- Posted September 2, 2025
New Law Curbed 'Surprise' Medical Bills For Patients, Cut Out-Of-Pocket Costs
For years, everyday Americans found themselves blindsided by surprise medical bills that could devastate family finances.
But the bipartisan No Surprises Act passed by Congress in 2022 has slashed both the number of surprise bills and out-of-pocket costs borne by patients, a new study finds.
The bill prohibits unexpected bills after patients receive out-of-network medical care.
The new findings prove that such an intervention was necessary, said study lead author Dr. Michael Liu of Brigham and Women’s Hospital (BWH) in Boston.
“One in five insured adults in the U.S. incurred surprise bills before the No Surprises Act, and these bills frequently exceeded thousands of dollars, resulting in substantial financial hardship among patients,” he said in a hospital news release. “Government agencies have called for rigorous evaluations of the law, and we believe our paper is the first to do so.”
Liu is a clinical fellow at BWH and founding member of the Mass General Brigham health care system. His team published its findings Aug. 27 in The BMJ.
The new study tracked data on more than 17,000 adults under the age of 65 who purchased private health insurance.
Some lived in states whose residents gained added protections once the No Surprises Act came into effect, while others lived in states that had already had certain local protections, so its passage added nothing additional.
The research showed that yearly out-of-pocket expenses to study participants dropped by an average of $600 in states affected by the act. No such gain was seen in the other states.
It was hoped that the No Surprises Act might help bring down insurance premiums, since it was also aimed at promoting fair payment negotiations between insurers and providers.
But consumers saw no change in premiums, the study found.
“This finding is in line with anecdotal reports that providers — especially those backed by private equity firms — are leveraging loopholes and unfair tactics to secure higher payments at the expense of patients and the health care system,” Liu contended.
As well, the overall percentage of income that insured Americans spend on health care didn't budge, either. The number of people experiencing "high burden medical spending," defined as 10% of income or more, remained unchanged.
That means much more can be done to shield Americans from overwhelming medical bills, the Boston team said.
“Our findings have important implications for patients and should inform ongoing policy efforts to prevent financial toxicity and address the health care affordability crisis in the U.S.,” said senior author Dr. Rishi Wadhera. He is associate director of the hospital's Smith Center for Outcomes Research.
More information
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SOURCE: Mass General Brigham, news release, Aug. 27, 2025
