In a Dec. 22 comment letter to the departments of Health and Human Services, Labor, and the Treasury on a proposed rule on the No Surprises Act independent dispute resolution (IDR) process, the AAMC supported safeguards that protect patients from surprise medical bills and promote transparency. Additionally, the AAMC stated that it is important to ensure reasonable payment rates for providers and a balanced IDR process. The letter strongly supported the proposed revisions that would allow batching of all services that were provided to a single patient during the same patient encounter over a period of consecutive days that are billed on the same claim form. However, the letter opposed the proposal to limit batched disputes to 25 items or services in a single dispute.
The letter commended the departments for the proposed changes in the rule that would improve transparency and communications between payers, providers, and certified IDR entities. In its comments, the AAMC emphasized that it will be essential for the departments to exercise oversight over the arbitration process to ensure that all parties are complying with the new requirements regarding communication, transparency, and batching and that the process results in fair payment amounts.