Dive Brief:

Arbitration of surprise billing disputes between insurers and providers will continue despite the government shutdown, the CMS said on Friday.

Parties that disagree over how much an out-of-network claim should be reimbursed can still submit disputes via the federal independent dispute resolution portal, and arbiters will continue to process disputes, according to the agency.

However, a prolonged shutdown could throw a wrench in other processes that underlie the implementation of the No Surprises Act, which was passed in 2020 to protect consumers from unexpected out-of-network bills. Since congressional appropriations lapsed last week, Congress has made no progress on a deal to reopen the government.

Dive Insight:

The government shut down at midnight Wednesday morning after

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