South Carolina Code 38-33-80. Enrollee entitled to evidence of coverage; contents of evidence of coverage; discontinuance or replacement of coverage; charges for services
(2) Evidence of coverage, or an amendment to it, may not be issued or delivered to a person in this State until a copy of the form of the evidence of coverage, or amendment to it, has been filed with and approved by the director or his designee pursuant to § 38-71-310(A) or 38-71-720(A).
Terms Used In South Carolina Code 38-33-80
- Amendment: A proposal to alter the text of a pending bill or other measure by striking out some of it, by inserting new language, or both. Before an amendment becomes part of the measure, thelegislature must agree to it.
- Contract: A legal written agreement that becomes binding when signed.
- deductible: means the amount specified in the evidence of coverage that the enrollee shall pay directly to the provider for covered health care services, which may be stated in either specific dollar amounts or as a percentage of the negotiated rate or lesser charge of the provider. See South Carolina Code 38-33-20
- Director: means the person who is appointed by the Governor upon the advice and consent of the Senate and who is responsible for the operation and management of the Department of Insurance, including all of its divisions. See South Carolina Code 38-33-20
- Enrollee: means an individual who is enrolled in a health maintenance organization. See South Carolina Code 38-33-20
- Equitable: Pertaining to civil suits in "equity" rather than in "law." In English legal history, the courts of "law" could order the payment of damages and could afford no other remedy. See damages. A separate court of "equity" could order someone to do something or to cease to do something. See, e.g., injunction. In American jurisprudence, the federal courts have both legal and equitable power, but the distinction is still an important one. For example, a trial by jury is normally available in "law" cases but not in "equity" cases. Source: U.S. Courts
- Evidence: Information presented in testimony or in documents that is used to persuade the fact finder (judge or jury) to decide the case for one side or the other.
- Evidence of coverage: means a certificate, an agreement, or a contract issued to an enrollee setting out the coverage to which he is entitled. See South Carolina Code 38-33-20
- Health care services: means services included in furnishing an individual medical or dental care or hospitalization or incident to the furnishing of care or hospitalization, and other services to prevent, alleviate, cure, or heal human illness, injury, or physical disability. See South Carolina Code 38-33-20
- Health maintenance organization: means a person who undertakes to provide or arrange for basic health care services to enrollees for a fixed prepaid premium. See South Carolina Code 38-33-20
- insurance: includes annuities. See South Carolina Code 38-1-20
- Insurer: includes a corporation, fraternal organization, burial association, other association, partnership, society, order, individual, or aggregation of individuals engaging or proposing or attempting to engage as principals in any kind of insurance or surety business, including the exchanging of reciprocal or interinsurance contracts between individuals, partnerships, and corporations. See South Carolina Code 38-1-20
- Person: means a natural or an artificial person including, but not limited to, individuals, partnerships, associations, trusts, or corporations. See South Carolina Code 38-33-20
- Policy: means a contract of insurance. See South Carolina Code 38-1-20
- Provider: means a physician, dentist, hospital, or other person properly licensed, where required, to furnish health care services. See South Carolina Code 38-33-20
(3) No evidence of coverage may contain provisions or statements which are unjust, unfair, inequitable, misleading, deceptive, which encourage misrepresentation, or which are untrue, misleading, or deceptive as defined in § 38-33-140; and
(4) An evidence of coverage must contain a clear and concise statement, if a contract, a summary, or a certificate, of:
(a) the health care services and the insurance or other benefits, if any, to which the enrollee is entitled;
(b) any limitations on the services, kind of services, benefits, or kind of benefits, to be provided, including any deductible or co-payment feature;
(c) where and in what manner information is available as to how services may be obtained;
(d) the total amount of payment for health care services and the indemnity or service benefits, if any, which the enrollee is obligated to pay with respect to individual contracts;
(e) clear and understandable description of the health maintenance organization’s method for resolving enrollee complaints; and
(f) the contract period during which the enrollee is entitled to health care services and benefits, the applicable charges for coverage during that contract period, and the time and manner in which charges and benefits under the contract or certificate can be changed. Any subsequent change may be evidenced in a separate document issued to the enrollee.
(5) The director or his designee may require additional provisions in the evidence of coverage as may be necessary to the fair, just, and equitable treatment of enrollees. The additional provisions may include, but are not limited to, any of the provisions required of health insurance policies in Chapter 71 of Title 38 and regulations promulgated thereunder, if in the opinion of the director or his designee, the provisions are appropriate for the coverages provided under the health maintenance organization’s evidence of coverage.
(6) The provisions of § 38-71-760 governing discontinuance and replacement of coverage are applicable to group health maintenance organization contracts, except to the extent that the director or his designee determines the provisions to be inappropriate to the coverage provided.
(7) A health maintenance organization that issues a health maintenance organization contract which requires the enrollee to pay a specified percentage of the cost of covered health care services shall calculate those copayments and deductibles on the negotiated rate or lesser charge of the provider. Nothing in this section precludes a health maintenance organization from issuing a contract which contains fixed dollar copayments and deductibles.
(B) No schedule of charges applicable to individual health maintenance organization contracts may be used until a copy of the schedule has been filed with and approved by the director or his designee. The director or his designee may disapprove this schedule of charges if it is determined that the benefits provided in the contracts are unreasonable in relation to the charges.
(C) The director or his designee shall approve within thirty days any form if the requirements of subsection (A) are met. The director or his designee, in his discretion, may extend for up to an additional sixty days the period within which he shall approve or disapprove the form. The director or his designee shall approve, within a reasonable period, any schedule of charges if the requirements of subsection (B) are met. It is unlawful to issue a form or to use a schedule of charges until approved. If the director or his designee disapproves the filing, he shall notify the filer. The notice must contain the reasons for disapproval, and the filer, upon request in writing, is entitled to a public hearing on it. If action is not taken to approve or disapprove any form within thirty days of the filing of the form, if the period is not extended, or at the expiration of the extended period, if any, the filing is deemed approved. If action is not taken to approve or disapprove any schedule of charges within ninety days of the filing of the charges, the filing is deemed approved. An organization may not use a form or schedule of charges deemed approved pursuant to the default provision of this section until the organization has filed with the director or his designee a written notice of its intent to use the form or schedule of charges. The notice must be filed in the office of the director at least ten days before the organization uses the form or schedule of charges.
(D) At any time the director or his designee, after a public hearing of which at least thirty days’ notice has been given, may withdraw approval of a schedule of charges previously approved under subsection (B) or an evidence of coverage approved under subsection (A) if he determined that the schedule of charges or evidence of coverage no longer meets the standards for approval specified in this section.