Public Act 103-0618
 
SB2735 EnrolledLRB103 34765 RPS 64615 b

    AN ACT concerning regulation.
 
    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
represented in the General Assembly:
 
    Section 5. The Illinois Insurance Code is amended by
adding Section 355.6 as follows:
 
    (215 ILCS 5/355.6 new)
    Sec. 355.6. Health care provider reimbursement.
    (a) In this Section, "health care provider" has the
meaning given to the term "provider" in Section 370g.
    (b) Any group or individual policy of accident and health
insurance or managed care plan amended, delivered, issued, or
renewed on or after January 1, 2026 shall offer all reasonably
available methods of payment from the insurer or managed care
plan, or its contracted vendor, to the contracted health care
provider, which shall include, but not be limited to, payment
by check and electronic funds transfer. An insurer or managed
care plan shall not mandate payment by credit card. For
purposes of this subsection, "credit card" means a single-use
or virtual credit card provided in an electronic, digital,
facsimile, physical, or paper format.
    (c) If one of the available payment methods has a fee
associated with it, the insurer or managed care plan, or its
contracted vendor, shall, prior to initiating the first
payment to an in-network health care provider or upon changing
the payment methods available to a health care provider:
        (1) notify the health care provider that there may be
    fees associated with a particular payment method and that
    the insurer or managed care plan, or its contracted
    vendor, shall disclose any fees beyond what the health
    care provider would normally pay to process a payment
    using that payment method; and
        (2) provide the health care provider with clear
    instructions on the insurer's or managed care plan's, or
    its contracted vendor's, website or through means other
    than the contract offered to the health care provider as
    to how to select each method.
    (d) If a health care provider requests a change in the
available payment method, the insurer or managed care plan, or
its contracted vendor, shall implement the change to the
payment method selected by the health care provider within 30
business days, subject to federal and State verification
measures to prevent fraud and abuse.
    (e) An insurer or managed care plan shall not use a health
care provider's preferred method of payment as a factor when
deciding whether to provide credentials to a health care
provider.
 
    Section 10. The Health Maintenance Organization Act is
amended by changing Section 5-3 as follows:
 
    (215 ILCS 125/5-3)  (from Ch. 111 1/2, par. 1411.2)
    Sec. 5-3. Insurance Code provisions.
    (a) Health Maintenance Organizations shall be subject to
the provisions of Sections 133, 134, 136, 137, 139, 140,
141.1, 141.2, 141.3, 143, 143c, 147, 148, 149, 151, 152, 153,
154, 154.5, 154.6, 154.7, 154.8, 155.04, 155.22a, 155.49,
355.2, 355.3, 355.6, 355b, 355c, 356f, 356g.5-1, 356m, 356q,
356v, 356w, 356x, 356z.2, 356z.3a, 356z.4, 356z.4a, 356z.5,
356z.6, 356z.8, 356z.9, 356z.10, 356z.11, 356z.12, 356z.13,
356z.14, 356z.15, 356z.17, 356z.18, 356z.19, 356z.20, 356z.21,
356z.22, 356z.23, 356z.24, 356z.25, 356z.26, 356z.28, 356z.29,
356z.30, 356z.30a, 356z.31, 356z.32, 356z.33, 356z.34,
356z.35, 356z.36, 356z.37, 356z.38, 356z.39, 356z.40, 356z.41,
356z.44, 356z.45, 356z.46, 356z.47, 356z.48, 356z.49, 356z.50,
356z.51, 356z.53, 356z.54, 356z.55, 356z.56, 356z.57, 356z.58,
356z.59, 356z.60, 356z.61, 356z.62, 356z.64, 356z.65, 356z.67,
356z.68, 364, 364.01, 364.3, 367.2, 367.2-5, 367i, 368a, 368b,
368c, 368d, 368e, 370c, 370c.1, 401, 401.1, 402, 403, 403A,
408, 408.2, 409, 412, 444, and 444.1, paragraph (c) of
subsection (2) of Section 367, and Articles IIA, VIII 1/2,
XII, XII 1/2, XIII, XIII 1/2, XXV, XXVI, and XXXIIB of the
Illinois Insurance Code.
    (b) For purposes of the Illinois Insurance Code, except
for Sections 444 and 444.1 and Articles XIII and XIII 1/2,
Health Maintenance Organizations in the following categories
are deemed to be "domestic companies":
        (1) a corporation authorized under the Dental Service
    Plan Act or the Voluntary Health Services Plans Act;
        (2) a corporation organized under the laws of this
    State; or
        (3) a corporation organized under the laws of another
    state, 30% or more of the enrollees of which are residents
    of this State, except a corporation subject to
    substantially the same requirements in its state of
    organization as is a "domestic company" under Article VIII
    1/2 of the Illinois Insurance Code.
    (c) In considering the merger, consolidation, or other
acquisition of control of a Health Maintenance Organization
pursuant to Article VIII 1/2 of the Illinois Insurance Code,
        (1) the Director shall give primary consideration to
    the continuation of benefits to enrollees and the
    financial conditions of the acquired Health Maintenance
    Organization after the merger, consolidation, or other
    acquisition of control takes effect;
        (2)(i) the criteria specified in subsection (1)(b) of
    Section 131.8 of the Illinois Insurance Code shall not
    apply and (ii) the Director, in making his determination
    with respect to the merger, consolidation, or other
    acquisition of control, need not take into account the
    effect on competition of the merger, consolidation, or
    other acquisition of control;
        (3) the Director shall have the power to require the
    following information:
            (A) certification by an independent actuary of the
        adequacy of the reserves of the Health Maintenance
        Organization sought to be acquired;
            (B) pro forma financial statements reflecting the
        combined balance sheets of the acquiring company and
        the Health Maintenance Organization sought to be
        acquired as of the end of the preceding year and as of
        a date 90 days prior to the acquisition, as well as pro
        forma financial statements reflecting projected
        combined operation for a period of 2 years;
            (C) a pro forma business plan detailing an
        acquiring party's plans with respect to the operation
        of the Health Maintenance Organization sought to be
        acquired for a period of not less than 3 years; and
            (D) such other information as the Director shall
        require.
    (d) The provisions of Article VIII 1/2 of the Illinois
Insurance Code and this Section 5-3 shall apply to the sale by
any health maintenance organization of greater than 10% of its
enrollee population (including, without limitation, the health
maintenance organization's right, title, and interest in and
to its health care certificates).
    (e) In considering any management contract or service
agreement subject to Section 141.1 of the Illinois Insurance
Code, the Director (i) shall, in addition to the criteria
specified in Section 141.2 of the Illinois Insurance Code,
take into account the effect of the management contract or
service agreement on the continuation of benefits to enrollees
and the financial condition of the health maintenance
organization to be managed or serviced, and (ii) need not take
into account the effect of the management contract or service
agreement on competition.
    (f) Except for small employer groups as defined in the
Small Employer Rating, Renewability and Portability Health
Insurance Act and except for medicare supplement policies as
defined in Section 363 of the Illinois Insurance Code, a
Health Maintenance Organization may by contract agree with a
group or other enrollment unit to effect refunds or charge
additional premiums under the following terms and conditions:
        (i) the amount of, and other terms and conditions with
    respect to, the refund or additional premium are set forth
    in the group or enrollment unit contract agreed in advance
    of the period for which a refund is to be paid or
    additional premium is to be charged (which period shall
    not be less than one year); and
        (ii) the amount of the refund or additional premium
    shall not exceed 20% of the Health Maintenance
    Organization's profitable or unprofitable experience with
    respect to the group or other enrollment unit for the
    period (and, for purposes of a refund or additional
    premium, the profitable or unprofitable experience shall
    be calculated taking into account a pro rata share of the
    Health Maintenance Organization's administrative and
    marketing expenses, but shall not include any refund to be
    made or additional premium to be paid pursuant to this
    subsection (f)). The Health Maintenance Organization and
    the group or enrollment unit may agree that the profitable
    or unprofitable experience may be calculated taking into
    account the refund period and the immediately preceding 2
    plan years.
    The Health Maintenance Organization shall include a
statement in the evidence of coverage issued to each enrollee
describing the possibility of a refund or additional premium,
and upon request of any group or enrollment unit, provide to
the group or enrollment unit a description of the method used
to calculate (1) the Health Maintenance Organization's
profitable experience with respect to the group or enrollment
unit and the resulting refund to the group or enrollment unit
or (2) the Health Maintenance Organization's unprofitable
experience with respect to the group or enrollment unit and
the resulting additional premium to be paid by the group or
enrollment unit.
    In no event shall the Illinois Health Maintenance
Organization Guaranty Association be liable to pay any
contractual obligation of an insolvent organization to pay any
refund authorized under this Section.
    (g) Rulemaking authority to implement Public Act 95-1045,
if any, is conditioned on the rules being adopted in
accordance with all provisions of the Illinois Administrative
Procedure Act and all rules and procedures of the Joint
Committee on Administrative Rules; any purported rule not so
adopted, for whatever reason, is unauthorized.
(Source: P.A. 102-30, eff. 1-1-22; 102-34, eff. 6-25-21;
102-203, eff. 1-1-22; 102-306, eff. 1-1-22; 102-443, eff.
1-1-22; 102-589, eff. 1-1-22; 102-642, eff. 1-1-22; 102-665,
eff. 10-8-21; 102-731, eff. 1-1-23; 102-775, eff. 5-13-22;
102-804, eff. 1-1-23; 102-813, eff. 5-13-22; 102-816, eff.
1-1-23; 102-860, eff. 1-1-23; 102-901, eff. 7-1-22; 102-1093,
eff. 1-1-23; 102-1117, eff. 1-13-23; 103-84, eff. 1-1-24;
103-91, eff. 1-1-24; 103-123, eff. 1-1-24; 103-154, eff.
6-30-23; 103-420, eff. 1-1-24; 103-426, eff. 8-4-23; 103-445,
eff. 1-1-24; 103-551, eff. 8-11-23; revised 8-29-23.)

Effective Date: 1/1/2025