The Biden administration has issued a second interim final rule (IFR) to implement the No Surprises Act that takes effect in January, but unfortunately it represents an undeserved gift to the insurance industry that will reduce health care options for patients.

The IFR “ignores congressional intent and flies in the face of the Biden administration’s stated concerns about consolidation in the health care marketplace,” said AMA President Gerald A. Harmon, MD. “It disregards the insurance industry’s role in creating the problem of surprise billing at the expense of independent physician practices whose ability to negotiate provider network contracts continues to erode.”

My latest for the AMA. The whole shebang.