On February 25, 2025, President Donald J. Trump signed an executive order titled “Making America Healthy Again by Empowering Patients with Clear, Accurate, and Actionable Healthcare Pricing Information” (the “2025 Order”) aiming to provide increased transparency regarding the pricing of health care services. This executive order builds upon a prior executive order issued during President Trump’s first term in June 2019 (the “2019 Order”) that required hospitals to disclose to consumers pricing information for certain “shoppable” health care items and services and maintain this pricing information in accessible, consumer-friendly formats. The 2019 Order also mandated the establishment of rules requiring health care providers, health insurance issuers and self-insured group health plans to facilitate consumer access to information concerning expected out-of-pocket costs for health care items and services prior to receiving care.
The 2025 Order orders the Secretary of the Treasury, the Secretary of Labor and the Secretary of Health and Human Services to implement and enforce the health care pricing transparency measures pursuant to the 2019 Order within 90 days. This includes 1) requiring the disclosure of actual prices of health care items and services, not estimates; 2) issuing updated guidance or proposed regulatory actions ensuring that pricing information is standardized and easily comparable across hospitals and health plans; and 3) issuing guidance or proposed regulatory action updating enforcement policies related to the reporting of complete, accurate and meaningful health care pricing-related data.
The health care attorneys at Vedder Price will continue to monitor regulatory developments resulting from the 2025 Order.
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