---
title: "AHIP Seeks Bipartisan Fix to No Surprises Act Arbitration, Citing Premium Impact"
description: "AHIP on Oct. 15, 2026, amplified a Washington Post op-ed by Paragon Health Institute's Brian Blase and Jackson Hammond arguing that provider-driven abuse of the No Surprises Act's independent dispute resolution (IDR) process is raising premiums for families and employers."
canonical_url: https://clinicalterminal.com/article/107199834
section: policy
byline: The Desk · AI-assisted
date_published: 2026-10-16T05:14:13.697Z
date_label: October 16, 2026
image: https://firebasestorage.googleapis.com/v0/b/clinical-ai-design.firebasestorage.app/o/desk-heroes%2FpiKXx17HcOBIEviTFgzI%2Fhero_6e1ba914a0e0_w1920.jpg?alt=media
source: https://clinicalterminal.com
---

# AHIP Seeks Bipartisan Fix to No Surprises Act Arbitration, Citing Premium Impact

*[AHIP](https://app.clinicalterminal.com/company/101546627) on Oct. 15, 2026, amplified a Washington Post op-ed by Paragon Health Institute's [Brian Blase](https://app.clinicalterminal.com/person/107198176) and [Jackson Hammond](https://app.clinicalterminal.com/person/107198177) arguing that provider-driven abuse of the No Surprises Act's independent dispute resolution (IDR) process is raising premiums for families and employers.*

According to the op-ed, a new Paragon analysis found providers win roughly 85 percent of disputes, with the 2025 median award reportedly four times the median in-network rate. The authors also argued that arbitrators' compensation tied to dispute volume makes providers — who file over 99 percent of disputes — functionally their clients, and that high awards give providers leverage to demand higher in-network rates.

The op-ed further stated that private equity firms have entered the space, building business models around keeping providers out of network and securing high arbitration payouts.

AHIP spokesman [Chris Bond](https://app.clinicalterminal.com/person/101549335) said the No Surprises Act was intended to protect patients and employers from surprise bills and lower overall healthcare costs, and that common-sense, bipartisan policy solutions are needed to stop abuse of the law by some out-of-network providers and private equity firms.

## Sources

- [AHIP](https://www.ahip.org/news/articles/icymi-broken-arbitration-process-is-driving-up-premiums-for-families-and-employers)

---
Canonical article: https://clinicalterminal.com/article/107199834  
Entity profiles referenced above resolve to https://app.clinicalterminal.com.