Bill Text: CA SB910 | 2017-2018 | Regular Session | Introduced

California Senate Bill 910 (Prior Session Legislation)

NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft

Bill Title: Short-term limited duration health insurance.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)

Status: (Passed) 2018-09-22 - Chaptered by Secretary of State. Chapter 687, Statutes of 2018. [SB910 Detail]

Download: California-2017-SB910-Introduced.html

CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE— 2017–2018 REGULAR SESSION

Senate Bill

No. 910

Introduced by Senator Hernandez

January 18, 2018

An act to add Section 10123.61 to the Insurance Code, relating to health insurance.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST

SB 910, as introduced, Hernandez. Short-term limited duration health insurance.

Existing law provides for the regulation of health insurers by the Department of Insurance. Existing law prohibits a health insurer offering individual health insurance coverage from imposing any preexisting condition exclusion with respect to that coverage. Existing law prohibits a health insurer from conditioning the issuance or offering of individual health benefit plans on any health status-related factor, as specified, and authorizes health insurers to use only age, geographic region, and whether the plan or health insurer covers an individual or family for purposes of establishing rates for individual health benefit plans, as specified. Existing law requires an individual health care service health insurance policy to include, at a minimum, coverage for essential health benefits, as defined. These health care coverage market reforms in the individual market do not apply to short-term limited duration health insurance policies offered by a health insurer.

This bill, commencing January 1, 2019, would prohibit a health insurer from issuing, selling, renewing, or offering a short-term limited duration health insurance policy, as defined, for health care coverage in this state.

Vote: MAJORITY Appropriation: NO Fiscal Committee: YES Local Program: NO

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:

SECTION 1.

Section 10123.61 is added to the Insurance Code, to read:

10123.61.

(a) Commencing January 1, 2019, a health insurer shall not issue, sell, renew, or offer a short-term limited duration health insurance policy for health care coverage in this state.

(b) For purposes of this section, the following definitions apply:

(1) “Short-term limited duration health insurance” means individual health insurance coverage provided pursuant to a health insurance policy with a health insurer, intended to be used as transitional or interim coverage, that has an expiration date specified in the policy, taking into account any extensions that may be elected by the policyholder with or without the issuer’s consent, that is less than 3 months after the original effective date of the policy, and that is not intended to be or marketed as qualifying health insurance coverage.

(2) “Qualifying health insurance coverage” means a health insurance policy that includes coverage for essential health benefits pursuant to Section 10112.27 and that complies with the requirements under Sections 10112.1 and 10112.2, Article 7 (commencing with Section 10198.6), and Chapter 9.9 (commencing with Section 10965).