SF 1856

1st Engrossment - 79th Legislature (1995 - 1996) Posted on 12/15/2009 12:00am

  1.1                          A bill for an act 
  1.2             relating to insurance; Medicare supplement insurance; 
  1.3             providing applicants with a brochure on long-term care 
  1.4             insurance; amending Minnesota Statutes 1994, section 
  1.5             62A.31, subdivision 1q. 
  1.6   BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA: 
  1.7      Section 1.  Minnesota Statutes 1994, section 62A.31, 
  1.8   subdivision 1q, is amended to read: 
  1.9      Subd. 1q.  [MARKETING PROCEDURES.] (1) An issuer, directly 
  1.10  or through its producers, shall: 
  1.11     (i) establish marketing procedures to assure that a 
  1.12  comparison of policies by its agents or other producers will be 
  1.13  fair and accurate; 
  1.14     (ii) establish marketing procedures to ensure that 
  1.15  excessive insurance is not sold or issued; 
  1.16     (iii) establish marketing procedures that set forth a 
  1.17  mechanism or formula for determining whether a replacement 
  1.18  policy or certificate contains benefits clearly and 
  1.19  substantially greater than the benefits under the replaced 
  1.20  policy or certificate; 
  1.21     (iv) display prominently by type or other appropriate 
  1.22  means, on the first page of the policy or certificate, the 
  1.23  following: 
  1.24     "Notice to buyer:  This policy or certificate may not cover 
  1.25     all of your medical expenses"; 
  2.1      (v) inquire and otherwise make every reasonable effort to 
  2.2   identify whether a prospective applicant or enrollee for 
  2.3   Medicare supplement insurance already has accident and sickness 
  2.4   insurance and the types and amounts of the insurance; 
  2.5      (vi) provide a prospective applicant or enrollee for 
  2.6   Medicare supplement insurance with a brochure describing the 
  2.7   availability of long-term care insurance if the prospective 
  2.8   applicant or enrollee does not have long-term care insurance; 
  2.9   and 
  2.10     (vii) establish auditable procedures for verifying 
  2.11  compliance with this subdivision; 
  2.12     (2) In addition to the practices prohibited in chapter 72A, 
  2.13  the following acts and practices are prohibited: 
  2.14     (i) knowingly making any misleading representation or 
  2.15  incomplete or fraudulent comparison of any insurance policies or 
  2.16  issuers for the purpose of inducing, or tending to induce, any 
  2.17  person to lapse, forfeit, surrender, terminate, retain, pledge, 
  2.18  assign, borrow on, or convert any insurance policy or to take 
  2.19  out a policy of insurance with another insurer; 
  2.20     (ii) employing any method of marketing having the effect of 
  2.21  or tending to induce the purchase of insurance through force, 
  2.22  fright, threat, whether explicit or implied, or undue pressure 
  2.23  to purchase or recommend the purchase of insurance; 
  2.24     (iii) making use directly or indirectly of any method of 
  2.25  marketing which fails to disclose in a conspicuous manner that a 
  2.26  purpose of the method of marketing is solicitation of insurance 
  2.27  and that contact will be made by an insurance agent or insurance 
  2.28  company; 
  2.29     (3) The terms "Medicare supplement," "medigap," and words 
  2.30  of similar import shall not be used unless the policy or 
  2.31  certificate is issued in compliance with this subdivision. 
  2.32     Sec. 2.  [LONG-TERM CARE INSURANCE BROCHURE.] 
  2.33     The department of commerce must prepare a prototype 
  2.34  brochure on long-term care insurance for insurance agents to 
  2.35  provide to a prospective applicant or enrollee who is interested 
  2.36  in purchasing Medicare supplement insurance.  The brochure must 
  3.1   include a description of financial situations where long-term 
  3.2   care insurance would or would not be advisable. 
  3.3      Sec. 3.  [EFFECTIVE DATE.] 
  3.4      Section 1 is effective on January 1, 1997.