WASHINGTON – The House of Representatives today passed landmark bipartisan legislation to lower the cost of health care and increase price transparency for patients. Led by House Education and the Workforce Committee Chair Virginia Foxx (R-NC), House Energy and Commerce Committee Chair Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-WA), Ranking Member Frank Pallone, Jr. (D-NJ), and House Ways and Means Committee Chair Jason Smith (R-MO), H.R. 5378, the Lower Costs, More Transparency Act, will lower health care costs by building off of Trump-era price transparency rules.
“The Lower Costs, More Transparency Act is all about empowering patients and their families. Every patient should be able to navigate the health care market with ease. This bill makes that vision a reality by building on the success of the Trump administration’s price transparency rules for plans and hospitals, making PBM activities more transparent, and ensuring employers have the information they need to make smart choices on behalf of their employees. I thank my colleagues on the Committees on Ways and Means and Energy and Commerce for working with us to develop a bill that is an enormous step forward to improving the American health care system,”said Chair Foxx.
“This bipartisan legislation delivers on our commitment to lowering health care costs and providing increased transparency for patients—something 95 percent of Americans support. It helps Americans save money on out-of-pocket expenses and seniors save millions on medicines through important Medicare payment reforms. I thank my colleagues for their hard work and support of the legislation and urge the Senate to consider it without delay,”said Chair Rodgers.
“The Lower Costs, More Transparency Act does exactly what it says it does—it delivers lower health care costs for the American people and brings much-needed transparency to our nation’s complex health care system. This bipartisan bill is a victory for everyone who has ever struggled to navigate and understand the cost of a health care procedure or a prescription drug. I’m also pleased it will help make health care more accessible to American families by investing in Community Health Centers and programs to address the physician shortages across the nation,”said Ranking Member Pallone.
“Millions of American families have struggled for far too long to afford the cost of their health care. What’s worse is they have been unable to anticipate those costs because our current system has left too many Americans at the mercy of nontransparent pricing on treatments, medicines, and procedures. By requiring nearly every corner of our health system to publicly disclose their prices, the Lower Costs More Transparency Act will empower patients and create incentives to lower prices across the board. Americans will no longer be left in the dark, struggling to understand the true price of their health care,”said Chair Smith.
Increases Price Transparency Throughout the Health Care System for Patients
Empowers patients and employers to shop for health care and make informed health care decisions by providing timely and accurate information about the cost of care, treatment, and services
Makes health care price information public by ensuring hospitals, insurance companies, labs, imaging providers, and ambulatory surgical centers publicly list the prices they charge patients, building upon the Trump administration price transparency rules
Lowers costs for patients and employers by requiring health insurers and pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) to disclose negotiated drug rebates and discounts, revealing the true costs of prescription drugs
Addresses the Cost of Prescription Drugs
Lowers out-of-pocket costs for seniors who receive medication at a hospital-owned outpatient facility
Expands access to more affordable generic drugs
Equips employer health plans with the drug price information they need to get the best deal possible for their employees
Supports Patients, Health Care Workers, Community Health Centers, and Hospitals
Fully pays for expiring programs that strengthen the health care system by:
Supporting Community Health Centers, which are crucial for patients in rural and underserved areas
Supporting training programs for new doctors in communities
Preserving Medicaid for hospitals that take care of uninsured and low-income patients
Extending funding for research to find better treatments and a cure for diabetes, which affects more than 37 million Americans
Reduces the Deficit by More Than $700 Million
NOTE: The bill contains portions of legislation sponsored by the following Members:
H.R. 4527 led by Reps. Chavez-DeRemer (R-OR-5), Takano (D-CA-39), and Manning (D-NC-6)
H.R. 4508 led by Reps. Courtney (D-CT-2) and Houchin (R-IN-9) (Sec. 402. Hidden Fees Disclosure Requirements)
H.R.4507 led by Reps. Good (R-VA-5) and DeSaulnier (D-CA-10) (Sec. 403. Information on Prescription Drugs)
H.R.4507 led by Reps. Good (R-VA-5) and DeSaulnier (D-CA-10) (Sec. 109. Advisory Committee)
H.R.3561 led by Reps. Rodgers (R-WA-5) and Pallone (D-NJ-6) and H.R. 4839 by led Rep. Steel (R-CA-45) (Sec. 101. Hospital Price Transparency)
H.R. 3248 led by Reps. Miller-Meeks (R-IA-1) and DeGette (D-CO-1) and H.R. 4882 led by Rep. Carol Miller (R-WV-1) (Sec. 102. Clinical Diagnostic Laboratory Test Price Transparency)
H.R. 4828 led by Rep. Carey (R-OH-15) (Sec. 103. Imaging Price Transparency)
H.R.4839 led by Rep. Steel (R-CA-45) (Sec. 104. Ambulatory Surgical Center Price Transparency)
H.R. 3561 led by Reps. Rodgers (R-WA-5) and Pallone (D-NJ-6) and H.R. 4905 led by Reps. Fitzpatrick (R-PA-1) and Lee (D-NV-3), and H.R. 4507 by Reps. Good (R-VA-5) and DeSaulnier (D-CA-10) (Sec. 105. Health Coverage Price Transparency)
H.R. 2679 led by Reps. Kuster (D-NH-2), Earl L. “Buddy” Carter (R-GA-1), Eshoo (D-CA-16), and Guthrie (R-KY-2), H.R. 4846 led by Rep. Arrington (R-TX-19), and H.R. 4507 led by Reps. Good (R-VA-5) and DeSaulnier (D-CA-10)
H.R. 3282 led by Reps. Harshbarger (R-TN-1) and Schrier (D-WA-8) and H.R. 4883 led by Rep. Murphy (R-NC-3) (Sec. 108. Report on Integration in Medicare)
H.R. 3284 led by Reps. Burgess (R-TX-26), Ferguson (R-GA-3), Bilirakis (R-FL-12), and Dingell (D-MI-6) (Sec. 110. Report on Impact of Medicare Regulations on Provider and Payer Consolidation)
H.R. led 3839 by Reps. Dunn (R-FL-2) and Kuster (D-NH-2) (Sec. 201. Increasing Transparency in Generic Drug Applications)
H.R. 1613 led by Reps. Carter (R-GA-1), Gonzalez (D-TX-34), Stefanik (R-NY-21), Ross (D-NC-2), Allen (R-GA-12), and Auchincloss (D-MA-4) (Sec. 202. Improving Transparency and Preventing the Use of Abusive Spread Pricing and Related Practices in Medicaid)
H.R. 3561 led by Reps. Rodgers (R-WA-5) and Pallone (D-NJ-6) (Sec. 203. Parity in Medicare Payments for Hospital Outpatient Department Services Furnished Off-Campus)
H.R. 3237 led by Reps. Joyce (R-PA-13) and Sarbanes (D-MD-3), H.R. 3417 by Reps. Hern (R-OK-1) and Kuster (D-NH-2) and H.R. 4509 led by Reps. Foxx (R-NC-5) and Scott (D-VA-3) (Sec. 204. Requiring a Separate Identification Number and an Attestation for Each Off-Campus Outpatient Department of a Provider)
H.R. 2559 led by Reps. Joyce (R-PA-13), Blunt Rochester (D-DE-At-Large), Stefanik (R-NY-21), and Fletcher (D-TX-7) (Sec. 301. Extension for Community Health Centers, the National Health Service Corps, and Teaching Health Centers that Operate GME Programs)
H.R. 2550 led by Reps. DeGette (D-CO-1) and Bilirakis (R-FL-12) and H.R. 2547 led by Reps. Cole (R-OK-4) and Ruiz (D-CA-25) (Sec. 302. Special Diabetes Programs)
H.R. 2665 led by Reps. Clarke (D-NY-9), Crenshaw (R-TX-2), DeGette (D-CO-1), and Burgess (R-TX-26) (Sec. 303. Delaying Certain Disproportionate Share Hospital Payment Reductions Under Medicaid)
CLICK HEREto read the text of the Lower Costs, More Transparency Act. CLICK HERE to read the full section by section summary.
