Bill Text: NJ S3603 | 2018-2019 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Requires continued offering of certain health insurance coverage under certain circumstances.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 2-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2019-03-18 - Introduced in the Senate, Referred to Senate Commerce Committee [S3603 Detail]
Download: New_Jersey-2018-S3603-Introduced.html
Sponsored by:
Senator ANTHONY R. BUCCO
District 25 (Morris and Somerset)
SYNOPSIS
Requires continued offering of certain health insurance coverage under certain circumstances.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
As introduced.
An Act concerning the offering of certain health insurance coverage and supplementing Title 17B of the New Jersey Statutes.
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. a. Notwithstanding the provisions of any other law, rule or regulation to the contrary, a health benefits plan or health insurance policy issued outside of this State which included supplemental hospital indemnity coverage, hospital confinement coverage or other similar coverage inconsistent with an individual health benefits plan and which was offered by an insurer admitted in this State on or before December 31, 2018 through a trust, association, or otherwise, shall continue to be offered and issued to a resident policyholder who was covered by such a plan on or before December 31, 2018.
b. The provisions of this section shall apply only to policies and plans in effect on or before December 31, 2018; the provisions of this section shall expire upon the termination or expiration of these policies or plans by the individual policyholders; and no new plans or policies may be issued pursuant to this section to an individual who was not a policyholder covered by such a plan or policy on or before December 31, 2018.
c. The Commissioner of Banking and Insurance shall promulgate any rules or regulations necessary to facilitate the offering and issuance of policies and plans pursuant to this section.
2. This act shall take effect immediately and shall be retroactive to December 31, 2018.
STATEMENT
This bill allows a small number of New Jersey policyholders, roughly 2,200 in number, to continue to purchase a policy for supplemental hospital indemnity coverage which has been determined noncompliant with New Jersey law. Because this particular policy is a "hybrid" plan, with both conventional health benefits and supplemental indemnity coverage, it does not meet the State's requirements for either the small group or individual health benefits plans, or permitted supplemental hospital indemnity coverage. Nevertheless, loyal policyholders desire to continue this coverage. This bill would allow these policyholders who found themselves without this coverage to continue to purchase it until all such policies have been retired in New Jersey, as determined by the individual policyholders, not due to a disqualification of the policy by the Department of Banking and Insurance as the regulator.
