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Bill > AB819


WI AB819

WI AB819
Allowing discounts for prompt payment of health care fees.


summary

Introduced
01/06/2026
In Committee
02/04/2026
Crossed Over
Passed
Dead

Introduced Session

2025-2026 Regular Session

Bill Summary

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. Under this bill, a discount offered by a health care provider to an individual covered under a health insurance policy is exempt from that prohibition if the discount satisfies all of the following: the health care provider offers the discount for prompt payment without regard to the issuer of the individual’s health insurance policy or 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 but is no more than 15 percent of the fee owed; 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; the health care provider does not provide the discount prior to the service being scheduled or outside the provider’s ordinary course of dealing with patients; 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.

AI Summary

This bill clarifies that discounts offered by healthcare providers for prompt payment of fees do not violate existing laws that prohibit reducing or offering to reduce coinsurance or deductibles for individuals with health insurance, which are referred to as disability insurance policies in the bill. Specifically, a healthcare provider can offer such a discount if it's given without regard to the insurance company or the reason for the service, the discount is reasonably related to avoided collection costs but no more than 15% of the fee, the provider notifies the insurance company of the policy but doesn't publicly advertise it unless required by law, the discount is not offered before a service is scheduled or outside the normal patient dealings, and the cost of the discount isn't passed on to other payers or included in agreements with third-party payers unless allowed by law. This aims to encourage timely payments while ensuring fairness to all parties involved in the healthcare system.

Committee Categories

Business and Industry

Sponsors (18)

Last Action

Representative Subeck added as a coauthor (on 02/26/2026)

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