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2022 SESSION
22103932DBe it enacted by the General Assembly of Virginia:
1. That § 32.1-330.2 of the Code of Virginia is amended and reenacted as follows:
§ 32.1-330.2. Medicaid managed care programs; program information documents; plain language required.
A. Whenever medical
assistance services pursuant to this chapter are furnished through managed care
programs, the As used in this
section, "program information" means all forms of communication that
(i) are provided to any person who is eligible for or a recipient of medical
assistance services provided by the Commonwealth pursuant to Titles XIX and XX
of the Social Security Act and (ii) describe medical assistance services
available to and the rights and responsibilities of recipients of medical
assistance services provided by the Commonwealth pursuant to Titles XIX and XX
of the Social Security Act.
B. The
Board of Medical Assistance Services shall require that all program information documents furnished recipients covered
thereunder shall be written (i) communicated in
nontechnical, readily understandable, plain
language, using words of common, everyday usage and (ii) made available in a manner that is
accessible to (a) individuals with limited English proficiency through the
provision of language access services, including oral interpretation and
written translations, and (b) individuals with disabilities through the
provision of auxiliary aids services, when doing so is a reasonable step to
providing meaningful access to health care coverage. A
person that makes program
information available may consider
resources, including staffing, available to such person and the cost of
responding to requests for language access or auxiliary aids
services in determining the reasonableness of
making program information available pursuant to this subsection.
C. Language access services and auxiliary aids services provided to ensure program information is accessible to individuals with limited English proficiency and individuals with disabilities shall be provided without charge to such individuals. Information regarding how to receive language access services and auxiliary aids services shall be included with program information documents on a website maintained by the Department and on the website of every person or agency that provides program information.
B. Each
sponsor or administrator of any such managed
care program D. Every
person that provides program
information shall use an objective
readability measure approved by the Department to test
the readability of its program information documents by
use of the Flesch Readability Formula, as set forth in Rudolf Flesch, The Art
of Readable Writing (1949, as revised 1974), and no program information
document shall be used unless it achieves a Flesch total readability score of
forty or more. The requirements of this subsection shall
not apply to language which that is mandated by federal or
state laws, regulations, or
agencies.
C. E. All
program information documents within the scope of this section, and all
amendments thereto, shall be filed with made available for review upon the request of
the Department of Medical
Assistance Services in advance of their use and distribution, accompanied by
certificates setting forth the Flesch scores and certifying compliance with the
requirements of this section. Any program information
document which
that is exempt from the requirements of subsection B shall
be accompanied by a documentation of the federal or state law, regulation, or agency mandate that
authorizes the exemption.
D. For
the purpose of this section, the term "program information documents"
means all forms, brochures, handbooks or other documentation (i) provided
recipients covered under Medicaid managed care programs, and (ii) describing
the programs' medical care coverages and the rights and responsibilities of recipients
covered thereunder. Further, the term "recipient" shall include
potential recipients and recipients.