A bill to make healthcare facilities' prices more transparent passed the Senate health committee Wednesday by a vote of 21-1, clearing the way for a vote by the full Senate.
One hundred million Americans have a combined $220 billion in medical debt, according to Sen. John Hickenlooper (D-Colo.), a cosponsor of the bill.
"People go into a hospital, get what they think is a simple procedure, and they come out impoverished," he said at a Wednesday press conference. "These are people whose lives are being twisted and diminished because they've got the anxiety and the reality of insufficient healthcare."
Where all that money goes is unclear, said Hickenlooper. "It's a completely blind system. Our bill lets patients know before they go in the hospital what it's going to cost," he added.
Hickenlooper was referring to the Patients Deserve Price Tags Act, which would require public reporting of negotiated rates, costs, and cash prices for services provided at hospitals, ambulatory surgery centers, imaging centers, and clinical labs.
