Senator Hassan Speaks About the Need to Reduce Administrative Burdens for Patients and Families in the Health Care System

WASHIGNTON – Senator Maggie Hassan, during a Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pension (HELP) committee hearing today, discussed the need to reduce administrative burdens in the health care system for patients and their families. Senator Hassan referenced her own experience navigating administrative hurdles with insurance companies to get her son Ben, who experiences disabilities, the care he needs.

“It’s hard, as a patient or a family member, to spend all day on the phone, wondering, for example, if a prior authorization went through.” Senator Hassan said. “It’s particularly hard when you’re juggling a job, caring for kids, and all the daily activities that families have.” 

Senator Hassan added, “When we’re talking about administrative burdens, I think what really would make a difference is to eliminate these burdens for patients and their families. Not just for their time and effort, but for good patient outcomes.”

When asked by Senator Hassan what Congress can do to ease the administrative burden on patients and their families, Matt Eyles, President and Chief Executive Officer of America’s Health Insurance Plan replied:

“Thank you for sharing your story, I think it's really important to recognize the impact on patients and I know, as we've been talking about this, that's where we need to start. Thinking about the burden on the families and caregivers - I think getting to a truly inter-operable system where those medical records are able to be accessed at any point in time, in any place, and being able to do so in an electronic fashion and tap into them.”

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