From Bloomberg Law, by Sara Hansard:
- Health care providers are increasingly suing insurers for not making timely arbitration award payments under the No Surprises Act, creating a new hurdle in the implementation of the billing dispute resolution system. These lawsuits are expected to rise as more claims move through the system and are potentially batched together.
- The No Surprises Act’s federal online independent dispute resolution (IDR) portal has faced challenges, including large case backlogs and numerous shutdowns. As of June 2023, more than 490,000 disputes over out-of-network claims were submitted, with 61% remaining unresolved.
- A significant consolidated lawsuit, Guardian Flight LLC v. Aetna Life Insurance Co., involves four air ambulance companies suing Aetna Inc. and Cigna Health and Life Insurance Co. for non-payment of claims following arbitration decisions. The companies claim that the insurers have failed to pay over $3 million in IDR awards.
- Insurers are arguing that providers cannot file court cases to enforce IDR awards and that their only recourse is to file a complaint with the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS). CMS has stated that it takes the issue of late payments seriously and will impose civil monetary penalties if a violation is found.
- There are complications and challenges in challenging arbitration awards, including the expensive cost of litigation. Some health care providers have found it difficult to determine whether to use the federal or state process for dispute resolution, further complicating the situation.