New ad highlights patients hit with surprise medical bills

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(The Center Square) – A new television ad from PatientRightsAdvocate.org features patients from across the country calling on Congress to require upfront healthcare pricing after each faced unexpected medical bills.

The ad began airing in Washington, D.C., and select states over Easter weekend.

It highlights separate patients from Alabama, California, New Mexico and Tennessee who say hidden healthcare prices led to severe financial consequences.

“Healthcare is the only industry where consumers are expected to make binding financial commitments without knowing how much they will owe,” Kerry Schrader of Hoover, Alabama, said in a news release provided by PatientRightsAdvocate.org. “The ‘Patients Deserve Price Tags Act’ will help Americans like me have financial certainty and hold hospitals accountable.”

Schrader said she sought an upfront price for a biopsy, but no one gave her a clear answer. She later received bills totaling more than $28,000 for what she described as a simple outpatient procedure.

Mike Klein, a father from California, said hospitals refuse to provide clear pricing even when patients ask in advance.

“Every responsible parent knows it’s essential to seek all the information you can on the front-end of important decisions for your family,” Klein said. “Today, that’s impossible in American healthcare.”

Klein said he left the hospital with his young son after staff refused to provide a price estimate before surgery.

Additionally, Mark Thompson of New Mexico said he received an estimate of $3,587 for an outpatient procedure but later faced bills totaling more than $160,000.

“Right now, as a patient, you have no control,” Thompson said. “I can’t think of another industry that can get away with this.”

Robin Wayman of Tennessee said a hospital told her that her portion of a surgery would cost $4,000. However, she later received bills demanding $80,000.

“When I got the bill, my world came crashing down,” Wayman said. “Patients shouldn’t have to be scared of the bills, too.”

The ad urges passage of the “Patients Deserve Price Tags Act,” a bipartisan proposal that would codify a 2025 executive order from President Donald Trump on healthcare price transparency and strengthen federal rules requiring hospitals to disclose upfront prices.

PatientRightsAdvocate.org, a national organization focused on healthcare transparency, says making real prices available would allow patients to compare costs and reduce overall spending.

The group also directs viewers to WeDeservePriceTags.com, which highlights wide price differences for the same procedures across providers.

Supporters of the legislation say requiring upfront pricing would give patients more control and prevent unexpected medical debt.