Senate Bill S6375

                                 
BILL NUMBER: S6375A

SPONSOR: RIVERA
 
TITLE OF BILL:

An act to amend the public health law, in relation to enacting the no
blank checks for medical debt act

 
PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA OF BILL:

To prevent healthcare providers from requiring patients to agree to pay
an unknown amount in advance of the provision of medical services.

 
SUMMARY OF SPECIFIC PROVISIONS:

Section 1 denotes the title of this act to be known and cited as "No
Blank Checks for Medical Debt Act."

Section 2 amends section 18-c of the Public Health law, as it relates to
separate patient consent for treatment and payment for health care
services, to:

              

- Allow healthcare providers to request patients sign a consent to pay
form prior to the patient receiving such services.

- Requires healthcare providers to utilize a uniform patient financial
liability form that would be developed by the Superintendent of Finan-
cial Services, in conjunction with the Commissioner of Health (COH).

- Establish that any consent to pay agreement would be prohibited and
not enforceable if a patient or legal representative does not sign the
standardized patient liability form.

- Require healthcare providers to give a written estimate of the
patient's financial obligations for treatment costs and cost-sharing, if
such cost-sharing amounts are known, before consent may be given for
financial payments.

Section 3 sets an immediate effective date.

 
JUSTIFICATION:

The notion of a "blank check" for medical services allows licensed
healthcare providers to have a patient agree to pay an unknown amount
before medical services are even rendered. Unfortunately, this practice
has become widely adopted by healthcare providers who are routinely
requiring patients to consent to payment in advance, without a limit on
the consent to pay or an estimation for the cost of treatment. As a
result, healthcare providers have issued significant bills to patients,
beyond what the patient expected, and have used these consent agreements
to stifle challenges to the bill..

Essentially, the current process does not include any limitation of
liability and financial risk, allowing for a system where patients are
not well informed of the potential costs associated with the care they
are receiving. The "No Blank Checks for Medical Debt" Act seeks to
establish a working understanding of a patient's financial liability
between the licensed healthcare provider and the patient through the
uniform patient financial liability form and anincorporated good faith
estimate. Fundamentally, the liability form would create a mutually
understood agreement between the licensed healthcare provider and the
patient. Furthermore, this Act acknowledges the limitations to estimat-
ing medical risk. Providers would still have the ability to bill
patients separately, especially if new medical situations arise that
were not formally captured within the liability form and the good faith
estimate. We must take steps to ensure that our current system is making
sure that patients are making informed decisions when it comes to their
medical care and the costs associated with it, and this bill would
ensure that is happening.

 
PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:

New bill.

 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:

None.

 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect immediately.

                                 
BILL NUMBER: S6375B

SPONSOR: RIVERA
 
TITLE OF BILL:

An act to amend the public health law, in relation to removing the
requirement that consent for the payment of certain medical services
must occur after such services are administered; and requires a uniform
form for consent for payment

 
PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA OF BILL:

To prevent healthcare providers from requiring patients to agree to pay
an unknown amount in advance of the provision of medical services.

 
SUMMARY OF SPECIFIC PROVISIONS:

Section 1 amends section 18-c of the Public Health law, as it relates to
separate patient consent for treatment and payment for health care
services, to:

- Allow healthcare providers to request patients sign a consent to pay
              

form prior to the patient receiving such services.

- Requires healthcare providers to utilize a uniform patient financial
liability form that would be developed by the Superintendent of Finan-
cial Services, in conjunction with the Commissioner of Health (COH).

- Establish that any consent to pay agreement would be prohibited and
not enforceable if a patient or legal representative does not sign the
standardized patient liability form.

- Prohibit the financial liability form from including language that
requires a patient to assume unlimited financial liability and limits
liability to cost of services actually provided.

-Require the financial liability to include language about a patient's
ability to request a good faith estimate of the costs associated with
the current or future visits.

Section 3 sets an immediate effective date.

 
JUSTIFICATION:

The notion of a "blank check" for medical services allows licensed
healthcare providers to have a patient agree to pay an unknown amount
before medical services are even rendered. Unfortunately, this practice
has become widely adopted by healthcare providers who are routinely
requiring patients to consent to payment in advance, without a limit on
the consent to pay or an estimation for the cost of treatment. As a
result, healthcare providers have issued significant bills to patients,
beyond what the patient expected, and have used these consent agreements
to stifle challenges to the bill.

Essentially, the current process does not include any limitation of
liability and financial risk, allowing for a system where patients are
not well informed of the potential costs associated with the care they
are receiving. The "No Blank Checks for Medical Debt" Act seeks to
establish a working understanding of a patient's financial liability
between the licensed healthcare provider and the patient through the
uniform patient financial liability form and to inform patients of their
ability to receive a good faith estimate for services to be rendered.
Fundamentally, the liability form is intended to create mutually under-
standing between the licensed healthcare provider and the patient.
Providers would still have the ability to bill patients separately,
especially if new medical situations arise that were not formally
captured within the liability form.

We must take steps to ensure that our current system is making sure that
patients are making informed decisions when it comes to their medical
care and the costs associated with it, and this bill would ensure that
is happening.

 
PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:

New bill.

 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:

None.

 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect immediately.