WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump says it’s time to end “surprise medical bills,” which can leave insured patients facing sticker shock from charges submitted by doctors outside their insurers’ networks.
Trump spoke at the White House on Thursday to lend his support to efforts by Republican and Democratic lawmakers. White House aides outlined a set of principles for legislation.
Trump was joined by a heart attack patient who got a $110,000 bill even though he had health insurance and by another patient who was charged $17,850 for a test that would have cost $100 in her insurer’s network.
Trump says he thinks legislation can move quickly and “Democrats and Republicans can do this.”
Insurers form networks of doctors and hospitals, in part, to gain leverage for negotiating reimbursements. Usually patients pay a bigger share of the bill for any care sought outside those networks.
