H. B. 2475
(By Delegates Eldridge, Iaquinta, Argento,
Rodighiero, Perdue, Perry, Paxton and Shaver)
[Introduced February 16, 2009; referred to the
Committee on Pensions and Retirement then Finance.]
A BILL to amend and reenact §5-16-7 of the Code of West Virginia,
1931, as amended, relating to permitting retired state
employees to transfer from Medicare to coverage through the
West Virginia Public Employees Act.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That §5-16-7 of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended,
be amended and reenacted to read as follows:
ARTICLE 16. WEST VIRGINIA PUBLIC EMPLOYEES INSURANCE ACT.
§5-16-7. Authorization to establish group hospital and surgical
insurance plan, group major medical insurance plan,
group prescription drug plan and group life and
accidental death insurance plan; rules for
administration of plans; mandated benefits; what plans
may provide; optional plans; separate rating for
claims experience purposes.
(a) The agency shall establish a group hospital and surgical
insurance plan or plans, a group prescription drug insurance plan
or plans, a group major medical insurance plan or plans and a group
life and accidental death insurance plan or plans for those
employees herein made eligible and establish and promulgate rules
for the administration of these plans, subject to the limitations
contained in this article. Those plans shall include:
(1) Coverages and benefits for X-ray and laboratory services
in connection with mammograms when medically appropriate and
consistent with current guidelines from the United States
Preventive Services Task Force; pap smears, either conventional or
liquid-based cytology, whichever is medically appropriate and
consistent with the current guidelines from either the United
States Preventive Services Task Force or The American College of
Obstetricians and Gynecologists; and a test for the human papilloma
virus (HPV) when medically appropriate and consistent with current
guidelines from either the United States Preventive Services Task
Force or The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists,
when performed for cancer screening or diagnostic services on a
woman age 18 or over;
(2) Annual checkups for prostate cancer in men age fifty and
over;
(3) Annual screening for kidney disease as determined to be
medically necessary by a physician using any combination of blood pressure testing, urine albumin or urine protein testing and serum
creatinine testing as recommended by the National Kidney
Foundation;
(4) For plans that include maternity benefits, coverage for
inpatient care in a duly licensed health care facility for a mother
and her newly born infant for the length of time which the
attending physician considers medically necessary for the mother or
her newly born child.
Provided, That A plan may not deny payment
for a mother or her newborn child prior to forty-eight hours
following a vaginal delivery, or prior to ninety-six hours
following a caesarean section delivery, if the attending physician
considers discharge medically inappropriate;
(5) For plans which provide coverages for post-delivery care
to a mother and her newly born child in the home, coverage for
inpatient care following childbirth as provided in subdivision (4)
of this subsection if inpatient care is determined to be medically
necessary by the attending physician. Those plans may also
include, among other things, medicines, medical equipment,
prosthetic appliances, and any other inpatient and outpatient
services and expenses considered appropriate
and desirable by the
agency; and
(6) Coverage for treatment of serious mental illness.
(A) The coverage does not include custodial care, residential
care or schooling. For purposes of this section, "serious mental illness" means an illness included in the American Psychiatric
Association's diagnostic and statistical manual of mental
disorders, as periodically revised, under the diagnostic categories
or subclassifications of: (i) Schizophrenia and other psychotic
disorders; (ii) bipolar disorders; (iii) depressive disorders; (iv)
substance-related disorders with the exception of caffeine-related
disorders and nicotine-related disorders; (v) anxiety disorders;
and (vi) anorexia and bulimia. With regard to any covered
individual who has not yet attained the age of nineteen years,
"serious mental illness" also includes attention deficit
hyperactivity disorder, separation anxiety disorder and conduct
disorder.
(B) Notwithstanding any other
contrary provision in this
section,
to the contrary in the event
that the agency can
demonstrate actuarially that its total anticipated costs for the
treatment of mental illness for any plan will exceed or have
exceeded two percent of the total costs for such plan in any
experience period, then the agency may apply whatever
cost-containment measures
may be necessary, including, but not
limited to, limitations on inpatient and outpatient benefits, to
maintain costs below
the two percent
threshold. of the total costs
for the plan
(C) The agency shall not discriminate between medical-surgical
benefits and mental health benefits in the administration of its plan. With
regard to both medical-surgical and mental health
benefits, it may make determinations of medical necessity and
appropriateness, and
it may use recognized health care quality and
cost management tools, including, but not limited to, limitations
on inpatient and outpatient benefits, utilization review,
implementation of cost-containment measures, preauthorization for
certain treatments, setting coverage levels, setting maximum number
of visits within certain time periods, using capitated benefit
arrangements, using fee-for-service arrangements, using third-party
administrators, using provider networks and using patient cost
sharing in the form of copayments, deductibles and coinsurance.
(b) The agency shall make available to each eligible employee,
at full cost to the employee, the opportunity to purchase optional
group life and accidental death insurance as established under
the
rules of the agency
rules. In addition, each employee is entitled
to have his or her spouse and dependents, as defined by
the rules
of the agency
rules, included in the optional coverage, at full
cost to the employee, for each eligible dependent; and with full
authorization to the agency to make the optional coverage available
and provide an opportunity of purchase to each employee.
(c) The finance board may cause to be separately rated for
claims experience purposes:
(1) All employees of the State of West Virginia;
(2) All teaching and professional employees of state public institutions of higher education and county boards of education;
(3) All nonteaching employees of the Higher Education Policy
Commission, West Virginia Council for Community and Technical
College Education and county boards of education; or
(4) Any other categorization which would ensure the stability
of the overall program.
(d) The agency shall maintain the medical and prescription
drug coverage for Medicare-eligible retirees by providing coverage
through one of the existing plans or by enrolling the
Medicare-eligible retired employees into a Medicare-specific plan,
including, but not limited to, the Medicare/Advantage Prescription
Drug Plan. In the event
that a Medicare-specific plan would no
longer be available or advantageous for the agency and the
retirees, the retirees shall remain eligible for coverage through
the agency.
(e) Medicare-eligible retired employees may transfer coverage
from a Medicare-specific plan to coverage directly through the
agency.
NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to permit Medicare-eligible
retired employees to transfer coverage from a Medicare-specific
plan to coverage directly from the agency.
Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken from
the present law, and underscoring indicates new language that would
be added.