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- State Advocacy Win: Washington State Pathologists, CAP Continue to Deter Move to Federal IDR System
The Washington State Pathology Society (WSSP), in collaboration with the CAP, and the Washington State Medical Association (WSMA), successfully retained Washington state’s balance billing dispute resolution process, and further delaying any referral to the federal independent dispute resolution system until at least July 1, 2024.
Previously, the Washington State Office of the Insurance Commissioner released the decision to delay the transition to the federal No Surprises Act independent dispute resolution process (IDR) in late 2022. The WSSP, the CAP, and the WMSA opposed legislative changes, since enacted, to supplant the current state’s arbitration process with the federal IDR system.
On August 3, WSSP and WMSA submitted comments in response to Office of the Insurance Commissioner’s request for information to maintain the state arbitration system under the Balance Billing Protection Act until at least July 1, 2024.
In Office of the Insurance Commissioner’s communications, it noted the delay to the federal IDR system was due in part to the ruling in Texas Medical Association, et al. v. United States Department of Health and Human Services—after which the federal No Surprises Act’s IDR process was temporarily paused and longer accepted newly initiated disputes. Currently, there is no information as to when the system will resume.
In the months ahead, the Office of the Insurance Commissioner will provide an update on or before March 1, 2024, on its decision to have Washington state transition to the federal IDR system.