Lead Author: Chiu
Summary: The practice of “balance billing” — forcing patients to pay surprise costs after they are treated, usually in an ER, by doctors who happen to be out of network — is yet another example of our broken healthcare system. AB1611 strikes down this practice, requiring providers charge the same out-of-pocket costs for emergency care whether the doctors who treated a patient are in the patient’s plan or not. This bill has yet to be considered by the Senate.