Montana Senate Passes Air Ambulance Cost-control Measures

HELENA — The Montana Senate has passed a bill to keep patients from receiving huge bills from air ambulance companies.

The Senate voted 50-0 to pass the bill Friday before taking its mid-session break. It now goes to the House for consideration.

Former patients previously testified about how they received bills in the tens of thousands of dollars for emergency air flights to hospitals because the air ambulance was out of the insurer’s network.

Under Sen. Gordon Vance’s bill, patients would be responsible for co-payments and deductibles under their insurance plans. The insurance company and out-of-network air ambulance providers would negotiate payment of the rest of the bill.

Other measures the Senate passed Friday would prohibit air ambulances from reporting to credit agencies that a patient failed to pay a bill and urge Congress to address air ambulance billing issues.