One of the many components of the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2021 is the "No Surprises Act." This section of the new law does not directly address COVID-19 economic relief, but instead gets at a longstanding health policy concern, the issue of "surprise" balance billing.

Giving employees transparency into rates is a good start, but three-quarters of health insurers already offer price transparency tools.

In a letter, the American Hospital Association outlines the burden created by COVID and vaccination efforts.