Arizona proposed medical aid bill

A proposed Arizona bill that was approved by the senate on Wednesday may help aid the medical payment process for those that have unexpected medical bills. SB 1441 is a proposed bill that senator Debbie Lesko, of Peoria, Arizona helped create. This bill would cover services that were provided in emergency situations where the patient had no way of checking to see if the doctor was contracted with their insurance, It would set up a procedure for people to ask the Department of Insurance to get involved and determine what Is really a fair charge. A lot of the time, patients will think their insurance covers what ever procedure their having done, but then later will receive a bill for an undisclosed amount of money. Connie Gill, a billing manager in Yuma gave her opinion on the bill and what she thinks the bill will mean to the community. “I feel strongly about this bill, it is long over due in our community. This will help most of us that are hard working, average middle class citizens, that end up with unexpected bills. This is a way to help us be able to get some type of help with all the huge balances that are billed after the fact,” Gill said. Lesko said the way her legislation is crafted, the patient in most situations would only be responsible for the normal co-pay and deductible and while it was a 25 to 5 vote on Wednesday in favor of the bill, a lot of doctors are lobbying against it. If Lesko can get the bill passed through the house, this bill would go into effect in 2019.