Washington Gov. Jay Inslee signed a bill to end surprise medical billing May 21. The law, which takes effect January 2020, prohibits insurers from billing patients seeking emergency care in an out-of-network emergency room and from billing patients for a non-emergency procedure at an in-network hospital. Insurers also can’t balance bill patients seeking emergency care in an out-of-network facility in a state that borders Washington.
The Washington law also stipulates that insurers pay out-of-network providers and facilities for the care their enrollees receive.
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