Medical bills: Congress must fix problem the right way

Having recently been involved in a car accident, I know how quickly even expected medical bills can pile up. However, getting stung by surprise medical bills is the last thing anyone needs when they should be focused on recovering.

As Congress inches closer to a solution to this problem, elected officials must avoid a misguided approach known as benchmarking. Essentially, this would put the government in charge of setting rates for services.

By ignoring the various factors that influence price – including geographic location, complexity of care and facility type – a benchmarking approach would lead to potentially devastating losses for hospitals and emergency rooms.

Especially for the at-risk hospitals serving underserved rural and urban communities, these losses could threaten health care access and affordability for some of our most vulnerable patients.

Instead, Congress should focus its energy on passing a legislative solution that includes Independent Dispute Resolution (IDR), which would allow for transparent negotiations between insurers and physicians, ensuring fair rates that help protect patient access to care.

I trust Washington Sen. Patty Murray, as ranking member of the Senate Health Committee, will lead on this issue and help pass a strong bill.

This story was originally published September 24, 2019 at 5:08 PM.