AB 571

This bill specifies that discounts for prompt payment do not violate prohibitions

on reducing certain fees for health care services. Under current state law, a health

care provider is prohibited from reducing or offering to reduce coinsurance or a

deductible of an individual covered under a health insurance policy that is required

under the terms of the policy, unless paying the amount would be an undue financial

hardship to the individual. This bill specifies as exempt from that and any other

state law prohibitions a discount offered by a health care provider to an individual

covered under a health insurance policy if the discount satisfies all of the following:

the health care provider offers the discount for prompt payment without regard to

the reason for the individual seeking the product or service; the amount of the

discount bears a reasonable relationship to the amount that the health care provider

avoids in collection costs by prompt payment; the health care provider notifies the

issuer of the health insurance policy of the prompt payment discount policy but,

unless required by law, does not publicly advertise the discount; and the health care

provider does not shift the cost of the discount to any other payer or, except as allowed

by law, include the discount in an agreement with a third-party payer. Health

insurance policies are referred to as disability insurance policies in the bill.