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U.S. Dept. of Health & Human Services
Patient's Bill of Rights
Guidance for webpage addresses the Patient's Bill of Rights under the Affordable Care Act. The Patient’s Bill of Rights helps all Americans with pre-existing conditions gain and keep their coverage, protects all Americans’ choice of doctors, ends lifetime limits on the care consumers may receive and includes other provisions.
Issued by: Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS)
Issue Date: May 07, 2013
On June 22, 2010, President Obama announced new interim final regulations, the Patient’s Bill of Rights, that include a set of protections that apply to health coverage starting on or after September 23, 2010, six months after the enactment of the Affordable Care Act.
The Departments of Health and Human Services, Labor and Treasury collaborated on the Patient’s Bill of Rights – which will help children (and eventually all Americans) with pre-existing conditions gain coverage and keep it, protect all Americans’ choice of doctors, and end lifetime limits on the care consumers may receive. These new protections create an important foundation of patients’ rights in the private health insurance market that puts Americans in charge of their own health.
HHS is committed to making its websites and documents accessible to the widest possible audience, including individuals with disabilities. We are in the process of retroactively making some documents accessible. If you need assistance accessing an accessible version of this document, please reach out to the guidance@hhs.gov.
DISCLAIMER: The contents of this database lack the force and effect of law, except as authorized by law (including Medicare Advantage Rate Announcements and Advance Notices) or as specifically incorporated into a contract. The Department may not cite, use, or rely on any guidance that is not posted on the guidance repository, except to establish historical facts.
Date Published: 7/8/2020
