Blue Cross Targets Doctor Payments as ‘Surprise’ Billing Fix

A major health insurance group wants Congress to crack down on “surprise” medical bills by targeting payments for out-of-network doctors.

Payments for out-of-network doctors such as emergency room doctors and anesthesiologists who treat patients at in-network hospitals should be based on Medicare payments or insurers’ median contract rates, whichever is higher, the Blue Cross Blue Shield Association said May 30.

Surprise, or balance, billing has emerged as one of the few issues where both sides of the aisle may be able find common ground in the current Congress. But prospects for legislation could bog down over how billing disputes ...