Pillar 08
AHA v. Azar · Compelled Disclosure · Regulatory Stability
LowOn December 4, 2019, FAH was a named co-plaintiff in a lawsuit to block CMS from requiring hospitals to publish payer-specific negotiated rates.
| Detail | Value |
|---|---|
| Case | American Hospital Association v. Azar (No. 1:19-cv-03619, D.D.C.) |
| Filed | December 4, 2019 |
| Plaintiffs | AHA, AAMC, FAH, National Association of Children’s Hospitals, three individual hospitals |
| Challenge | CMS November 2019 final rule requiring hospitals to publish payer-specific negotiated rates |
| Arguments | CMS exceeded statutory authority under ACA Section 2718(e); rule violated First Amendment (compelled speech); rule was arbitrary and capricious |
| Outcome | Judge Carl J. Nichols ruled against plaintiffs June 23, 2020. D.C. Circuit upheld on appeal. Rule took effect January 1, 2021. |
After losing in court, FAH shifted from opposition to compliance advocacy, urging regulatory stability in July 2025 comments to CMS.
On July 21, 2025, FAH submitted comments to CMS urging “regulatory stability” — stating that “both hospitals and users of hospital price transparency data would benefit from a period of relative regulatory stability during which the already widespread hospital compliance achieved by CMS may be deepened.”
FAH supported the CMS validator tool and urged CMS to prioritize accuracy of payer machine-readable files rather than imposing additional hospital requirements.