Removes the requirement that consent for the payment of certain medical services must occur after such services are administered; requires the superintendent of financial services and the commissioner of health to develop a uniform form for consent for payment.
Summary
This bill amends New York Public Health Law section 18-c, which governs separate patient consent for treatment and for payment of health care services. The bill removes language that had prohibited a patient from consenting to pay for health care services before receiving those services and discussing treatment costs. In its place, it requires that any consent for payment be obtained using a uniform form developed by the superintendent of financial services, in conjunction with the commissioner of health.
The uniform patient liability form must not contain language that requires a patient to assume unlimited or unspecified financial liability, and it must include a statement informing the patient that they may request a Good Faith Estimate for a current or future visit or procedure. The bill also provides that any payment consent form not signed by the patient or their legal representative is prohibited and unenforceable. The measure takes effect immediately.
Impact
The bill changes the rules for patient financial consent in New York by replacing a timing restriction with a standardized disclosure and form requirement. It affects health care providers, patients, and insurers or billing entities involved in collecting payment for medical services, and it directs the Department of Financial Services and the Department of Health to create the required uniform form. It also strengthens enforceability limits by making unsigned forms invalid and by barring open-ended liability language.
Sentiment
The available voting history suggests the bill was received favorably in committee, passing the Assembly Health Committee unanimously 25-0. That vote indicates broad support for the bill’s consumer-protection and standardization goals, with no recorded opposition in the provided materials. No committee transcript is available, so the broader discussion record is limited.
Contention
The main policy change is the removal of the prior requirement that payment consent occur only after services are administered and treatment costs are discussed, which may be viewed as increasing flexibility for providers but also raising concerns about patient understanding of costs. The bill’s new uniform form requirement appears designed to address those concerns by preventing vague or unlimited liability language and by requiring notice of the right to request a Good Faith Estimate. Any contention would likely center on balancing provider billing practices and administrative simplicity against patient financial transparency and protection, though no explicit opposition is shown in the provided record.
Same As
Removes the requirement that consent for the payment of certain medical services must occur after such services are administered; requires the superintendent of financial services and the commissioner of health to develop a uniform form for consent for payment; provides that any non-conforming form shall be prohibited and unenforceable.
Removes the requirement that consent for the payment of certain medical services must occur after such services are administered; requires the superintendent of financial services and the commissioner of health to develop a uniform form for consent for payment; provides that any non-conforming form shall be prohibited and unenforceable.
Requires certain stores that accept credit or debit card payment to accept flexible benefit cards as a form of payment for eligible items; defines terms; establishes penalties for violations of such requirement to accept payment by flexible benefit card; requires the superintendent of financial services to provide education and outreach to covered stored to inform them of the such requirement.
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Requires the superintendent of financial services to audit certain reports to ensure such insurers are in full compliance with federal and state mental health and substance use disorder parity requirements.
Requires the superintendent of financial services to audit certain reports to ensure such insurers are in full compliance with federal and state mental health and substance use disorder parity requirements.
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