"An Act relating to the payment of insurer examination expenses, to the regulation of managed care insurance plans, to actuarial opinions and supporting documentation for an insurer, to insurance firms, managing general agents, and third-party administrators, to eligibility of surplus lines insurers, to prompt payment of health care insurance claims, to required notice by an insurer, to individual deferred annuities, to mental health benefits under a health care insurance plan, to the definitions of 'title insurance limited producer' and of other terms used in the title regulating the practice of the business of insurance, and to small employer health insurance; repealing the Small Employer Health Reinsurance Association; making conforming amendments; establishing a fund for the payment of Servicemembers' Group Life Insurance premiums and providing for the payment of Servicemembers' Group Life Insurance premiums; and providing for an effective date. "

Senate Bill 289 could be referred to as an insurance omnibus bill because it contains numerous changes to Title 21. These improvements are designed to ensure that state statutes are consistent with federal law, the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC) model acts, standards and guidelines, to update procedures and transactions and to provide protections to consumers. Many of the changes are technical in nature and others are to make terminology more consistent throughout Title 21.

A summary of the general changes made by CSSB 289 (FIN):

1. Provisions to extend "patient bill of rights" which was enacted in 2000 and applied only to group health care insurance plans will be made effective to individual health insurance plans
2. Provisions to make technical changes including substituting the phrase "medical care services" for "health care services" to make the terminology consistent with other parts of AS 21 relating to health insurance
3. Provisions that require insurers providing individual health care insurance to comply with statutes similar to those required of insurers providing group health care insurance
4. Provisions to enact the model law of the NAIC relating to actuarial opinion summary for property and casualty insurers
5. Licensing revisions relating to managing general agents to conform to the NAIC model law and to make license regulation in Alaska consistent with national standards
6. Repeals the small employers Health Reinsurance Association as insurers are not using the mechanism
7. Provisions for mental health parity to be consistent with federal HIPAA law
8. Provisions for changes in the standard non-forfeiture law for individual annuities aimed at limiting unfair practices relating to surrender charges
9. Provisions for technical changes to licensing to achieve national uniformity in producer licensing and improving division efficiency in processing license applications and providing for electronic notices

These changes to Title 21 will promote consistency between Alaska and other states, promote more efficient operations and provide better public protection.

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