(1) A carrier's internal and external review processes must permit an expedited review of an adverse benefit determination at any time in the review process, if:

(a) The appellant is currently receiving or is prescribed treatment or benefits that would end because of the adverse benefit determination; or

(b) The ordering provider for the appellant, regardless of their affiliation with the carrier or health plan, believes that a delay in treatment based on the standard review time may seriously jeopardize the appellant's life, overall health or ability to regain maximum function, or would subject the appellant to severe and intolerable pain; or

(c) The determination is related to an issue related to admission, availability of care, continued stay, or emergency health care services where the appellant has not been discharged from the emergency room or transport service.

(2) An appellant is not entitled to expedited review if the treatment has already been delivered and the review involves payment for the delivered treatment, if the situation is not urgent, or if the situation does not involve the delivery of services for an existing condition, illness, or disease.

(3) An expedited review may be filed by an appellant, the appellant's authorized representative, or the appellant's provider orally, or in writing.

(4) The carrier must respond as expeditiously as possible to an expedited review request, preferably within twenty-four hours, but in no case longer than seventy-two hours.

(a) The carrier's response to an expedited review request may be delivered orally, and must be reduced to and issued in writing not later than seventy-two hours after the date of the decision. Regardless of who makes the carrier's determination, the time frame for providing a response to an expedited review request begins when the carrier first receives the request.

(b) If the carrier requires additional information to determine whether the service or treatment determination being reviewed is covered under the health plan, or eligible for benefits, they must request such information as soon as possible after receiving the request for expedited review.

(5) If the treating health care provider determines that a delay could jeopardize the covered person's health or ability to regain maximum function, the carrier must presume the need for expedited review, and treat the review request as such, including the need for an expedited determination of an external review under RCW 48.43.535.

(6) A carrier may require exhaustion of the internal appeal process before an appellant may request an external review in urgent care situations that justify expedited review as set forth in this section.

(7) An expedited review must be conducted by an appropriate clinical peer or peers in the same or similar specialty as would typically manage the case being reviewed. The clinical peer or peers must not have been involved in making the initial adverse determination.

(8) These requirements do not replace the requirements related to utilization review for the initial authorization of coverage for services set forth in WAC 284-43-2000. These requirements apply when the utilization review decision results in an adverse benefit determination. In some circumstances, an urgent care review under WAC 284-43-2000 may apply in an identical manner to an expedited review under this section.

PDFWAC 284-43-3170

Expedited review.