Senate Republicans applaud federal rule changes to increase price transparency in health care

Senator Republicans applauded the President on keeping his promise to increase transparency and accessibility to health care costs today. “As health care has gotten more complicated, it’s also increasingly difficult to understand for the average consumer,” Senator Michelle Benson (R-Ham Lake) said. “The changes at the federal level from the Trump Administration puts patients and consumers back in the driver’s seat with a clear and understandable roadmap to make the best use of their health care dollars.” 

“I was at the White House when Trump signed the Executive Order that brought these rule changes forward,” said Senator Rich Draheim (R- Madison Lake). “These changes will impact nearly every American and their health care. Everybody deserves to know what their care will cost before they receive it, and now that’s the standard that must be met.” 

An Executive Order signed by the President last June directed various federal agencies to change rules and regulations in order to make sure information on health care costs is readily available. According to today’s press release from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, the Administration finalized a rule that requires “hospitals to provide patients with clear, accessible information about their ‘standard charges’” for any items or services they provide patients beginning in 2021. The Administration is also proposing a rule change for “Transparency in Coverage” that will give most people access to price and cost-sharing information from their insurer to allow for comparison and price-shopping.

Bills authored by Senator Rich Draheim (R-Madison Lake) that made the same changes to empower Minnesotans were passed and signed into law this year. “No one should have to spend months calling their doctor or hospital to get an explanation of their charges,” said Senator Draheim said at that time.

“We know health care costs are driving decisions for families and patients across the state,” Majority Leader Paul Gazelka (R- Nisswa) said. “Senate Republicans led the country to stabilize our private insurance market after costs skyrocketed with the burdens of Obamacare. Now our ground-breaking policies that put the patient’s right to be informed are being implemented across the nation. The government can’t reduce the costs of health care through higher taxes and more spending on bloated, bureaucratic programs. We can reduce costs by putting patients in control of their health care spending because they will decide what’s best for them.”

The Administration provided the following resources for more information: