The Idaho Patient Act and its Impact on Medical Debt Collections

The highly publicized Idaho Patient Act, signed into law on March 16, 2020, was created to protect consumers from unfair medical debt collection practices. Proponents asked for increased transparency into healthcare facility and provider charges for products and services and safeguards against unreasonable attorney fees and costs arising out of medical debt collection practices. The Idaho Patient Act, which will go into effect January 1, 2021, addresses both of these concerns.

To comply with the Idaho Patient Act, healthcare providers must ensure the following requirements are satisfied:

• Provider must submit charges to patient or insurance within 45 days. Healthcare providers must submit all charges related to the provision of good or services to the patient or the patient’s insurance provider within 45 days of when services were provided or the date of discharge, whichever is later.
• Patient must receive summary of services within 60 days. The healthcare provider must send a consolidated summary of services notice to the patient within 60 days of when services were provided or the date of discharge, whichever is later. This summary must include specific elements including the name and contact information of the facility; date and duration of the visit; general description of goods and services provided; names and contact information of each provider who will bill separately for services; and a conspicuous statement indicating the notice is not a bill. Healthcare facilities may be exempt from this requirement if they provide a final statement from a single billing entity for all goods and services rendered to the patient at that healthcare facility.
• Patient must receive a final statement from the billing entity of the healthcare provider. The healthcare provider must send the patient a final statement which contains the name and contact information of the healthcare facility; a list of the goods and services provided to the patient and date they were provided; a statement that a full itemization is available upon request; the name of third-party payors to which the charges were submitted; a detailed description of any reductions, adjustments, or third-party payor payments; and the final amount that the patient is liable to pay.
• Unpaid account must not incur interest, fees, or ancillary charges for 60 days. These fees can not be charged or begin accruing until at least 60 days after the patient’s receipt of the final statement.
• Provider must not take any collection action for 90 days. The healthcare provider cannot initiate any extraordinary collection action until at least 90 days have passed from the patient’s receipt of the final statement and the final resolution of any internal review, good faith disputes, and appeals of any charges or third-party payor obligations.