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2012 SESSION

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Senate Committee on Commerce and Labor
Subcommittee Health Insurance

McWaters (Chairman), Stuart, Herring

Clerk: Hobie Lehman, Bonnie Shelhorse
Staff: Frank Munyan
Date of Meeting: February 8, 2012
Time and Place: 8:00 AM / Senate Room A
The Subcommittee plans to meet Tuesday and Wednesday this week

S.B. 383

Patron: McEachin

Virginia Health Benefits Exchange.  Creates the Virginia Health Benefits Exchange Authority as a political subdivision of the Commonwealth. The Authority is charged with establishing and operating health benefit exchanges for qualified individuals and small businesses, collectively referred to as the Exchange. The measure also provides for the Authority to perform, or provide for the performance by other state agencies of, duties associated with the operation of the Exchange as required by the federal Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, and implements the intent set forth in Chapter 823 of the 2011 Acts of Assembly that Virginia create and operate its own health benefits exchange to preserve and enhance competition in the health insurance market. The Authority is authorized to enter agreements with the State Corporation Commission and Departments of Medical Assistance Services, Health, and Social Services regarding the performance of duties related to the conduct of the Exchange. The Exchange will be funded by assessments on health insurers offering plans in the Exchange. Persons who file information that is known to be false or misleading, or willfully and knowingly violate any provision of the act, are subject to a civil penalty of not more than $5,000.  The measure provides that the same market rules will apply to health plans sold inside and outside the Exchange, and that mandated health benefits applicable to plans offered outside the Exchange will also apply to plans offered through the Exchange. Insurance companies are required to offer the same health plans, for the same price, inside and outside the Exchange. Insurers are prohibited from offering bronze level plans outside the Exchange unless they also offer such plans through the Exchange. The State Corporation Commission is required to ensure that insurance agents and brokers are not provided with financial incentives to direct persons either to the Exchange or outside the Exchange. The measure will expire on the effective date of a final, nonappealable order of a court of proper jurisdiction invalidating the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act or of federal legislation repealing the federal act.

A BILL to amend and reenact §§ 2.2-2818, 2.2-2905, 2.2-3705.7, 2.2-3711, 2.2-4002, 2.2-4343, 32.1-16, 32.1-321.1, 38.2-200, 38.2-316, 38.2-3522.1, 38.2-3523.4, and 63.2-206 of the Code of Virginia and to amend the Code of Virginia by adding sections numbered 38.2-1809.1, 38.2-3430.1:2, and 38.2-3510.1 and by adding in Title 38.2 a chapter numbered 64, consisting of sections numbered 38.2-6400 through 38.2-6431, relating to the creation of the Virginia Health Benefit Exchange Authority and the establishment and operation of a health benefit exchange for the Commonwealth; assessments; rules applicable to health care plans offered outside the health benefit exchange; duties of state agencies.

12101007D

S.B. 488

Patron: Saslaw

Virginia Health Benefit Exchange.  Creates the Virginia Health Benefit Exchange, which will be established and operated by a new division within the State Corporation Commission. The Exchange shall facilitate the purchase and sale of qualified health plans and qualified dental plans to qualified individuals and qualified employers. The Exchange will be funded by assessments on health insurers offering plans in the Exchange. A health plan will not be required to cover any state mandated health benefit if federal law does not require it to be covered as part of the essential benefits package.

A BILL to amend the Code of Virginia by adding in Title 38.2 a chapter numbered 64, consisting of sections numbered 38.2-6400 through 38.2-6412, relating to the establishment and operation of a health benefit exchange for the Commonwealth; assessments.

12100912D

S.B. 496

Patron: Watkins

Virginia Health Benefit Exchange.  Creates the Virginia Health Benefit Exchange, which will be established and operated by a new division within the State Corporation Commission. The Exchange shall facilitate the purchase and sale of qualified health plans and qualified dental plans to qualified individuals and qualified employers. The Exchange will be funded by assessments on health insurers offering plans in the Exchange. A health plan will not be required to cover any state mandated health benefit if federal law does not require it to be covered as part of the essential benefits package. The essential health benefits are items and services included in the benchmark health insurance plan, which is the largest plan in the largest product in the Commonwealth's small group market as supplemented in order to provide coverage for the items and services within the statutory essential health benefits categories. The Exchange shall ensure that no qualified health insurance plan that is sold or offered for sale through the Exchange provides coverage for abortions, except for an abortion performed (i) when the life of the mother is endangered by a physical disorder, physical illness, or physical injury, including a life-endangering physical condition caused by or arising from the pregnancy itself, or (ii) when the pregnancy is the result of an alleged act of rape or incest.  The measure shall expire if any section, clause, provision, or portion of Title I, subtitle D of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act shall be repealed or held invalid or unconstitutional by any court of competent jurisdiction.

A BILL to amend the Code of Virginia by adding in Title 38.2 a chapter numbered 64, consisting of sections numbered 38.2-6400 through 38.2-6415, relating to the establishment and operation of a health benefit exchange for the Commonwealth; assessments.

12100906D

S.B. 518

Patron: Wagner

Mandated health insurance benefits; essential benefits package.  Provides that health insurance plans will not be required, effective January 1, 2014, to provide coverage for state-mandated health benefits to the extent that the benefit is not an essential benefit that is required to be covered under a qualified health plan offered within a health benefit exchange established pursuant to the federal health reform law. The measure also provides that the entity operating a health benefit exchange for Virginia shall not condition its approval to the offering of a health plan within the health benefit exchange upon the plan's providing coverage for a state-mandated health benefit, to the extent that the state-mandated health benefit is not an essential benefit, that is required to be covered under a qualified health plan offered within the health benefit exchange.

A BILL to amend the Code of Virginia by adding a section numbered 38.2-3406.3, relating to mandated health insurance benefits and the essential benefits package; coverage provided under health plans offered within and outside a health benefit exchange.

12101460D

S.B. 615

Patrons: Favola, Northam

Virginia Health Benefits Exchange.  Creates the Virginia Health Benefits Exchange Authority as a political subdivision of the Commonwealth, as recommended by the Virginia Health Reform Initiative Advisory Council. The Authority is charged with establishing and operating health benefit exchanges for qualified individuals and for small businesses, collectively referred to as the Exchange. The measure also provides for the Authority to perform, or provide for the performance by other state agencies of, duties associated with the operation of the Exchange as required by the federal Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, and implements the intent set forth in Chapter 823 of the Acts of Assembly of 2011 that Virginia create and operate its own health benefits exchange to preserve and enhance competition in the health insurance market. The Authority is authorized to enter agreements with the State Corporation Commission and Departments of Medical Assistance Services, Health, and Social Services regarding the performance of duties related to the conduct of the Exchange. The Exchange will be funded by assessment fees on all health carriers offering plans in the Exchange. The measure provides that mandated health benefits applicable to plans offered outside the Exchange will also apply to plans offered through the Exchange.

A BILL to amend and reenact §§ 2.2-2905, 2.2-3705.7, 2.2-3711, 2.2-4002, 2.2-4343, 32.1-16, 32.1-321.1, 38.2-200, and 63.2-206 of the Code of Virginia and to amend the Code of Virginia by adding in Title 38.2 a chapter numbered 64, consisting of sections numbered 38.2-6400 through 38.2-6427, relating to the creation of the Virginia Health Benefit Exchange Authority and the establishment and operation of a health benefit exchange for the Commonwealth; assessments; duties of state agencies; study.

12103373D