The bill would:
- Prohibit hospitals and other large facilities from charging interest and late fees.
- Require facilities to offer monthly payment plans that don’t exceed 5 percent of a patient’s monthly income.
- Provide a 90-day grace period from the date of the service before the first payment is due under a plan.
- Prohibit penalties, fees or other charges when debt is paid off early under a payment plan.
- Require facilities to wait at least 120 days after the first bill is sent before selling a patient’s debt to a collector and notify the patient 30 days before doing so.
- Prohibit debt collectors from attempting to foreclose on a patient’s property, garnish their wages or other payments.
- Require at least a one-year period after the first bill is sent before facilities could send information about unpaid debt to credit reporting agencies.
The legislation covers hospitals, ambulatory and surgical centers, as well as all medical practices with revenues over $20 million that provide outpatient medical, surgical, behavioral, optical, radiology, laboratory or dental services, according to the report.
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