Group health plans and health insurance issuers must comply with new and overlapping price transparency requirements for healthcare services and prescription drugs according to a new article by Akerman lawyers in the most recent edition of Employee Benefit Plan Review.
Employers that sponsor group health plans must try to successfully navigate legislation and regulations aimed at providing greater price transparency about the cost of healthcare services and medications and protecting patients from surprise medical bills.
Akerman lawyers Beth Alcalde, Elizabeth Hodge, Bruce Platt, Thomas Range and Amber Roberts provide an overview of what Congress and a number of government agencies are demanding of group health plans and health insurance issuers in the article titled “Group Health Plan Sponsors Are Getting Serious About Pricing Transparency and Avoiding Surprise Billing – Are You Keeping Up with the Latest Guidance and Phased Enforcement Deadlines?.”
They also summarize the various compliance deadlines under the Transparency in Coverage Rule; the No Surprises Act contained in the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021; and interim final rules issued by the Department of Labor, the Department of Health and Human Services, the Department of Treasury, and the Office of Personal Management implementing the No Surprises Act. The team also offers some advice to assist plan sponsors in meeting their obligations under these new laws and regulations.