Surprise ambulance billing: how your ride can cost thousands

A ride in an ambulance can be quite costly depending on your provider and insurance coverage.

- WTOC

Lindsey medical transparency bill passes 35-1 in Michigan Senate

- WTVB

Americans borrowed $74 billion to cover medical bills. Here's who paid the most.

About 31 million Americans borrowed money to pay for health care last year, accumulating $74 billion in medical debt, according to a survey published Wednesday.

- USA Today

Hospital price transparency bill dies in Wyoming Senate

The Wyoming Senate voted to kill House Bill 121, which would have required Wyoming hospitals to post prices for items and services in dollars and cents on their websites.

- wyomingnews.com

Don’t immediately pay if hit with an outrageous hospital bill – an easy move could save you $1,000s, expert says

The US Sun exclusively spoke to an entrepreneur who is proposing a different way to pay medical fees.

- U.S. Sun

‘Healthcare should heal, not bankrupt,’ TN lawmaker wants medical debt elimination

A Tennessee lawmaker is pushing to alleviate medical debt and prevent it from showing up on consumer credit reports.

- WSMV

Washington State could exempt medical debt from credit reports

Sen. Marcus Riccelli, D-Spokane, is sponsoring Senate Bill 5480, which would prevent medical debt from appearing on a person’s credit report.

- Lake Chelan Mirror

A Runner Was Hit by a Car, Then by a Surprise Ambulance Bill

Jagdish Whitten was hit by a car while he was out for a run in his San Francisco neighborhood. Friends took him to a nearby hospital, where he was treated for a mild concussion, a broken toe, and contusions.

- KFF Health News

Colorado has a plan to save $65M a year. Hospitals say it could drive them to close.

Hospitals and other health care providers are pushing back on a plan to curb insurance payments.

- KUNC

5 Things Every Patient Should Know About Hospital Financial Assistance

- Lown Institute

Iowa patient: What good is a surgery cost estimator if it's nowhere near accurate?

- Des Moines Register 

Medical debt protections against wage garnishment, primary residence liens fail in Senate

- WFYI

Big bills and broken wrists: A cautionary tale from the emergency room

One father's unexpected ER bill highlights the need for awareness when seeking medical care and understanding coverage.

- Fox17 West Michigan

Kennedy champions bill to make hospital prices clear to patients

Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.) reintroduced the Hospital Transparency Compliance Enforcement Act to increase penalties for hospitals that hide the true costs of their items and services from patients.

- Senate.gov

Columbus resident receives surprise ambulance bill

- NBC4 Columbus

Ask Amy: New Texas law could stop surprise ‘facility fee’ bills at hospitals

Many doctor visits in the area and across the country have become significantly more expensive compared to just a couple of years ago. A growing concern among patients is the “facility fees” that are being charged, sometimes more than doubling the cost of medical bills. Investigative reporter Amy Davis provides insight into this issue and what patients can do about it.

- KPRC

Fact Sheet: President Donald J. Trump Announces Actions to Make Healthcare Prices Transparent

- WH.gov

‘This isn’t about hospital systems, this is about people,’ Indiana House bill aimed at lowering healthcare costs moves to Senate

An Indiana House bill aimed at lowering the cost of healthcare is one step closer to becoming law.

- WPTA

Oklahoma House bill would lessen the effects of medical debt on credit scores

Oklahoma House Bill 1709 aims to prevent medical debt from affecting credit scores, focusing on debt from lifesaving and emergency care.

- The Oklahoman

$49 billion of medical debt may stay on consumer’s credit reports after all

A ruling by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau would have eliminated the debts, but the Trump administration paused it for 60 days.

- WNAF

With Trump targeting CFPB, medical debt consumer protections fall to state, legislators say

- Nevada Current

Indiana House Bill may threaten nonprofit status of some hospitals

An Indiana House Bill is aiming to redefine how hospitals achieve and maintain their nonprofit status.

- WFFT

How the CFPB's Medical Debt Rule Could Backfire

Scrubbing credit reports won’t erase debt—it will just make borrowing harder for low-income Americans.

- Reason

A New Mexico bill requiring hospitals to list procedure pricing on websites passes unanimously

A bill that would mandate hospital pricing transparency unanimously cleared its first committee hearing on Friday.

- New Mexico Political Report

She needed a prescription refilled. The bill: $1,085

- KTLA

South Dakota House panel advances one medical debt bill, rejects another

The House Health and Human Services Committee passed a bill Tuesday preventing hospitals from putting medical bills on credit reports.

- SDPB

Hospitals had to put charity care rules on their websites months ago. Some didn’t do it

More than nine months after the California law went into effect, some hospitals still had not put up their charity care policies in readily apparent spots on their websites.

- Los Angeles Times

One of the (many) problems with medical billing practices

- wbur

Mom rages over $3k bill for son’s ride to hospital checkup – she hit deductible but fineprint means insurance won’t pay

A doting mom was left reeling after receiving a surprise ambulance bill topping $3,000.

- The U.S. Sun

Utah bill to ban 'surprise billing' for ground ambulances draws support, concern

- Fox 13

Bill to Remove Medical Debt From Credit Scores in Washington Moves Forward

Washington State lawmakers are forwarding a bill that would change how medical debt impacts Washingtonians' credit scores.

- The Center Square

Complaint about N.J. hospital leads to refunds for dozens of patients. What went wrong?

Douglas Larson thought he was going for a $49 test. Then he received bill after bill, and it finally went to collections.

- NJ.com

Bipartisan bill could end surprise medical billing for thousands of Hoosiers

- Fox 59

Colorado lawmakers look to stamp out surprise bills from publicly owned ambulances

Bill in state legislature would require insurers to pay ambulance rates set by cities

- Denver Post

End of lien on medical debt closes ‘a horrible nightmare’

Audrey and Clayton Pride of Charlotte had to navigate a lien Atrium Health placed on their property to pay $60,000 in debt to the hospital company. Audrey insisted they challenge the bill, which she said they were unaware of. Advocate Health, Atrium Health’s parent company, announced in September 2024 it would drop lawsuits and liens as part of a new initiative to resolve outstanding debts.

- Charlotte Post