Nandita Bose
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – U.S. President Joe Biden announced new measures on Friday to crack down on short-term health insurance plans and accidents Medical bills, increasing crackdown on so-called junk fees to lower health care costs.
This would include a proposed rule aimed at closing loopholes that companies use to offer misleading short-term insurance products, discriminate based on pre-existing conditions, and offer little to no insurance. Without insurance, Biden said, consumers are left with thousands of dollars worth of medical bills.
“It’s not necessarily about health care, it’s being fooled,” Biden said at a White House event announcing the policies. “This is a scam and it has to end.”
Obama administration35 limits short-term insurance program to three months in attempt to get more people on board There were rounds of programs, but regulations passed by the Trump administration in 2016 allow people to continue with such programs for 12 months and to renew for three years.
The White House says the plans have surprised families with thousands of dollars in medical bills.
With inflation remaining a potential political issue, the Biden administration has made it a priority to ask federal regulators to step up oversight of companies in a range of industries, including hotels, banks and airlines, in order to Fight hidden fees.
Biden has seen a sharp economic rebound in his more than two years in office. Still, his public approval ratings have slipped under the weight of voter anxiety about inflation and the direction of the economy.
Job creation and low unemployment are positives, while the knock-on effects of higher inflation and soaring interest rates in areas such as the housing market over the past year have fueled recession fears.
Biden also announced new policymaking rules to reduce unexpected medical bills, limit the use of third-party medical credit cards that include “premium rates,” and not fully disclose risks.
The White House says that when people are taken to the nearest hospital for emergency care, or when someone goes to a network hospital and one of the doctors treating them is not available When in-network, unexpected bills can arise, leading to unexpected bills say.
More than half of Americans disapprove of how Biden handles work, while only 35% of respondents approve of his management of the economy, according to a June Reuters/Ipsos poll. Voters see economy as top issue.
