Short answer: Yes. If you have job-based, Marketplace, or individual coverage, the No Surprises Act bans surprise bills for most emergency services, even when you are treated out-of-network and without prior approval. You can be charged only your normal in-network cost-sharing for that care.
Emergencies rarely let you choose an in-network hospital or doctor, so the law protects you. Since 2022, health plans must cover most emergency services without prior authorization and without treating out-of-network emergency care more restrictively than in-network care.
Your share of the cost (deductible, copay, coinsurance) for protected emergency services cannot be higher than what you would pay in-network, and the out-of-network provider cannot balance-bill you for the rest. These protections apply to most private plans; people with Medicare, Medicaid, TRICARE, the Indian Health Service, or VA coverage were already protected.