-CA). The Senate legislation was introduced by Sen. Roger Marshall (R-KS) and Sen. Michael Bennet (D-CO).
The NSA requires insurers to pay physicians promptly; if a physician or a practice considers the payment offered by the insurer to be inadequate, they can challenge the payment through the NSA’s IDR process. Under the law, if the independent arbiter rules in favor of the physician, the insurer must pay within 30 days.
Reports of insurers failing to pay these arbitration awards in a timely manner are common, the organizations said.
H.R. (4710) and its Senate companion S. Y2420 will impose a penalty equal to three times the difference between the insurer’s initial payment and the IDR entities’ ruling per claim. Furthermore, the claim will also be subject to interest.
The ACR said that the legislation does not affect any of the patient protections included in the NSA that ACR, ACEP, and ASA advocated for and continue to fully support, nor does it raise any patient out-of-pocket costs.
