BIP Fall 2024

penalties according to the number of hospital beds in the facility). These bills would make healthcare more “shoppable” and demystify billing practices. They could also force hospitals and other entities to ad dress billing inconsistencies and take greater steps toward transparency. “Both H.R. 5378 and S. 3548 are receiving strong bipartisan support,” says Andel, and NABIP expects they will continue to move through Con gress. “We’ve finally found a point where all parties can agree that things need to change.” Building a collective voice NABIP is working with coalitions working to im prove healthcare billing, including: The Alliance to Fight for Health Care, a broad-based coalition of businesses, patient ad vocates, employer organizations, unions, healthcare companies, consumer groups and other stakehold ers that support employer-provided health coverage. The Coalition Against Surprise Medical Billing, an alliance that represents leading employer groups, unions, health insurance providers and the tens of millions of people they employ and serve. It supports comprehensive pro tections for Americans against surprise medical bills. Better Solutions for Healthcare, an organization focused on educating consumers, employers and lawmakers on the true drivers behind the rising cost of healthcare and providing market-based solutions that lower healthcare costs for Americans. “Amid rising healthcare costs, it’s time to change the way hospital systems operate to benefit patients and provide them with financial relief,” says Connie Partoyan, executive director of Better Solutions for Healthcare. “By promoting honest billing practices, hospitals would no longer be able to take advantage of patients for the sake of higher profits.” Proactive steps toward better healthcare NABIP leads advocacy efforts at both state and federal levels to champion the interests of health insurance professionals and promote affordable, responsible private health insurance solutions.

Initiatives include impactful awareness campaigns and educational tools, such as: ▶ an action center — votervoice.net/NABIP/ home — that informs voters about critical issues and empowers members to actively participate in advocacy by contacting their state and federal legislators when urgent matters arise. ▶ a state tracker — nabip.org/advocacy/state legislative-tracker — that keeps members in formed on the most pressing state-level concerns. ▶ A federal PAC — nabippac.org — that sup ports political candidates aligned with NABIP’s mission, ensuring a strong and active presence in Washington, D.C. NABIP’s greatest asset is its members. Their di verse expertise includes raising concerns and offer ing solutions to better shape American healthcare. NABIP will continue to advocate for transparency in healthcare pricing, a shoppable healthcare mar ket and enforcement of data-sharing requirements for hospitals and others. NABIP also staunchly op poses any form of single-payer healthcare, instead championing employer-sponsored health coverage and the preservation of Medicare, Medicaid and other existing health programs. Long-term goals for healthcare billing center on a genuinely shoppable market. “There are too many barriers to informa tion and price comparison,” Andel says. “Billing is inconsistent and confusing, both for individuals and Legislative lobbying and policy recommendations

TIP: NABIP’s long-term goals for consumer protection in healthcare billing center on making the market

genuinely shoppable.

companies. It’s frustrating all around.” Grace Alexander is a freelance writer.

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