Terms Used In Virginia Code > Title 38.2 > Chapter 51 - Risk Retention Groups and Purchasing Groups

• Adult: means a person 18 years of age or more. See Virginia Code 1-203
• Appropriation: The provision of funds, through an annual appropriations act or a permanent law, for federal agencies to make payments out of the Treasury for specified purposes. The formal federal spending process consists of two sequential steps: authorization
• Assets: (1) The property comprising the estate of a deceased person, or (2) the property in a trust account.
• Attorney: means the person designated and authorized by subscribers as the attorney-in-fact having authority to obligate them on reciprocal insurance contracts. See Virginia Code 38.2-1201
• Authority: means any political subdivision, a body politic and corporate, created, organized, and operated pursuant to the provisions of this chapter or, if such Authority is abolished, the board, body, authority, department, or officer succeeding to the principal functions thereof or to whom the powers given by this chapter are given by law. See Virginia Code 15.2-5369
• Authority: means an authority created under the provisions of this chapter or, if any such authority has been abolished, the entity succeeding to the principal functions thereof. See Virginia Code 15.2-5431.2
• Basic health care services: means in and out-of-area emergency services, inpatient hospital and physician care, outpatient medical services, laboratory and radiologic services, mental health and substance use disorder benefits, and preventive health services. See Virginia Code 38.2-4300
• Bequest: Property gifted by will.
• Bond: includes any interest-bearing obligation, including promissory notes. See Virginia Code 15.2-5201
• Bond: includes any interest bearing obligation, including promissory notes. See Virginia Code 15.2-5369
• business of insurance: include solicitation, negotiations preliminary to execution, execution of an insurance contract, and the transaction of matters subsequent to execution of the contract and arising out of it. See Virginia Code 38.2-100
• Chief executive officer: includes the Chancellor of the Virginia Community College System, the Chancellor of the University of Virginia's College at Wise, the Superintendent of Virginia Military Institute, and the president of each other public institution of higher education. See Virginia Code 23.1-100
• Commission: means the State Corporation Commission. See Virginia Code 38.2-100
• Commission: means the Marine Resources Commission. See Virginia Code 28.2-100
• Commissioner: means the commissioner, director, or superintendent of insurance in a state other than the Commonwealth of Virginia. See Virginia Code 38.2-5101
• Commissioner: means the State Health Commissioner. See Virginia Code 15.2-5369
• Commissioner: means the Commissioner of Marine Resources. See Virginia Code 28.2-100
• Company: means any association, aggregate of individuals, business, corporation, individual, joint-stock company, Lloyds type of organization, organization, partnership, receiver, reciprocal or interinsurance exchange, trustee or society. See Virginia Code 38.2-100
• Completed operations liability: means liability arising out of the installation, maintenance, or repair of any product at a site which is not owned or controlled by (i) any person who performs that work or (ii) any person who hires an independent contractor to perform that work; but shall include liability for activities which are completed or abandoned before the date of the occurrence giving rise to the liability. See Virginia Code 38.2-5101
• Contract: A legal written agreement that becomes binding when signed.
• Copayment: means an amount an enrollee is required to pay in order to receive a specific health care service. See Virginia Code 38.2-4300
• Council: means the State Council of Higher Education for Virginia. See Virginia Code 23.1-100
• Council: means the governing body of a city or town. See Virginia Code 15.2-102
• County: means any existing county or such unit hereafter created. See Virginia Code 15.2-102
• Damages: Money paid by defendants to successful plaintiffs in civil cases to compensate the plaintiffs for their injuries.
• Deed: The legal instrument used to transfer title in real property from one person to another.
• Devise: To gift property by will.
• Donor: The person who makes a gift.
• Emergency services: means those health care services that are rendered by affiliated or nonaffiliated providers after the sudden onset of a medical condition that manifests itself by symptoms of sufficient severity, including severe pain, that the absence of immediate medical attention could reasonably be expected by a prudent layperson who possesses an average knowledge of health and medicine to result in (i) serious jeopardy to the mental or physical health of the individual, (ii) danger of serious impairment of the individual's bodily functions, (iii) serious dysfunction of any of the individual's bodily organs, or (iv) in the case of a pregnant woman, serious jeopardy to the health of the fetus. See Virginia Code 38.2-4300
• 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 any certificate or individual or group agreement or contract issued in conjunction with the certificate, agreement or contract, issued to a subscriber setting out the coverage and other rights to which an enrollee is entitled. See Virginia Code 38.2-4300
• Ex officio: Literally, by virtue of one's office.
• Ex officio: means service by virtue of one's office and includes voting privileges for ex officio members unless otherwise provided. See Virginia Code 1-215
• feasibility study: means an analysis which presents the expected activities and results of a risk retention group including, at a minimum:

  1. See Virginia Code 38.2-5101

• Fiscal year: The fiscal year is the accounting period for the government. For the federal government, this begins on October 1 and ends on September 30. The fiscal year is designated by the calendar year in which it ends; for example, fiscal year 2006 begins on October 1, 2005 and ends on September 30, 2006.
• Freedom of Information Act: A federal law that mandates that all the records created and kept by federal agencies in the executive branch of government must be open for public inspection and copying. The only exceptions are those records that fall into one of nine exempted categories listed in the statute. ^{Source: OCC}
• Gift: A voluntary transfer or conveyance of property without consideration, or for less than full and adequate consideration based on fair market value.
• Governing body: means the board of supervisors of a county, council of a city, or council of a town, as the context may require. See Virginia Code 15.2-102
• Hazardous financial condition: means that, based on its present or reasonably anticipated financial condition, a risk retention group, although not yet financially impaired or insolvent, is unlikely to be able (i) to meet obligations to policyholders with respect to known claims and reasonably anticipated claims or (ii) to pay other obligations in the normal course of business. See Virginia Code 38.2-5101
• Health care plan: means any arrangement in which any person undertakes to provide, arrange for, pay for, or reimburse any part of the cost of any health care services. See Virginia Code 38.2-4300
• health care provider: means any physician, hospital, or other person that is licensed or otherwise authorized in the Commonwealth to furnish health care services. See Virginia Code 38.2-4300
• Health care services: means the furnishing of services to any individual for the purpose of preventing, alleviating, curing, or healing human illness, injury, or physical disability. See Virginia Code 38.2-4300
• Health maintenance organization: means any person who undertakes to provide or arrange for one or more health care plans. See Virginia Code 38.2-4300
• Health services plan: means any arrangement for offering or administering health services or similar or related services by a corporation licensed under Chapter 42 of Title 59. See Virginia Code 38.2-100
• Hospital: includes any health center and health provider under common ownership with the hospital and means any and all providers of dental, medical, and mental health services, including all related facilities and approaches thereto and appurtenances thereof. See Virginia Code 15.2-5369
• Hospital or health center: means any and all medical facilities and approaches thereto and appurtenances thereof. See Virginia Code 15.2-5201
• Includes: means includes, but not limited to. See Virginia Code 1-218
• Insurance: means primary insurance, excess insurance, reinsurance, surplus lines insurance, and any other arrangement for shifting and distributing risk which is determined to be insurance under the laws of this Commonwealth. See Virginia Code 38.2-5101
• Insurance company: means any company engaged in the business of making contracts of insurance. See Virginia Code 38.2-100
• Insurer: means an insurance company. See Virginia Code 38.2-100
• Interest rate: The amount paid by a borrower to a lender in exchange for the use of the lender's money for a certain period of time. Interest is paid on loans or on debt instruments, such as notes or bonds, either at regular intervals or as part of a lump sum payment when the issue matures. ^{Source: OCC}
• Lease: A contract transferring the use of property or occupancy of land, space, structures, or equipment in consideration of a payment (e.g., rent). ^{Source: OCC}
• Liability: means legal liability for damages, including costs of defense, legal costs and fees, and other claims expenses, because of injuries to other persons, damage to their property, or other damage or loss to such other persons resulting from or arising out of (i) any business, whether profit or nonprofit, trade, product, services, including professional services, premises, or operations or (ii) any activity of any state or local government, or any agency or political subdivision thereof. See Virginia Code 38.2-5101
• Limited health care services: means dental care services, vision care services, and such other services as may be determined by the Commission to be limited health care services. See Virginia Code 38.2-4300
• Locality: means a county, city, or town as the context may require. See Virginia Code 1-221
• member: means an individual who is enrolled in a health care plan. See Virginia Code 38.2-4300
• Mortgage: The written agreement pledging property to a creditor as collateral for a loan.
• Nonlegislative citizen member: means any natural person who is not a member of the General Assembly of Virginia. See Virginia Code 1-225
• Obligation: An order placed, contract awarded, service received, or similar transaction during a given period that will require payments during the same or a future period.
• Officer: means a member of the Virginia Marine Police. See Virginia Code 28.2-100
• Oversight: Committee review of the activities of a Federal agency or program.
• Participating locality: means any county or city in the LENOWISCO or Cumberland Plateau Planning District Commissions and the Counties of Smyth and Washington and the City of Bristol with respect to which an authority may be organized and in which it is contemplated that the Authority will function. See Virginia Code 15.2-5369
• Participating provider: means a provider who has agreed to provide health care services to enrollees and to hold those enrollees harmless from payment with an expectation of receiving payment, other than copayments or deductibles, directly or indirectly from the health maintenance organization. See Virginia Code 38.2-4300
• Partnership: A voluntary contract between two or more persons to pool some or all of their assets into a business, with the agreement that there will be a proportional sharing of profits and losses.
• Person: means any association, aggregate of individuals, business, company, corporation, individual, joint-stock company, Lloyds type of organization, organization, partnership, receiver, reciprocal or interinsurance exchange, trustee or society. See Virginia Code 38.2-100
• Personal risk liability: means liability for damages because of injury to any person, damage to property, or other loss or damage resulting from any personal, familial, or household responsibilities or activities. See Virginia Code 38.2-5101
• Plaintiff: The person who files the complaint in a civil lawsuit.
• Product liability: means liability for damages because of any personal injury, death, emotional harm, consequential economic damage, or property damage, including damages resulting from the loss of use of property, arising out of the manufacture, design, importation, distribution, packaging, labeling, lease, or sale of a product, but does not include the liability of any person for those damages if the product involved was in the possession of such a person when the incident giving rise to the claim occurred. See Virginia Code 38.2-5101
• Project: means any system of facilities for provision of qualifying communications services as authorized by Article 5. See Virginia Code 15.2-5431.2
• Public institution of higher education: includes the System as a whole and each associate-degree-granting and baccalaureate public institution of higher education in the Commonwealth. See Virginia Code 23.1-100
• Purchasing group: means any group which:

  1. See Virginia Code 38.2-5101

• Quorum: The number of legislators that must be present to do business.
• rates: means any rate of premium, policy fee, membership fee or any other charge made by an insurer for or in connection with a contract or policy of insurance. See Virginia Code 38.2-100
• Real property: Land, and all immovable fixtures erected on, growing on, or affixed to the land.
• Recess: A temporary interruption of the legislative business.
• Remainder: An interest in property that takes effect in the future at a specified time or after the occurrence of some event, such as the death of a life tenant.
• Resident: means any person who maintains his principal place of abode in Virginia with the intent to make Virginia his domicile. See Virginia Code 28.2-200
• revenue bonds: include notes, bonds, bond anticipation notes, and other obligations of an authority for the payment of money. See Virginia Code 15.2-5431.2
• Risk retention group: means any corporation or other limited liability association:

  1. See Virginia Code 38.2-5101

• shellfish: means such species of mollusca as oysters and clams, and such species of crustacea as crabs. See Virginia Code 28.2-100
• Shoals: means subaqueous elevations covered by water less than four feet deep at mean low water. See Virginia Code 28.2-200
• State: means any state of the United States or the District of Columbia. See Virginia Code 38.2-5101
• State: means any commonwealth, state, territory, district or insular possession of the United States. See Virginia Code 38.2-100
• State Board: means the State Board for Community Colleges. See Virginia Code 23.1-100
• Subscriber: means a person obligated under a reciprocal insurance agreement. See Virginia Code 38.2-1201
• sworn: means "affirm" or "affirmed. See Virginia Code 1-250
• System: means the Virginia Community College System. See Virginia Code 23.1-100
• Town: means any existing town or an incorporated community within one or more counties which became a town before noon, July 1, 1971, as provided by law or which has within defined boundaries a population of 1,000 or more and which has become a town as provided by law. See Virginia Code 1-254
• Trustee: A person or institution holding and administering property in trust.
• United States: includes the 50 states, the District of Columbia the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands and the United States Virgin Islands. See Virginia Code 1-255