Hospital Transparency Compliance Enforcement Act
Hospital Transparency Compliance Enforcement Act
Plain Language Summary
# Hospital Transparency Compliance Enforcement Act Summary **What It Does:** This bill would strengthen penalties for hospitals that fail to publicly disclose their prices for medical services and items. Currently, federal law requires hospitals to publish their standard charges, but penalties for not doing so are relatively low. This bill would double the financial penalties hospitals face for noncompliance. For small hospitals (30 beds or fewer), the daily fine would increase from $300 to $600.
Medium hospitals would see fines increase from $10 to $20 per bed per day, and large hospitals would face penalties doubling from $5,500 to $11,000 per day. Additionally, the bill would require the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services to publicly list hospitals that aren't meeting transparency requirements. **Who It Affects:** This legislation primarily impacts hospitals of all sizes and, indirectly, patients and consumers seeking to understand healthcare costs before receiving care. Stronger penalties are intended to encourage hospitals to comply with existing transparency rules, making pricing information more readily available to the public. **Current Status:** The bill is currently in committee (S 729, 119th Congress) and has not yet been voted on by the full Senate.
CRS Official Summary
Hospital Transparency Compliance Enforcement ActThis bill increases the monetary penalties for noncompliance with the requirement that hospitals publish, and periodically update, a list of their standard charges for items and services.The bill increases the maximum daily penalty as follows:for hospitals with 30 or fewer beds, from $300 to $600 per day;for hospitals with 31 through 550 beds, from $10 to $20 per bed, per day;for hospitals with greater than 550 beds, from $5,500 to $11,000 per hospital, per day.The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services also must periodically publish the name of each hospital that is not in compliance with the price transparency requirements.
Latest Action
Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.