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STATE OF OKLAHOMA
1st Session of the 58th Legislature (2021)
SENATE BILL 548 By: Daniels
AS INTRODUCED
An Act relating to healthcare expenses; prohibiting
certain healthcare entities from reporting certain
debt to credit bureaus ; providing exception to
prohibition; specifying what is included in total
cost of healthcare services; requiring certain
information on billing do cuments; establishing
violation of act as grounds for dismissal of and
affirmative defense to certain legal proceeding s;
defining term; providing for codification; and
providing an effective date.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF OKLAHOMA:
SECTION 1. NEW LAW A new section of law to be codified
in the Oklahoma Statutes as Section 6980 of Title 36, unless there
is created a duplicati on in numbering, reads as follows:
A. No medical service or care entity , nor their agent, shall
report a healthcare expense debt to a credit bureau or pursue
collection activities or any other adverse financial action, except
if the entity or agent can demonstrate that the person liable for
the medical debt was presented with and agreed to the total cost of
all healthcare services to be provided prior to agreeing to receive
the services.
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1. The total cost shall include all services performed by the
medical service or care entity and its staff, as well as any
authorized services provi ded by a contractor, affiliat e or any other
third party who provided services in the facility, and the total
cost to be billed shall include out-of-network providers.
2. The total cost of service shall be presented to the patient
separately from all other forms, informatio n and paperwork. It
shall be written in a readable font, plain language and shall be
prominently and conspicuously displayed on the first page of the
document in which it is contained.
B. In no event shall any medical service or care entity , nor
their agent, report a healthcare expense debt to a credit bu reau or
pursue collection ac tivities or any other a dverse financial action
for healthcare services provided due to complications from the
services originally intended or rendered.
C. Failure to comply with the provisions of this act shall be
grounds for dismissal of any collection suit or garnishment
proceeding and may be asserted as an affirmative defense to any such
action.
D. For purposes of this section, “medical service or care
entity” shall include, but not be l imited to, a medical care
corporation, health care corporation, hospital service associat ion,
medical service corporation, health care maintenan ce organization,
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not-for-profit hospital, insurer, insurance company or any other
third-party payer of medical e xpenses.
SECTION 2. This act shall become effective November 1, 2021.
58-1-1551 NP 1/20/2021 4:22:15 PM