Bill Text: NY A08123 | 2009-2010 | General Assembly | Introduced

---

Bill Title: Prohibits any group or blanket health insurance policy to exclude from coverage any group member based on a predisposing genetic characteristic; prohibits any hospital service corporation, health service corporation or medical expense indemnity corporation contract to exclude from coverage any group member based on predisposing genetic characteristics; defines relevant terms.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2010-01-06 - referred to insurance [A08123 Detail]

Download: New_York-2009-A08123-Introduced.html

---

                           S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
       ________________________________________________________________________
                                         8123
                              2009-2010 Regular Sessions
                                 I N  A S S E M B L Y
                                      May 5, 2009
                                      ___________
       Introduced by M. of A. KAVANAGH -- read once and referred to the Commit-
         tee on Insurance
       AN ACT to amend the insurance law, in relation to genetic discrimination
         in health insurance
         THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
       BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
    1    Section 1.  Subsection (1) of section 3221 of  the  insurance  law  is
    2  amended by adding a new paragraph 18 to read as follows:
    3    (18) (A) DEFINITIONS. AS USED IN THIS PARAGRAPH:
    4    (I)  "PREDISPOSING  GENETIC  CHARACTERISTIC"  SHALL MEAN ANY INHERITED
    5  GENE OR CHROMOSOME, OR ALTERATION THEREOF, AS DETERMINED  BY  A  GENETIC
    6  TEST  OR  INFERRED FROM INFORMATION DERIVED FROM AN INDIVIDUAL OR FAMILY
    7  MEMBER, THAT IS SCIENTIFICALLY OR MEDICALLY  BELIEVED TO  PREDISPOSE  AN
    8  INDIVIDUAL  OR  THE OFFSPRING OF THAT INDIVIDUAL TO A PHYSICAL OR MENTAL
    9  DISEASE OR DISABILITY, OR TO BE ASSOCIATED WITH A STATISTICALLY  SIGNIF-
   10  ICANT  INCREASED  RISK OF DEVELOPMENT OF A PHYSICAL OR MENTAL DISEASE OR
   11  DISABILITY.
   12    (II) "GENETIC TEST" SHALL MEAN A TEST FOR DETERMINING THE PRESENCE  OR
   13  ABSENCE OF AN INHERITED GENETIC CHARACTERISTIC IN AN INDIVIDUAL, INCLUD-
   14  ING TESTS OF NUCLEIC ACIDS SUCH AS DNA, RNA AND MITOCHONDRIAL DNA, CHRO-
   15  MOSOMES  OR PROTEINS IN ORDER TO IDENTIFY A PREDISPOSING GENETIC CHARAC-
   16  TERISTIC.
   17    (B) NO GROUP OR BLANKET POLICY DELIVERED OR  ISSUED  FOR  DELIVERY  IN
   18  THIS  STATE WHICH COVERS FIFTY-ONE OR MORE EMPLOYEES AND PROVIDES HOSPI-
   19  TAL, MEDICAL, MAJOR MEDICAL OR SIMILAR COMPREHENSIVE-TYPE COVERAGE SHALL
   20  EXCLUDE ANY GROUP MEMBER OR ELIGIBLE DEPENDENT OR ESTABLISH ANY RATES OR
   21  TERMS THEREFOR SOLELY ON THE BASIS OF ANY PREDISPOSING  GENETIC  CHARAC-
   22  TERISTIC.
   23    (C)  NO  ISSUER  OF  HEALTH  INSURANCE  IN THIS STATE SHALL REQUIRE OR
   24  UTILIZE TESTS FOR OR INFORMATION ABOUT  A  GROUP  MEMBER'S  PREDISPOSING
   25  GENETIC CHARACTERISTICS AS A PART OF THE PROCESS OF UNDERWRITING.
        EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                             [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                  LBD09747-01-9
       A. 8123                             2
    1    S  2.  The  insurance law is amended by adding a new section 4306-c to
    2  read as follows:
    3    S 4306-C. GENETIC DISCRIMINATION PROHIBITED. (A) NO CONTRACT ISSUED BY
    4  A  HOSPITAL  SERVICE  CORPORATION, HEALTH SERVICE CORPORATION OR MEDICAL
    5  EXPENSE INDEMNITY CORPORATION TO A GROUP OF FIFTY-ONE OR MORE  EMPLOYEES
    6  SHALL  EXCLUDE  ANY  GROUP MEMBER OR ELIGIBLE DEPENDENT OR ESTABLISH ANY
    7  RATES OR TERMS THEREFOR SOLELY ON THE BASIS OF ANY PREDISPOSING  GENETIC
    8  CHARACTERISTIC.
    9    (B)  NO MEDICAL EXPENSE INDEMNITY CORPORATION, HOSPITAL SERVICE CORPO-
   10  RATION OR HEALTH SERVICES CORPORATION SHALL REQUIRE OR UTILIZE TESTS FOR
   11  OR INFORMATION ABOUT A GROUP MEMBER'S  PREDISPOSING  GENETIC  CHARACTER-
   12  ISTICS.
   13    (C) AS USED IN THIS SECTION:
   14    (1)  "PREDISPOSING  GENETIC  CHARACTERISTIC"  SHALL MEAN ANY INHERITED
   15  GENE OR CHROMOSOME, OR ALTERATION THEREOF, AS DETERMINED  BY  A  GENETIC
   16  TEST  OR  INFERRED FROM INFORMATION DERIVED FROM AN INDIVIDUAL OR FAMILY
   17  MEMBER, THAT IS SCIENTIFICALLY OR MEDICALLY  BELIEVED TO  PREDISPOSE  AN
   18  INDIVIDUAL  OR  THE OFFSPRING OF THAT INDIVIDUAL TO A PHYSICAL OR MENTAL
   19  DISEASE OR DISABILITY, OR TO BE ASSOCIATED WITH A STATISTICALLY  SIGNIF-
   20  ICANT  INCREASED  RISK OF DEVELOPMENT OF A PHYSICAL OR MENTAL DISEASE OR
   21  DISABILITY.
   22    (2) "GENETIC TEST" SHALL MEAN A TEST FOR DETERMINING THE  PRESENCE  OR
   23  ABSENCE OF AN INHERITED GENETIC CHARACTERISTIC IN AN INDIVIDUAL, INCLUD-
   24  ING TESTS OF NUCLEIC ACIDS SUCH AS DNA, RNA AND MITOCHONDRIAL DNA, CHRO-
   25  MOSOMES  OR PROTEINS IN ORDER TO IDENTIFY A PREDISPOSING GENETIC CHARAC-
   26  TERISTIC.
   27    S 3. This act shall take effect on the ninetieth day  after  it  shall
   28  have become a law, and shall apply to all policies and contracts issued,
   29  renewed, modified, altered or amended on or after such effective date.