H-0919.2  _______________________________________________

                          HOUSE BILL 1847

          _______________________________________________

State of Washington      56th Legislature     1999 Regular Session

By Representatives Conway, Quall, Boldt, Veloria, Dunn, Edmonds, Ogden and Tokuda

Read first time 02/08/1999.  Referred to Committee on Health Care.

Expanding access to chiropractic health care services.

    AN ACT Relating to access to chiropractic health care services; and adding a new section to chapter 48.42 RCW.

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

NEW SECTION. Sec. 1.  A new section is added to chapter 48.42 RCW to read as follows:

    (1) For purposes of this section, health care carriers includes disability insurers regulated under chapter 48.20 or 48.21 RCW, health care services contractors regulated under chapter 48.44 RCW, health maintenance organizations regulated under chapter 48.46 RCW, plans operating under the health care authority under chapter 41.05 RCW, the state health insurance pool operating under chapter 48.41 RCW, and insuring entities regulated under chapter 48.43 RCW.

    (2) For purposes of this section and consistent with their lawful scopes of practice, health care practitioners that provide covered chiropractic health care services includes only chiropractors licensed under chapter 18.25 RCW and osteopathic physicians and surgeons licensed under chapter 18.57 RCW.

    (3) For purposes of this section, chiropractic health care services includes all services included in the chiropractic scope of practice under chapter 18.25 RCW.

    (4) Health care carriers shall ensure that enrolled patients have direct access to timely and appropriate covered chiropractic services from the health care practitioner of their choice in accordance with subsection (5) of this section.

    (5)(a) Health care carrier policies, plans, and programs written, amended, or renewed after January 1, 2000, shall provide enrolled patients with direct access to the health care practitioner of their choice for covered chiropractic health care services without the necessity of prior referral from another type of health care practitioner.

    (b) This section does not prevent health care carriers from restricting patients to seeing only health care practitioners who have signed participating provider agreements with the health care carrier.

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