SYRACUSE - Attorney General Cuomo Tuesday announced nationwide reform of the consumer reimbursement system for out-of-network health care charges.

A new not-for-profit company, FAIR Health, Inc., and an upstate research network headquartered at Syracuse University, will develop a new independent database for consumer reimbursement and a new website where for the first time consumers can compare prices before they choose their doctors. 

In addition to Syracuse University, the upstate research network consists of the State University of New York at Buffalo, Cornell University, University of Rochester, and SUNY Upstate Medical University. 

Almost $100 million in settlement money will fund the new reimbursement system, creating jobs and helping develop New York’s upstate economy.  The new database will make FAIR Health a center for health care research and an engine of health care reform.