H-3861              _______________________________________________

                                                   HOUSE BILL NO. 1769

                        _______________________________________________

State of Washington                              49th Legislature                              1986 Regular Session

By Representatives Winsley and Zellinsky

Read first time 1/23/86 and referred to Committee on Financial Institutions & Insurance.

AN ACT Relating to insurance; and amending RCW 48.21.270.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:

        Sec. 1.  Section 4, chapter 190, Laws of 1984 and RCW 48.21.270 are each amended to read as follows:

          (1) An insurer shall not require proof of insurability as a condition for issuance of the conversion policy.

          (2) A conversion policy may not contain an exclusion for preexisting conditions except to the extent that a waiting period for a preexisting condition has not been satisfied under the group policy.

          (3) An insurer must offer at least three policy benefit plans that comply with the following:

          (a) A major medical plan with a five thousand dollar deductible and a lifetime benefit maximum of two hundred fifty thousand dollars per person;

          (b) A comprehensive medical plan with a five hundred dollar deductible and a lifetime benefit maximum of five hundred thousand dollars per person; and

          (c) A basic medical plan with a one thousand dollar deductible and a lifetime maximum of seventy-five thousand dollars per person.

          (4) The insurance commissioner may revise the deductibles and lifetime benefit amounts in subsection (3) of this section from time to time to reflect changing health care costs.

          (5) The insurance commissioner shall adopt rules to establish minimum benefit standards for conversion policies.

          (6) The commissioner shall adopt rules to establish specific standards for conversion policy provisions.  These rules may include but are not limited to:

          (a) Terms of renewability;

          (b) Nonduplication of coverage;

          (c) Benefit limitations, exceptions, and reductions; and

          (d) Definitions of terms.

(7) In lieu of the plans enumerated in subsection (3) of this section, an insurer may offer benefits substantially the same as those provided under the group policy.