HB-5348, As Passed House, June 8, 2006

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

HOUSE BILL No. 5348

 

October 20, 2005, Introduced by Reps. Green, Byrnes, Ball, Kahn, Vander Veen, Shaffer, Zelenko, Hopgood, Polidori, Byrum and Hansen and referred to the Committee on Senior Health, Security, and Retirement.

 

     A bill to amend 1956 PA 218, entitled

 

"The insurance code of 1956,"

 

by amending section 3901 (MCL 500.3901), as added by 1992 PA 84,

 

and by adding section 3902; and to repeal acts and parts of acts.

 

THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF MICHIGAN ENACT:

 

     Sec. 3901. As used in this chapter:

 

     (a) "Acute condition" means that the individual is medically

 

unstable, requiring frequent monitoring by medical professionals in

 

order to maintain his or her health status.

 

     (b) "Applicant" means:

 

     (i) For an individual long-term care insurance policy, the

 

person who seeks to contract for long-term care benefits.

 

     (ii) For a group long-term care insurance certificate, the

 


proposed certificate holder.

 

     (c) "Group long-term care insurance" means a long-term care

 

insurance certificate that is delivered or issued for delivery in

 

this state and issued to any of the following:

 

     (i) One or more employers or labor organizations, or to a trust

 

or the trustees of a fund established by 1 or more employers or

 

labor organizations for employees or former employees or members or

 

former members of the labor organization.

 

     (ii) A professional, trade, or occupational association for its

 

members or former or retired members if the association is composed

 

of individuals who were all actively engaged in the same

 

profession, trade, or occupation and the association has been

 

maintained in good faith for purposes other than obtaining

 

insurance unless waived by the commissioner.

 

     (iii) Subject to section 3903(2), an association or to a trust

 

or to the trustees of a fund established, created, or maintained

 

for the benefit of members of 1 or more associations.

 

     (iv) A group other than that described in subparagraphs (i),

 

(ii), or (iii) if the commissioner determines all of the following:

 

     (A) The issuance of the group certificate is not contrary to

 

the best interests of the public.

 

     (B) The issuance of the group certificate would result in

 

economies of acquisition or administration.

 

     (C) The benefits are reasonable in relation to the premiums

 

charged.

 

     (d) "Guaranteed renewable" means the insured has the right to

 

continue the long-term care insurance in force by the timely

 


payment of premiums and the insurer does not have a unilateral

 

right to make any change in any provision of the policy or rider

 

while the insurance is in force and cannot decline to renew, except

 

that rates may be revised by the insurer on a class basis.

 

     (e) "Home care services" means 1 or more of the following

 

medically  prescribed services or assessment team recommended

 

services for the long-term care and treatment of an insured that

 

are to be provided in a noninstitutional setting according to a

 

written diagnosis and plan of care or individual assessment and

 

plan of care:

 

     (i) Nursing services under the direction of a registered nurse,

 

including the service of a home health aide.

 

     (ii) Physical therapy.

 

     (iii) Speech therapy.

 

     (iv) Respiratory therapy.

 

     (v) Occupational therapy.

 

     (vi) Nutritional services provided by a registered dietitian.

 

     (vii) Personal care services, homemaker services, adult day

 

care, and similar nonmedical services.

 

     (viii) Medical social services.

 

     (ix) Other similar medical services and health-related support

 

services.

 

     (f) "Home health or care agency" means a person certified by

 

medicare whose business is to provide to individuals in their

 

places of residence other than in a hospital, nursing home, or

 

county medical care facility, 1 or more of the following services:

 

nursing services, therapeutic services, social work services,

 


homemaker services, home health aide services, or other related

 

services.

 

     (g) "Intermediate care facility" means a facility, or distinct

 

part of a facility, certified by the department of  public  

 

community health to provide intermediate care, custodial care, or

 

basic care that is less than skilled nursing care but more than

 

room and board.

 

     (h) "Long-term care insurance" means an individual or group

 

insurance policy, certificate, or rider advertised, marketed,

 

offered, or designed to provide coverage for at least 12

 

consecutive months for each covered person on an expense-incurred,

 

indemnity, prepaid, or other basis for 1 or more necessary or

 

medically necessary diagnostic, preventive, therapeutic,

 

rehabilitative, maintenance, personal, or custodial care services

 

provided in a setting,  other than  including an assisted living

 

facility operating legally in this state, but not including an

 

acute care unit of a hospital. Long-term care insurance includes

 

individual or group annuities and life insurance policies or riders

 

that provide directly or supplement long-term care insurance. Long-

 

term care insurance does not include a life insurance policy that

 

accelerates the death benefit specifically for 1 or more of the

 

qualifying events of terminal illness or medical conditions

 

requiring extraordinary medical intervention or permanent

 

institutional confinement and that provide the option of a lump-sum

 

payment for those benefits and in which neither the benefits nor

 

the eligibility for the benefits is conditioned upon the receipt of

 

long-term care. Long-term care insurance does not include an

 


insurance policy offered primarily to provide coverage for

 

rehabilitative and convalescent care and is not offered,

 

advertised, or marketed as a long-term care policy, or offered

 

primarily to provide basic medicare supplemental coverage, hospital

 

confinement indemnity coverage, basic hospital expense coverage,

 

basic medical-surgical expense coverage, major medical expense

 

coverage, disability income protection coverage, catastrophic

 

coverage, comprehensive coverage, accident only coverage, specific

 

disease or specified accident coverage, or limited benefit health

 

coverage.

 

     (i) "Medicare" means title XVIII of the social security act,

 

chapter 531, 49 Stat. 620, 42 U.S.C. 1395 to 1395b, 1395b-2, 1395c

 

to 1395i, 1395i-2 to 1395i-4, 1395j to 1395t, 1395u to 1395w-2,

 

1395w-4 to 1395zz, and 1395bbb to 1395ccc  42 USC 1395 to 1395ggg.

 

     (j) "Nonprofit health care corporation" means a nonprofit

 

health care corporation operating pursuant to the nonprofit health

 

care corporation reform act, 1980 PA 350, MCL 550.1101 to 550.1704.

 

     (k)  (j)  "Preexisting condition" means a condition for which

 

medical advice or treatment was recommended by, or received from, a

 

provider of health care services within the 6 months immediately

 

before the effective date of coverage of an insured person.

 

     (l)  (k)  "Policy" means an insurance policy or certificate,

 

rider, or endorsement delivered or issued for delivery in this

 

state by an insurer or subsidiary of a nonprofit health care

 

corporation.

 

     (m)  (l)  "Skilled nursing facility" means a facility, or a

 

distinct part of a facility, certified by the department of  public  

 


community health to provide skilled nursing care.

 

     Sec. 3902. A nonprofit health care corporation shall only

 

offer long-term care coverage through a subsidiary of the health

 

care corporation and as provided in this chapter. If a health care

 

corporation subsidiary offers long-term care coverage in this

 

state, the sale of that coverage is not exempt from taxation by

 

this state or any political subdivision of this state.

 

     Enacting section 1.  Sections 420 to 430 of the nonprofit

 

health care corporation reform act, 1980 PA 350, MCL 550.1420 to

 

550.1430, are repealed.