FILED SENATE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF NORTH CAROLINA MarSESSION 30, 2021 S.B.S 1 SENATE BILL 415 Short Title:
415 SESSION 2021 PRINCIPAL CLERK S D SENATE BILL DRS35129-MR-39 Short Title:
Rules and Operations of the Senate March 31, 2021 A BILL TO BE ENTITLED AN ACT TO PROVIDE GREATER TRANSPARENCY IN HEALTH CARE SERVICES BILLING AND TO REDUCE BILLING THAT COMES AS A SURPRISE TO THE PATIENT.
58-3-223, unless contractingcontractinghealth health careproviders ableto meet healthneeds oftheinsuredare reasonablyreasonablyavailable available to the insured without unreasonable delay.
Nothing herein shall require an insurer to make any direct payment to a health *DRS35129-MR-39**S415-v-1* General Assembly Of North Carolina Session 2021 care provider.
(c) BenchmarkBenchmarkAmount Amount Calculation.
Article 11B of Chapter 131E of theGeneralthe General Statutes reads as rewritten:
– A facility that is licensed under this Chapter or Chapter 122C of the General Statutes or under the licensing laws of another state for the provision of the same services in the ordinary course of business Page 2 DRS35129-MR-39Senate Bill 415-First Edition General Assembly Of North Carolina Session 2021 or practice as would require the facility to be licensed under this Chapter or Chapter 122C of the General Statutes were the facility located in this State.
The nonparticipating health care providers shall be identified in the written disclosure using the individual's health care provider's name and practice nameas used on theapplicablehealthservices facilityorhealthcareprovider'sfacilityorhealth careprovider's credentials or name badge.
(5) Text, using a bold or other distinguishable font, that states that certain consumer protections available to the insured individual when services are rendered by a health services facility or health care provider participating in theinsurer'shealthcareprovidernetworkmaytheinsurer'shealthcareprovidernetworkmaynot not beapplicablewhenservices are rendered by a nonparticipating health services facility or health care provider.
(2) The insurer, the insured individual, and any third party, individually or collectively, havenolegal obligationto paypaymorethanthebenchmarkamount, morethanSenate thebenchmarkamount,Bill DRS35129-MR-39415-First Edition Page 3 General Assembly Of North Carolina Session 2021 as calculated under G.S.
(3) Payment bybythe the insurer, the insured individual, or anyanythird third party, individually or collectively, of the benchmark amount calculated under G.S.
An insurer's, insured individual's, or any third party's total payment, individually or collectively, of the benchmark amount shall foreclose the health services facility or the health care provider from collecting any additional amount from the insured or any third Page 4 DRS35129-MR-39Senate Bill 415-First Edition General Assembly Of North Carolina Session 2021 party, including the insurer, individually or collectively.
– A health services facilityfacilitymust must require through its contracts with health care providers that do not participate in an insurer's health care provider network that the nonparticipating health care providers comply with the requirements of this section.
58-3-225, an insurer may recover overpayments made to anyanyhealth health care provider or health services facility under this section by making demands for refunds from the insured individual, the health care provider, or the health services facility, as applicable.
Chapter 90 of the General Statutes is amended bybyadding adding a new Article to read:
DRS35129-MR-39Senate Bill 415-First Edition Page 5 General Assembly Of North Carolina Session 2021 (b) Reasonable Payments.
An insurer's, insured individual's, or third party's total payment, individually or collectively, of the benchmark amount shall foreclose the health care provider from collecting any additional amount from the insurer, insured, or any third party, individuallyindividuallyor or collectively.
"(a) It is the intent of this Article Part to improve transparency in health care costs by providingprovidinginformation information to thepubliconthecosts of themost frequentlyfrequentlyreporteddiagnostic reporteddiagnosticrelatedrelated groups (DRGs) forhospital inpatientcare andthe most commonsurgicalcommon surgical procedures and imaging procedures provided in hospital outpatient settings and ambulatory surgical facilities." SECTION 4.(b) G.S.
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