No Surprise Bills for New Moms Act

The **No Surprise Bills for New Moms Act** (H.R. 9996) amends the Public Health Service Act, the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA), and the Internal Revenue Code of 1986. The bill requires health insurance plans to provide temporary automatic coverage for newborn children, offer a special period for parents to officially enroll their newborns, and notify parents if a medical claim is received for an unenrolled newborn.

* **Parents:** Individuals who are participants or beneficiaries in a covered group health plan or individual health insurance policy and give birth to a child. * **Health Insurance Issuers and Health Plans:** Group health plans, private-sector health plans under ERISA, and individual or group health insurance issuers governed by federal health laws.

If enacted, health plans and insurance issuers would be required to: * **Automatically cover newborns for 30 days:** Provide automatic health insurance coverage for a covered parent's newborn child for the first 30 days following birth. This covers any healthcare service standardly included under the parent's plan. * **Provide a 60-day special enrollment period:** Offer parents a special enrollment window of at least 60 days, starting immediately after the initial 30-day automatic coverage period ends, to formally enroll the child in the plan. * **Send immediate claim notifications:** Inform the parent immediately if the health plan receives a medical bill or claim for services provided to the newborn while the child is not formally enrolled in the plan. These changes would apply to plan years that begin on or after the date the bill is enacted into law.

The provided summary does not outline any direct federal funding, appropriations, taxes, or fees.

* **Coverage Scope:** The 30-day automatic coverage only applies to healthcare services that are standardly covered under the parent's existing plan. * **Deadlines:** Automatic coverage is limited to 30 days from the child's birth date, and the special enrollment period must be at least 60 days beginning immediately after those first 30 days. * **Unclear details:** Specific administrative penalties or enforcement details for non-compliant plans are not detailed in the summary.

This bill guarantees that a newborn baby is automatically covered under a parent's health plan for their first 30 days of life, gives parents at least 60 additional days to sign the baby up for permanent coverage, and requires health plans to notify parents immediately if medical bills arrive for an unenrolled baby.