Medicare Advantage plans must pay doctors faster—or face fines
S. 2879 — Medicare Advantage Prompt Pay Act · Filed by Catherine Cortez Masto (D-NV) · 2 cosponsors · Introduced Sep 18, 2025 · Referred to committee
Your members of Congress
Enter a ZIP to see where your representative and both senators stood on this bill.
Looked up on this device — your ZIP is never stored on our servers.
What it does
This bill requires Medicare Advantage insurance plans to pay healthcare provider claims faster and more reliably. Specifically, it mandates that plans pay at least 95% of valid claims within 14 days (if submitted electronically) or 30 days (if submitted by mail), and imposes interest penalties and fines up to $25,000 per violation if they fail to meet these deadlines. The bill also requires plans to publicly report their payment performance data.
Why we flagged it
The bill's core function is to impose payment speed and accuracy standards on Medicare Advantage plans, with enforcement mechanisms (interest, fines) and transparency requirements. It is regulatory accountability legislation, not a subsidy or carve-out.
What the text implies
- Faster payment cycles may increase short-term cash flow pressure on Medicare Advantage insurers, potentially affecting their ability to invest reserves or manage seasonal claim volatility.
- The 95% threshold for on-time payment means 5% of claims can still be delayed without penalty, creating a potential loophole for systematic slow-payment of edge-case claims.
The full analysis lists 5 implications of this text.
Who stands to gain
healthcare providers and medical practices (faster cash flow); small and independent physician groups (reduced working-capital strain); hospital systems (improved revenue cycle management)