Where we’re going

The buzz around this year’s Self-Insurance Institute of America (SIIA) National Conference & Expo was the status and outlook of the No Surprises Act (NSA) and the comprehensive legislation challenges to addressing surprise medical billing at the federal level. Most sections of the legislation went into effect Jan. 1, 2022, and the Departments of Health … Continued

New regulations will increase the annual deficit and national debt ultimately shouldered by taxpayers – today and tomorrow. The Biden Administration recently finalized regulations to extend taxpayer subsidized medical coverage to millions of Americans who may not have previously qualified for the subsidy. They accomplished this by updating the 2013 definition of “affordability” with respect … Continued

Key Points: A court decision by a judge in Texas may increase out-of-pocket costs for preventive health care services. This case reintroduces a  dispute that the ACA resolved with a mandate of coverage. While health mandates to provide certain services without cost raised the cost of coverage, re-introducing cost sharing for these preventive services could … Continued

aequum Provides Administrators with Partnership and Guidance aequum is a first-of-its kind tech-driven company in the complex field of medical billing. Our tech-driven team of specialists partner with claims administrators, providing them with data-driven insights, technical solutions and legal advocacy support. Working collaboratively, we are advancing the adoption of reference-based pricing (RBP) and price transparency … Continued

Christine Cooper, CEO of aequum LLC, provided eHealth Radio Network’s listening audience with guidance on strategies to take advantage of Advanced EOB price transparencies and advice that health care consumers can capitalize on to manage costs and fully optimize plan value. This insight has the potential to transform an employee’s health coverage usage, putting the … Continued

A new survey by the Commonwealth Fund found that the number of Americans without health coverage has fallen to historic lows[i]. The same survey concluded that “a large number of people remain uninsured or inadequately covered.” Of the 6,301 survey respondents who were under age 65: 9% are not enrolled in health coverage[ii] 11% had a gap … Continued

Christine Cooper and Jack Towarnicky presented on behalf of aequum Reference Based Pricing – Optimized, A Strategic Response to the No Surprises Act, Transparency Requirements. This complimentary webinar, in collaboration with the Self-Insurance Institute of America (SIIA), confirmed why reference-based pricing (RBP), “done right”, is the most appropriate plan design response to recent legislation – … Continued

Summary: The American Hospital Association (AHA) and American Medical Association (AMA) filed a motion to dismiss their lawsuit challenging the federal government’s final rule on surprise billing released last year, but cautioned more litigation is pending. The health care lobbying groups say the August 2022 final rule on arbitration still poses concerns for providers.   … Continued

“Americans born in 2021 can expect to live for just 76.1 years — the lowest life expectancy[1] has been since 1996, according to a new government analysis published Wednesday [August 31]. This is the biggest two-year decline — 2.7 years in total — in almost 100 years.”[2] In the August 2022 Vital Statistics Rapid Release, … Continued

With annual enrollment approaching, employers and employees alike are at heightened levels of concern over the potential for significant increases in premiums and their potential to trigger increases in employer and employee contributions as well as point of purchase cost-sharing (deductibles, copayments, coinsurance, etc.). A near confirmed national recession, coupled by an ever-increasing rate of inflation, … Continued