By: TAHP | Thursday, February 23, 2017

This week, TAHP, TAB, TALHI, TAHU, and TORCH launched a coalition to raise awareness about freestanding ERs, their exorbitant pricing and misleading advertising that are confusing consumers and contributing to a serious emergency care cost crisis in Texas. Texans For Affordable Healthcare (TAHC), a healthcare advocacy coalition, seeks to educate the Legislature and Texas consumers about the non-transparent, anti-consumer tactics frequently used by freestanding emergency rooms, as Texas is home to more than half the nation’s FSERs. TAHC will be reaching out to Texans who have experienced surprise bills and confusions at FSERs and are willing to share their stories with others and the Legislature. Our coalition is seeking the following solutions to better protect consumers:

• Educate Texans with accurate information: increase cost transparency and network status at freestanding ERs;
• Expand surprise billing protections for consumers; and
• Hold bad actors accountable for exploiting patients through misleading advertising and exorbitant pricing.

Find our “Buyer Beware” messaging document on freestanding ERs here and our press release announcing the coalition here.

TAHC will continue to announce additional coalition members in the coming days, as well as the launch of a new web site. Please “Like” and share our Facebook and Twitter pages!

Several health plans members are already supporting this coalition. Please contact Jessica Sandlin, jsandlin@tahp2.local, if you are interested in getting involved!