Insurance legislation considered this session addressed health care benefits, automobile liability insurance, solvency issues, and omnibus revisions of the Insurance Code. Legislation enacted includes:

SB 87 (Leftwich/Glover): Addresses comprehensive coverage required of health maintenance organizations and prepaid health plans. The bill states conditions under which plans are deemed out-of-compliance with statutory definitions and sets out conditions under which referral for chiropractic services must be made at the request of an enrollee.

SB 95 (Stipe/Mass): Allows military personnel to meet motor vehicle compulsory insurance requirements with an insurance policy or a bond and the related security verification form issued by an insurer or surety company authorized to do business in the state of residence or domicile of the member of the armed services.

SB 193 (Hendrick/Cox): Defines "qualified long-term care insurance contract" and makes changes to long-term care insurance provisions to address these contracts. The bill also amends the Health Insurance High Risk Pool Act to accommodate provisions of the federal Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 pertaining to eligible persons and pre-existing conditions.

SB 223 (Stipe/Erwin): Brings failure of an insurer to notify in writing a policyholder of the cause for delay in payment of a claim under the Unfair Claims Settlement Practices Act. The bill also states the legislative intent of a provision of law relating to certain reinsurance agreements.

SB 248 (Monson/Voskuhl): Requires the state plan and health maintenance organizations providing coverage to state employees to submit HEDIS data to the Oklahoma State Employees Benefits Council. The bill also modifies provisions relating to the Council's authority to reject plans that do not meet bid requirements.

SB 277 (Cain/Askins): Requires health benefit plans issued or renewed on or after January 1, 1998, that provide benefits for dependents of the insured to provide immunization coverage for children under eighteen years of age. This coverage will not be subject to deductibles, copayments, or coinsurance requirements.

SB 327 (Taylor/Benson): Is an omnibus bill which makes several changes to the Insurance Code. Some of these changes address disclosure of documents and information which are confidential; delegation of the Insurance Commissioner's authority to employees, conflict-of-interest disclosure; penalties which may be imposed on insurers for filing fraudulent and false information and for late filing of statements required by the Code; orders of the Insurance Commissioner; hearings held pursuant to the Code; application fees; service of legal process; the penalty for failure to pay premium taxes; the annual statement filing date; rate filings for lines of insurance; access to an insurer's claims files; time periods for acknowledging and investigating a claim; distribution of claims in delinquency proceedings; and licensure of and sanctions which may be imposed on bail bondsmen.

SB 662 (Douglass/Gray): Requires domestic insurers to file a risk-based capital report annually with the Insurance Commissioner and, if certain events occur, a risk-based capital plan. Foreign insurers are required to file a risk-based capital report and plan with the Commissioner upon request.

HB 1221 (Steidley/Dickerson): Requires that individual and group health insurance policies that provide coverage for family members include in that coverage the medical costs association with the birth of an adopted child who is eighteen months of age or younger.

HB 1598 (Roach/Brown): Clarifies that, under a health care plan that limits maternity coverage to a period of stay of less than 48 hours after vaginal birth or less than 96 hours after a caesarean section, the health care providers who may make the early discharge decision are the attending medical doctor, osteopathic physician, or certified nurse midwife.

HB 1625 (Vaughn/Hendrick): Requires every property or motor vehicle liability policy in which the named insured is a trust must afford coverage to the trustor of the insured trust unless specifically excluded in a separate written endorsement.

HB 1806 (Voskuhl/Morgan): Includes dentists in the list of physicians who may request a report pertaining to whether medical services were necessary and should be reimbursed under an insurance claim.

HB 2132 (Ramsey/Robinson): Requires domiciled insurers to file a report with the Insurance Commissioner disclosing material acquisitions and dispositions of assets and material non renewals, cancellations, or revisions of ceded reinsurance agreements. Conditions under which a report does not need to be filed are specified. The bill also requires life insurance companies doing business in Oklahoma to annually submit to the Insurance Commissioner the opinion of a qualified actuary on the accuracy and sufficiency of their reserves.