Section 20. Definitions

The following words and terms when used in this chapter shall have the following meanings unless the context clearly indicates otherwise:

"ACA" means the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (P.L. 111-148), as amended by the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act of 2010 (P.L. 111-152) and any federal regulations issued pursuant thereto.

"Allowable charge" means the amount from which the health maintenance organization's payment to a provider for any covered item or service is determined before taking into account the enrollee's cost sharing.

"Basic health care services" means in-area and out-of-area emergency services, inpatient hospital and physician care, outpatient medical services, laboratory and radiologic services, preventive health services and mental health and substance use disorder services, or all essential health benefits required under § 38.2-3451 of the Code of Virginia. In the case of a health maintenance organization that has contracted with this Commonwealth to furnish basic health care services to recipients of medical assistance under Title XIX of the Social Security Act (42 USC § 1396 et seq.) pursuant to § 38.2-4320 of the Code of Virginia, the basic health care services to be provided by the health maintenance organization to program recipients may differ from the basic health care services required by this chapter to the extent necessary to meet the benefit standards prescribed by the state plan for medical assistance services authorized pursuant to § 32.1-325 of the Code of Virginia.

"Coinsurance" means a copayment, expressed as a percentage of the allowable charge for a specific health care service.

"Commission" means the State Corporation Commission.

"Copayment" means an amount an enrollee is required to pay in order to receive a specific health care service.

"Cost sharing" means any coinsurance, copayment, or deductible.

"Deductible" means a dollar amount an enrollee is required to pay out of pocket before the health care plan pays the costs associated with certain health care services.

"Dependent" means the spouse, child, or other class of persons of a subscriber or eligible employee, subject to the applicable terms of the policy, contract, or plan.

"Emergency services" shall have the same meaning as § 38.2-3438 of the Code of Virginia and means those health care services that are rendered by affiliated or nonaffiliated providers after the sudden onset of a medical condition that manifests itself by symptoms of sufficient severity, including severe pain, that the absence of immediate medical attention could reasonably be expected by a prudent layperson who possesses an average knowledge of health and medicine to result in (i) serious jeopardy to the mental or physical health of the individual, (ii) danger of serious impairment of the individual's bodily functions, (iii) serious dysfunction of any of the individual's bodily organs, or (iv) in the case of a pregnant woman, serious jeopardy to the health of the fetus.

"Enrollee" means a policyholder, subscriber, participant, member, or other individual covered by a health benefit plan.

"Essential health benefits" includes the following general categories and items and services covered within the categories in accordance with regulations issued pursuant to the ACA: (i) ambulatory patient services; (ii) emergency services; (iii) hospitalization; (iv) laboratory services; (v) maternity and newborn care; (vi) mental health and substance use disorder services; (vii) pediatric services, including oral and vision care; (viii) prescription drugs; (ix) preventive and wellness services and chronic disease management; and (x) rehabilitative and habilitative services and devices.

"Evidence of coverage" means a certificate, individual or group agreement or contract, or identification card issued in conjunction with the certificate, agreement or contract, issued to a subscriber setting out the coverage and other rights to which an enrollee is entitled.

"Excess insurance" or "stop loss insurance" means insurance issued to a health maintenance organization by an insurer licensed in this Commonwealth, on a form approved by the commission, or a risk assumption transaction acceptable to the commission, providing indemnity or reimbursement against the cost of health care services provided by the health maintenance organization.

"Exchange certified stand-alone dental plan" means a limited dental care services plan that has been approved to meet the criteria for certification pursuant to the ACA.

"Grandfathered plan" means coverage provided by a health carrier to (i) a small employer on March 23, 2010; (ii) an individual who was enrolled on March 23, 2010, including any extension of coverage to an individual who becomes a dependent of a grandfathered enrollee after March 23, 2010; or (iii) an employee who enrolls in the employer's grandfathered plan after March 23, 2010, for as long as such plan maintains that status in accordance with the ACA.

"Group contract" means a contract for health care services issued by a health maintenance organization, which by its terms limits the eligibility of subscribers and enrollees to a specified group.

"Group health plan" means an employee welfare benefit plan as defined in § 3(1) of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA) (29 USC § 1002(1)) to the extent that the plan provides medical care within the meaning of § 733(a) of ERISA (29 USC § 1191b(a)) to employees, including both current and former employees, or their dependents as defined under the terms of the plan directly or through insurance, reimbursement, or otherwise.

"Health benefit plan" or "health care plan" means an arrangement in which a person undertakes to provide, arrange for, pay for, or reimburse a part of the cost of health care services. A significant part of the arrangement shall consist of arranging for or providing health care services, including emergency services and services rendered by nonparticipating referral providers, as distinguished from mere indemnification against the cost of the services, on a prepaid basis. For purposes of this chapter, a significant part shall mean at least 90% of total costs of health care services.

"Health care professional" means a physician or other health care practitioner licensed, accredited, or certified to perform specified health care services consistent with state law.

"Health care services" means the furnishing of services to an individual for the purpose of preventing, alleviating, curing, or healing human illness, injury or physical disability.

"Health insurance exchange" means a health benefit exchange established or operated in the Commonwealth pursuant to § 1311(b) of the ACA, including the Federally Facilitated Marketplace established pursuant to § 1321 of the ACA.

"Health maintenance organization" means a person who undertakes to provide or arrange for one or more health care plans. A health maintenance organization is deemed to be offering one or more managed care health insurance plans and is subject to Chapter 58 (§ 38.2-5800 et seq.) of Title 38.2 of the Code of Virginia.

"Individual health insurance coverage" means health insurance coverage offered to individuals in the individual market, but does not include excepted benefits as defined in § 38.2-3431 of the Code of Virginia. Individual health insurance coverage does not include short-term limited duration coverage.

"Individual market" means the market for health insurance coverage offered to individuals other than in connection with a group health plan.

"Large employer" means, in connection with a group health plan or health insurance coverage with respect to a calendar year and a plan year, an employer who employed an average of at least 51 employees on business days during the preceding calendar year and who employs at least one employee on the first day of the plan year. Effective January 1, 2016, "large employer" means, in connection with a group health plan or health insurance coverage with respect to a calendar year and a plan year, an employer who employed an average of at least 101 employees on business days during the preceding calendar year and who employs at least one employee on the first day of the plan year.

"Large group market" means the health insurance market under which individuals obtain health insurance coverage (directly or through any arrangement) on behalf of themselves (and their dependents) through a group health plan maintained by a large employer.

"Limited health care services" means dental care services or vision care services.

"Medical necessity" or "medically necessary" means appropriate and necessary health care services that are rendered for a condition which, according to generally accepted principles of good medical practice, requires the diagnosis or direct care and treatment of an illness, injury, or pregnancy-related condition, and are not provided only as a convenience.

"Net worth" or "capital and surplus" means the excess of total admitted assets over the total liabilities of the health maintenance organization, provided that surplus notes shall be reported and accounted for in accordance with § 38.2-4300 of the Code of Virginia.

"Nonparticipating referral provider" means a provider who is not a participating provider but with whom a health maintenance organization has arranged, through referral by its participating providers, to provide health care services to enrollees. Payment or reimbursement by a health maintenance organization for health care services provided by nonparticipating referral providers may exceed 5.0% of total costs of health care services, only to the extent that any excess payment or reimbursement over 5.0% shall be combined with the costs for services that represent mere indemnification, with the combined amount subject to the combination of limitations set forth in this definition and in this section's definition of health care plan.

"Out-of-area services" means the health care services that the health maintenance organization may cover when its enrollees are outside the geographical limits of the health maintenance organization's service area.

"Out-of-pocket maximum" means the maximum dollar amount that an enrollee is required to pay during a plan or policy year before the health benefit plan pays 100% of the allowable charges for covered basic health care services for the balance of the plan or policy year. This amount shall include deductibles, coinsurance or copayments, and any other expenditure required of an enrollee for any covered medical expense. This limit may or may not include premiums, balance billed amounts for out-of-network services, or payments for services that are not basic health care services.

"Participating provider" or "affiliated provider" means a provider who has agreed to provide health care services to enrollees and to hold those enrollees harmless from payment with an expectation of receiving payment, other than copayments or deductibles, directly or indirectly from the health maintenance organization.

"Point-of-service benefit" means a health maintenance organization's delivery system or covered benefits, or the delivery system or covered benefits of another carrier under contract or arrangement with the health maintenance organization, that permit an enrollee to receive covered items and services outside of the provider panel of the health maintenance organization under the terms and conditions of the group contract holder's group health benefit plan with the health maintenance organization or with another carrier arranged by or under contract with the health maintenance organization and that otherwise complies with § 38.2-3407.12 of the Code of Virginia.

"Preexisting condition exclusion" means a limitation or exclusion of benefits, including a denial of coverage, based on the fact that the condition was present before the effective date of coverage, or if the coverage is denied, the date of denial, whether or not any medical advice, diagnosis, care, or treatment was recommended or received before the effective date of coverage. "Preexisting condition exclusion" also includes a condition identified as a result of a pre-enrollment questionnaire or physical examination given to an individual, or review of medical records relating to the pre-enrollment period.

"Premium" means all moneys paid by an employer, eligible employee, or covered person as a condition of coverage from a health carrier, including fees and other contributions associated with the health benefit plan.

"Primary care health care professional" means a health care professional who provides initial and primary care to enrollees; who supervises, coordinates, and maintains continuity of patient care; and who may initiate referrals for specialist care, if referrals are a requirement of the enrollee's health care coverage.

"Provider" or "health care provider" means a physician, hospital, or other person that is licensed or otherwise authorized to furnish health care services.

"Rescission" means a cancellation or discontinuance of coverage under a health care plan that has a retroactive effect. "Rescission" does not include: (i) a cancellation or discontinuance of coverage under a health care plan if the cancellation or discontinuance of coverage has only a prospective effect, or the cancellation or discontinuance of coverage is effective retroactively to the extent it is attributable to a failure to timely pay required premiums or contributions towards the cost of coverage; or (ii) a cancellation or discontinuance of coverage when the health care plan covers active employees and, if applicable, dependents and those covered under continuation coverage provisions, if the employee pays no premiums for coverage after termination of employment and the cancellation or discontinuance of coverage is effective retroactively back to the date of termination of employment due to a delay in administrative recordkeeping.

"Service area" means a clearly defined geographic area in which the health maintenance organization has directly or indirectly arranged for the provision of health care services to be generally available and readily accessible to enrollees.

"Small employer" means in connection with a group health plan or health insurance coverage with respect to a calendar year and a plan year, an employer who employed an average of at least one but not more than 50 employees on business days during the preceding calendar year and who employs at least one employee on the first day of the plan year. Effective January 1, 2016, "small employer" means in connection with a group health plan or health insurance coverage with respect to a calendar year and a plan year, an employer who employed an average of at least one but not more than 100 employees on business days during the preceding calendar year and who employs at least one employee on the first day of the plan year.

"Small group market" means the health insurance market under which individuals obtain health insurance coverage (directly or through any arrangement) on behalf of themselves (and their dependents) through a group health plan maintained by a small employer.

"Specialist" means a licensed health care provider to whom an enrollee may be referred by his primary care health care professional and who is certified or eligible for certification by the appropriate specialty board, where applicable, to provide health care services in a specialized area of health care.

"Subscriber" means a contract holder or enrollee who is responsible for payment to the health maintenance organization or on whose behalf the payment is made.

"Supplemental health care services" means health care services that may be offered by a health maintenance organization in addition to the required basic health care services.

"Surplus notes" means those instruments that meet the requirements of 14VAC5-211-40.

Historical Notes

Derived from Volume 21, Issue 23, eff. July 1, 2005; amended, Virginia Register Volume 27, Issue 25, eff. September 1, 2011; Volume 31, Issue 03, eff. January 1, 2015.

Statutory Authority

§§ 12.1-13 and 38.2-223 of the Code of Virginia.