HB 1739 -- Health Insurance

Sponsor:  Page

This bill changes the laws regarding the Small Employer Health
Insurance Availability Act.  The bill:

(1)  Adds the terms "bona fide association," "creditable
coverage," "excepted benefits," "health status-related factor,"
and "medical care" as they relate to the act;

(2)  Modifies the definition of "small employer" as it pertains
to a group health plan to include political subdivisions.  A
small employer is one who employs two to 50 eligible employees.
Under current law, a small employer has three to 25 employees;

(3)  Modifies conditions under which small employer health
benefit plans are not renewable;

(4)  Lists conditions under which small employer carriers can
discontinue a particular type of small group health benefit plan
and discontinue all small employer health insurance coverage;

(5)  Repeals the requirement for small employer carriers electing
to non-renew all of its small employer health plans in the state
to provide certain types of notice;

(6)  Allows small employer carriers offering coverage through a
network plan to not offer coverage to an eligible person who no
longer lives or works in the service area or to a small employer
who no longer has an enrollee in the plan who lives or works in
the service area;

(7)  Requires small employer carriers to offer all health benefit
plans they actively market to small employers in the state.
Current law requires small employer carriers to offer at least
two health benefit plans:  a basic and a standard health benefit
plan;

(8)  Repeals provisions that limit how small employer health
benefit plans define pre-existing conditions;

(9)  Repeals provisions that require small employer health
benefit plans to waive waiting periods for pre-existing condition
coverage when the individual had continuous coverage;

(10)  Requires small employer carriers to offer coverage
uniformly to all small employers, without factoring in claims
experience or any health status-related factor relating to their
employees; and

(11)  Abolishes the Missouri Small Employer Reinsurance Program
on December 31, 2005.  The program will not take on any risk
after October 1, 2004.

Missouri House of Representatives
92nd General Assembly, 2nd Regular Session
Last Updated September 23, 2004 at 11:16 am