PERMANENT RULES
INSURANCE COMMISSIONER
Effective Date of Rule: Thirty-one days after filing.
Purpose: The purpose of this rule-making order is to amend WAC 284-52-070 to eliminate the permitted exclusion for "mental or emotional disorders." Mental health parity laws enacted during the 2006 legislative session prohibit exclusions for mental health coverage. This rule making will eliminate the conflict between the prior rule (WAC 284-52-070) and the mental health parity laws that are effective January 1, 2008 (RCW 48.20.580, 48.44.341, and 48.46.291).
Citation of Existing Rules Affected by this Order: Amending WAC 284-52-070.
Statutory Authority for Adoption: RCW 48.02.060, 48.44.050, and 48.46.200.
Adopted under notice filed as WSR 07-21-137 on October 24, 2007.
Number of Sections Adopted in Order to Comply with Federal Statute: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0; Federal Rules or Standards: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0; or Recently Enacted State Statutes: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0.
Number of Sections Adopted at Request of a Nongovernmental Entity: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0.
Number of Sections Adopted on the Agency's Own Initiative: New 0, Amended 1, Repealed 0.
Number of Sections Adopted in Order to Clarify, Streamline, or Reform Agency Procedures: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0.
Number of Sections Adopted Using Negotiated Rule Making: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0; Pilot Rule Making: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0; or Other Alternative Rule Making: New 0, Amended 1, Repealed 0.
Date Adopted: January 23, 2008.
Mike Kreidler
Insurance Commissioner
OTS-1130.2
AMENDATORY SECTION(Amending Order R 84-4, filed 9/19/84)
WAC 284-52-070
Exclusions.
No policy or contract set
forth in WAC 284-52-040, 284-52-050, and 284-52-060 may
exclude coverage by type of illness, injury, accident,
treatment, or medical condition, except with respect to the
following:
(1) ((Mental or emotional disorders,)) Alcoholism and
drug addiction.
(2) Pregnancy, except for complications of pregnancy.
(3) Illness, treatment or medical condition arising out of:
(a) War or act of war (whether declared or undeclared); participation in a felony, riot or insurrection; service in the armed forces or units auxiliary thereto.
(b) Suicide (sane or insane), attempted suicide or intentionally self-inflicted injury.
(c) Aviation.
(4) Cosmetic surgery, except that "cosmetic surgery" shall not include reconstructive surgery when such service is incidental to or follows covered surgery resulting from trauma, infection or other diseases of the involved part, reconstructive breast surgery covered pursuant to RCW 48.20.395, 48.21.230, 48.44.330 and 48.46.280, and reconstructive surgery because of congenital disease or anomaly of a covered dependent child which has resulted in a functional defect.
(5) Foot care in connection with corns, calluses, flat feet, fallen arches, weak feet, or chronic foot strain.
(6) Treatment (except emergency treatment for which legal liability exists to the covered person for the costs thereof) provided in a government hospital; benefits provided under Medicare or other governmental program (except Medicaid), any state or federal worker's compensation, employer's liability or occupational disease law; service rendered by employees of hospitals, laboratories or other institutions; services performed by a member of the covered person's immediate family and services for which no charge is normally made in the absence of insurance.
(7) Dental care or treatment.
(8) Eye glasses, hearing aids, and examination for the prescription or fitting thereof.
(9) Rest cures, custodial care, transportation, and routine physical examinations.
(10) Territorial limitations.
(11) Other exclusions commonly used by the particular carrier in group contracts providing hospital or medical benefits to employee groups.
[Statutory Authority: RCW 48.02.060, 48.44.050 and 48.46.200. 84-19-055 (Order R 84-4), § 284-52-070, filed 9/19/84.]