The No Surprises Act has prevented 9 million surprise medical bills since January, according to new data from AHIP and the Blue Cross Blue Shield Association.
The payer associations gathered their data, published Nov. 17, by surveying 84 health insurers representing around 57 percent of the national market.
"Thanks to the No Surprises Act, millions of Americans no longer face a complicated, confusing billing bureaucracy, being harassed by collection agencies, or even potential legal action," AHIP President Matt Eyles said.
AHIP and the BCBSA also surveyed plans for the number of claims submitted to arbitration under the act. They estimated 275,000 claims have been submitted since January 2022, more than the 17,000 claims predicted by government agencies.
The No Surprises Act, which took effect in January, limits how much patients can be charged for out-of-network providers and emergency services.
AHIP also submitted an amicus brief Nov. 17 backing HHS in a lawsuit from Texas providers that challenges the arbitration process under the act. The lawsuit has support from the largest national associations of providers.
Data released earlier in the year from AHIP and BCBSA estimated 2 million surprise bills were avoided in January and February 2022.