Bill Text: IA HF399 | 2019-2020 | 88th General Assembly | Introduced
Bill Title: A bill for an act relating to health insurance coverage for hearing aids for covered persons age eighteen and younger and including applicability provisions.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2019-02-18 - Introduced, referred to Commerce. H.J. 301. [HF399 Detail]
Download: Iowa-2019-HF399-Introduced.html
House
File
399
-
Introduced
HOUSE
FILE
399
BY
RUNNING-MARQUARDT
A
BILL
FOR
An
Act
relating
to
health
insurance
coverage
for
hearing
aids
1
for
covered
persons
age
eighteen
and
younger
and
including
2
applicability
provisions.
3
BE
IT
ENACTED
BY
THE
GENERAL
ASSEMBLY
OF
THE
STATE
OF
IOWA:
4
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Section
1.
NEW
SECTION
.
514C.35
Hearing
aid
coverage
for
1
covered
persons
age
eighteen
and
younger.
2
1.
Definitions.
For
the
purposes
of
this
section:
3
a.
“Audiologist”
means
a
person
who
engages
in
the
practice
4
of
audiology
and
is
licensed
in
this
state
pursuant
to
chapter
5
154F.
6
b.
“Cost
sharing”
means
any
coverage
limit,
copayment,
7
coinsurance,
deductible,
or
other
out-of-pocket
expense
8
required
by
a
health
carrier.
9
c.
“Covered
person”
means
the
same
as
defined
in
section
10
514J.102.
11
d.
“Health
care
professional”
means
the
same
as
defined
in
12
section
514J.102.
13
e.
“Health
care
services”
means
the
same
as
defined
in
14
section
514J.102.
15
f.
“Health
carrier”
means
the
same
as
defined
in
section
16
514J.102.
17
g.
“Hearing
aid”
means
the
same
as
defined
in
section
18
154A.1.
19
h.
“Hearing
aid
fitting”
means
the
same
as
defined
in
20
section
154A.1.
21
i.
“Hearing
aid
specialist”
means
the
same
as
defined
in
22
section
154A.1.
23
j.
“Practice
of
audiology”
means
the
same
as
defined
in
24
section
154F.1.
25
2.
Required
coverage.
26
a.
Notwithstanding
the
uniformity
of
treatment
requirements
27
of
section
514C.6,
a
health
carrier
that
offers
individual,
28
group,
or
small
group
contracts,
policies,
or
plans
in
this
29
state
that
provide
for
third-party
payment
or
prepayment
of
30
health
or
medical
expenses
shall
offer
coverage
for
the
cost
31
of
a
hearing
aid
as
recommended
by
a
health
care
professional
32
or
audiologist
for
a
covered
person
who
is
age
eighteen
or
33
younger.
34
b.
Coverage
required
under
this
section
shall
include
all
35
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of
the
following:
1
(1)
Hearing
aid
fitting
and
dispensing
services
conducted
2
by
a
hearing
aid
specialist,
audiologist,
or
health
care
3
professional.
4
(2)
The
provision
of
ear
molds
as
necessary
to
maintain
5
optimal
fit
of
hearing
aids.
6
(3)
Any
health
care
services
related
to
a
hearing
7
aid,
including
audiological
habilitation
or
audiological
8
rehabilitation,
as
recommended
by
a
health
care
professional
9
or
audiologist.
10
c.
Coverage
required
under
this
section
is
limited
to
one
11
hearing
aid
for
each
ear
during
each
three-year
period
for
a
12
covered
person
who
is
age
eighteen
or
younger.
13
d.
Coverage
required
under
this
section
shall
not
be
less
14
favorable
than
coverage
a
health
carrier
offers
for
general
15
physical
illness.
16
e.
Cost
sharing
requirements
imposed
for
coverage
required
17
under
this
section
shall
not
be
less
favorable
than
cost
18
sharing
requirements
imposed
by
a
health
carrier
for
general
19
physical
illness.
20
3.
Rules.
The
commissioner
shall
adopt
rules
pursuant
to
21
chapter
17A
to
administer
this
section.
22
4.
Applicability.
23
a.
This
section
shall
apply
to
the
following
classes
of
24
third-party
payment
provider
contracts,
policies,
or
plans
25
delivered,
issued
for
delivery,
continued,
or
renewed
in
this
26
state
on
or
after
January
1,
2020:
27
(1)
Individual
or
group
accident
and
sickness
insurance
28
providing
coverage
on
an
expense-incurred
basis.
29
(2)
An
individual
or
group
hospital
or
medical
service
30
contract
issued
pursuant
to
chapter
509,
514,
or
514A.
31
(3)
An
individual
or
group
health
maintenance
organization
32
contract
regulated
under
chapter
514B.
33
(4)
A
plan
established
for
public
employees
pursuant
to
34
chapter
509A.
35
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b.
This
section
shall
not
apply
to
accident-only,
1
specified
disease,
short-term
hospital
or
medical,
hospital
2
confinement
indemnity,
credit,
dental,
vision,
Medicare
3
supplement,
long-term
care,
basic
hospital
and
medical-surgical
4
expense
coverage
as
defined
by
the
commissioner,
disability
5
income
insurance
coverage,
coverage
issued
as
a
supplement
6
to
liability
insurance,
workers’
compensation
or
similar
7
insurance,
or
automobile
medical
payment
insurance.
8
EXPLANATION
9
The
inclusion
of
this
explanation
does
not
constitute
agreement
with
10
the
explanation’s
substance
by
the
members
of
the
general
assembly.
11
This
bill
relates
to
health
insurance
coverage
for
hearing
12
aids
for
covered
persons
age
18
and
younger.
The
bill
requires
13
a
health
carrier
that
offers
individual,
group,
or
small
group
14
contracts,
policies,
or
plans
in
this
state
that
provide
for
15
third-party
payment
or
prepayment
of
health
or
medical
expenses
16
to
offer
coverage
for
a
hearing
aid
as
recommended
by
a
health
17
care
professional
or
audiologist.
18
The
bill
requires
the
coverage
to
include
hearing
aid
19
fitting
and
dispensing
services
conducted
by
a
hearing
aid
20
specialist,
audiologist,
or
health
care
professional.
The
21
coverage
must
include
ear
molds
as
necessary
to
maintain
22
optimal
hearing
aid
fit.
The
bill
also
requires
coverage
of
23
any
health
care
services
related
to
a
hearing
aid,
including
24
audiological
habilitation
or
audiological
rehabilitation,
as
25
recommended
by
a
health
care
professional
or
audiologist.
26
The
bill
limits
coverage
to
one
hearing
aid
for
each
ear
27
during
each
three-year
period
for
a
covered
person
age
18
or
28
younger.
29
The
bill
requires
that
coverage
under
this
Code
section
30
shall
not
be
less
favorable
than
coverage
a
health
carrier
31
offers
for
general
physical
illness.
Health
carriers
32
are
prohibited
from
imposing
less
favorable
cost
sharing
33
requirements
than
those
imposed
by
the
health
carrier
for
34
general
physical
illnesses.
35
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The
commissioner
is
required
to
adopt
rules
to
administer
1
the
requirements
of
the
bill.
2
The
bill
applies
to
third-party
payment
provider
contracts,
3
policies,
or
plans
delivered,
issued
for
delivery,
continued,
4
or
renewed
in
this
state
on
or
after
January
1,
2020,
by
the
5
third-party
payment
providers
enumerated
in
the
bill.
6
The
bill
specifies
the
types
of
specialized
health
related
7
insurance
which
are
not
subject
to
the
coverage
requirements
8
of
the
bill.
9
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