Bill Text: NY A02832 | 2019-2020 | General Assembly | Introduced

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Bill Title: Requires health insurers to provide an insurer or subscriber who is a victim of domestic violence, upon request of such insurer or subscriber, with the option to designate alternative contact information for the purpose of receiving specific claim information or for specific billing purposes.

Spectrum: Moderate Partisan Bill (Democrat 15-2)

Status: (Engrossed - Dead) 2020-07-20 - REFERRED TO RULES [A02832 Detail]

Download: New_York-2019-A02832-Introduced.html

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                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________
                                          2832
                               2019-2020 Regular Sessions
                   IN ASSEMBLY
                                    January 25, 2019
                                       ___________
        Introduced  by  M.  of  A.  CYMBROWITZ,  ABBATE,  BRONSON,  MALLIOTAKIS,
          PEOPLES-STOKES, WEPRIN, ABINANTI, SEAWRIGHT, BICHOTTE  --  Multi-Spon-
          sored  by  --  M.  of A.   RICHARDSON -- read once and referred to the
          Committee on Insurance
        AN ACT to amend the insurance law, in relation to  allowing  victims  of
          domestic  violence  the  opportunity to designate an alternate address
          for health insurance claims or billing purposes
          The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and  Assem-
        bly, do enact as follows:
     1    Section  1.   Subsections (f) and (g) of section 2612 of the insurance
     2  law, subsection (f) as amended by chapter 246 of the laws  of  2005  and
     3  subsection  (g) as added by chapter 361 of the laws of 2006, are amended
     4  to read as follows:
     5    (f) If any person covered by an insurance  policy  issued  to  another
     6  person as the policyholder delivers to the insurer that issued the poli-
     7  cy,  at  its  home  office,  (i) a valid order of protection against the
     8  policyholder, issued by a court of competent jurisdiction in this state,
     9  or (ii) a request to designate an alternative mailing address, telephone
    10  number or other contact information for the purpose of receiving specif-
    11  ic claim information or for specific billing purposes relating  to  such
    12  insured accompanied by a signed statement made under oath that he or she
    13  is  a victim of domestic violence and the disclosure of such information
    14  would endanger him or her the insurer shall be prohibited for the  dura-
    15  tion of the order, or until the request made pursuant to this paragraph,
    16  is  cancelled  by the requesting party in writing from disclosing to the
    17  policyholder the address [and], telephone number or other contact infor-
    18  mation of the insured, or of any  person  or  entity  providing  covered
    19  services  to  the  insured  or from mailing any information described in
    20  this paragraph to any address  other  than  the  designated  alternative
    21  address  provided pursuant to such paragraph.  If a child is the covered
    22  person, the right established by this subsection may be asserted by, and
         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD05156-02-9
        A. 2832                             2
     1  shall also extend to, the parent or guardian of the  child.  The  super-
     2  intendent,  in  consultation  with  the  commissioner  of health and the
     3  office of children and family services and the office for the prevention
     4  of  domestic violence, shall promulgate rules to guide and enable insur-
     5  ers to guard against the disclosure of the address and  location  of  an
     6  insured who is a victim of domestic violence.
     7    (g)  If any person covered by a group insurance policy delivers to the
     8  insurer that issued the policy, at its home office, (i) a valid order of
     9  protection against another person covered by the group policy, issued by
    10  a court of competent jurisdiction in this state, or (ii)  a  request  to
    11  designate  an  alternative  mailing  address,  telephone number or other
    12  contact information for the purpose of receiving specific claim informa-
    13  tion or for specific billing purposes relating to such insured  accompa-
    14  nied by a signed statement made under oath that he or she is a victim of
    15  domestic  violence and the disclosure of such information would endanger
    16  him or her the insurer shall be prohibited for the duration of the order
    17  or until the request made pursuant to this paragraph,  is  cancelled  by
    18  the  requesting  party  in writing from disclosing to the person against
    19  whom [the] a valid order of protection was  issued  the  address  [and],
    20  telephone  number  or  other  contact  information of the insured person
    21  covered by the order of protection[,]; mailing any information described
    22  in this paragraph to any address other than the  designated  alternative
    23  address  provided pursuant to such paragraph; or disclosing the address,
    24  telephone number, or other contact information of any person  or  entity
    25  providing covered services to the insured person covered by the order of
    26  protection  or  the  person making a request under this subsection. If a
    27  child is the covered person, the right established  by  this  subsection
    28  may  be asserted by, and shall also extend to, the parent or guardian of
    29  the child. The superintendent, in consultation with the commissioner  of
    30  health,  the  office  of children and family services and the office for
    31  the prevention of domestic violence, shall promulgate rules to guide and
    32  enable insurers to guard against  the  disclosure  of  the  address  and
    33  location of an insured who is a victim of domestic violence.
    34    §  2. This act shall take effect on the first of January next succeed-
    35  ing the date on which it shall have become a law.