Massachusetts prompt pay law: deadlines, interest, and how to use it

Yes. Massachusetts's prompt-pay law (M.G.L. c.176O §6 and related insurance law) requires carriers to pay or deny clean claims within a set window or pay interest.

The key rules

• Clean claims are generally due within 45 days of receipt
• Late payment accrues interest, commonly cited around 1.5% per month on the overdue amount
• The carrier must pay or send a written denial/explanation within the window
• Applies to state-regulated commercial carriers

How to use it

• Fix the receipt date and measure the 45-day window
• Calculate the monthly interest on late clean claims and request it
• Cite M.G.L. c.176O §6 when raising it with the carrier
• Escalate patterns to the Massachusetts Division of Insurance

Confirm the current interest rate and day-count. Prompt-pay rules reach state-regulated (fully insured) commercial plans, not ERISA self-funded employer plans, which are a large share of commercial volume. Medicare and Medicaid pay under their own separate prompt-payment rules. Confirm the current payment window, interest rate, and penalty against the statute or your state insurance department before citing a figure in an appeal, since rates are reset by legislation and by annual DOI rate-setting.

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