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Support "Fairness" Legislation |
A diverse coalition of health care professionals is rallying around legislation crafted by the Illinois State Medical Society to end deceptive and unfair health plan contracting practices that harm Illinois health care professionals, hospitals, and patients.
The "Fairness in the Health Care Services Contracting Act," known as House Bill 2115 and Senate Bill 1340, aims to simplify and standardize the health care contracting process. HB 2115 is sponsored in the House by Reps. Angelo Saviano (R-Elmwood Park) and Kurt Granberg (D-Carlyle); SB 1340 is sponsored in the Senate by Robert Madigan (R-Lincoln), chairman of the Senate Insurance Committee.
This legislation is crucial to quality patient care in Illinois. Since most patients are limited to using health plans provided by their employers, physicians and hospitals need to sign contracts with those health plans in order to maintain viable businesses. As a result, health plans have been able to dictate "take it or leave it" contracts with physicians and hospitals. Ultimately, patients are left footing the bill when health plans arbitrarily change coverage or reimbursement amounts for physicians. HB 2115 will standardize and simplify contract terms and conditions, eliminate questionable, unfair contract provisions, and limit health plans' power to unilaterally modify previously-agreed-to contracts without prior notification.
"We cannot continue to allow large insurance companies to use deceptive, confusing, misleading contract language to dictate how health care is delivered," commented M. LeRoy Sprang, M.D., immediate past president of the Illinois State Medical Society.
ISMIE applauds the Illinois State Medical Society's efforts to promote the "Fairness in the Health Care Services Contracting Act," and urges ISMIE policyholders to contact their legislators urging support for HB 2115 and SB 1340. For information on these bills and their current status, visit www.isms.org.