Texas Medical Association Pushing To End "Surprise" Medical Billing
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NORTH TEXAS (CBSDFW.COM) - The Texas Medical Association (TMA) is pushing for state legislation that would restrict the practice of "surprise medical billing."
Surprise billing happens when an insured person gets a bill weeks or even months after having medical treatment, from a physician or lab they've never heard of that apparently worked on the case and is not in-network with their insurance company.
Most of the billing happens after an emergency situation, when the patient is in no position to select and emergency room, treating physician, or ambulance provider.
The TMAs Dr. Don Reed says patients have to complain. "They need to complain to their employer that the insurance the their employer is offering them is a piece of junk."
Reed says the surprise bills are costing Texans millions of dollars each year and with deductibles rising, is a real problem for families. "Most people have a $1,000 deductible. A lot of people have a $5,000, $6,000, $7,500 deductible which means they really don't have health insurance – they have catastrophic coverage."
Reed says the measure being promoted by the TMA would require insurance companies to get place more doctors and specialists in-network for more procedures.
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