ICYMI: Bills to Save Coloradans Money on Health Care, Build a Healthier Colorado Clear Committee

DENVER, CO – The Health & Human Services Committee this week approved two bipartisan bills that would increase hospital transparency and save Coloradans money on health care by improving surprise medical billing protections in Colorado.

HB22-1285, sponsored by Majority Leader Dominick Moreno, D-Commerce City, and Senator John Cooke, R-Greeley, would save Coloradans money on health care by increasing hospital transparency and prohibiting hospitals that are out of compliance with federal price transparency laws from referring medical debt to collections.

"According to federal law, hospitals are required to be transparent about the price of services they provide their patients,” said Moreno. “By preventing Colorado's hospitals from sending medical debt to collections if they are out of compliance with these requirements, this bill protects patients and empowers Coloradans to make the right healthcare decisions for themselves and their families."

In July 2021, President Biden signed an executive order that directed the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services to develop detailed rules to increase hospital billing transparency.

Hospitals must now publicly post their “standard charges,” which are the gross charges, discounted cash prizes, payer-specific negotiated charges, and de-identified minimum and maximum negotiated charges so that consumers can make informed decisions when shopping for health care services.

Under the bill, hospitals that are not in compliance with federal hospital price transparency regulations will be prohibited from referring, assigning or selling medical debt to collectors, and they will be prohibited from using the courts to obtain a judgment for an outstanding medical debt. The legislation would award damages to patients if the courts find that the hospital has violated the provisions of the bill.

HB22-1284, sponsored by Senator Brittany Pettersen, D-Lakewood, and Senator Bob Gardner, R-Colorado Springs, would improve Colorado’s surprise medical billing protections by aligning them with recently passed federal legislation.

“We need to do everything we can to protect Coloradans from malicious surprise billing practices, and instead help them access the care they need while saving them money,” said Pettersen. “With this bill, we will be able to improve protections for patients, lower the cost of health care for Coloradans, and improve patient outcomes as we work to build a healthier Colorado for all.”

The bill provides clarity to consumers, providers and insurance carriers about how to move forward with surprise billing protections. It adds balance billing protections for post-stabilization services to ensure that patients are protected from surprise bills until they can consent and be safely transferred to an in-network facility.

The legislation mirrors the federal law’s notice and consent requirements to ensure that out-of-network providers and facilities provide notice to a consumer before a scheduled service, including an estimate of the total charges the consumer will be responsible for.

Finally, it updates Colorado laws to allow for a 90-day period of continued coverage at in-network rates for transitional care.

HB22-1285 now heads to the Senate floor, and HB22-1284 now heads to the Appropriations Committee for further consideration.