SF 474

2nd Engrossment - 89th Legislature (2015 - 2016) Posted on 03/03/2015 08:22am

A bill for an act
relating to health care; creating a task force to review and evaluate the licensure
structure of health plan companies and other entities; appropriating money.

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

Section 1. new text begin HEALTH CARE REGULATORY REVIEW TASK FORCE.
new text end

new text begin Subdivision 1. new text end

new text begin General. new text end

new text begin (a) The Health Care Regulatory Review Task Force is
convened to review and assess the state regulatory and oversight structure for health plan
companies and other related entities, including, but not limited to, indemnity carriers
licensed under Minnesota Statutes, chapter 60A; nonprofit health service plan corporations
licensed under Minnesota Statutes, chapter 62C; health plan maintenance organizations
licensed under Minnesota Statutes, chapter 62D; community integrated service networks
licensed under Minnesota Statutes, chapter 62N; health care cooperatives organized under
Minnesota Statutes, chapter 62R; and county-based purchasing plans authorized under
Minnesota Statutes, section 256B.692.
new text end

new text begin (b) The task force shall also review and assess the regulatory standards and
requirements for each of these entities under Minnesota Statutes, chapters 62A, 62J,
62K, 62L, 62M, and 62Q.
new text end

new text begin Subd. 2. new text end

new text begin Membership. new text end

new text begin (a) The task force shall consist of 22 members appointed
as follows:
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new text begin (1) two members of the senate, one appointed by the majority leader, and one
appointed by the minority leader;
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new text begin (2) two members of the house of representatives, one appointed by the speaker of the
house, and one appointed by the minority leader;
new text end

new text begin (3) four members representing consumers appointed by the governor, one of whom
must be from a nonprofit organization with legal expertise representing low-income
consumers;
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new text begin (4) four members representing the health insurance industry, including two
members appointed by the Minnesota Council of Health Plans, one member appointed
by the Insurance Federation of Minnesota, and one member representing county-based
purchasing plans appointed by the Minnesota Association of County Health Plans;
new text end

new text begin (5) four members representing health care providers, including one member
appointed by the Minnesota Hospital Association, one member appointed by the
Minnesota Medical Association, and two members appointed by the governor to represent
providers other than hospitals and physicians;
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new text begin (6) one member representing employers appointed by the Minnesota Chamber
of Commerce;
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new text begin (7) one member representing the labor unions and appointed by the governor; and
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new text begin (8) the commissioners of commerce, health, human services, and management
and budget, or their designees.
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new text begin (b) Appointments must be made by August 1, 2015. The senate member appointed
by the majority leader of the senate shall convene the first meeting of the task force no later
than September 15, 2015. Members of the task force shall elect a chair at the first meeting.
new text end

new text begin (c) Minnesota Statutes, section 15.059, except for section 15.059, subdivision 2,
shall apply to the task force and to all task force member appointments, except for the
members who are commissioners.
new text end

new text begin Subd. 3. new text end

new text begin Staff. new text end

new text begin The commissioner of health shall provide staff and administrative
services for the task force. The task force may request technical support from the
commissioners of human services, commerce, and management and budget. The
commissioner of health may enter into contracts with nonprofit private entities to provide
evaluation and analysis as needed, including a legal summary and analysis of current
regulatory and operational requirements for health plan companies and other related
entities, and any pertinent case law.
new text end

new text begin Subd. 4. new text end

new text begin Duties. new text end

new text begin (a) The task force shall conduct a review and an assessment
of the current state regulatory and oversight structures for indemnity carriers, health
maintenance organizations, nonprofit health service plan corporations, preferred provider
organizations, county-based purchasers, health care cooperatives, accountable care
organizations, integrated health partnerships, health care delivery systems authorized
under Minnesota Statutes, section 256B.0755, and other related entities. The review
and assessment shall be conducted in terms of maximizing administrative efficiency
and regulatory simplification and streamlining the regulatory process while maintaining
quality health outcomes, regulatory stability, and price stability.
new text end

new text begin (b) As part of this review, the task force shall examine the various types of operational
licenses for health plan companies and the differences in the statutory and regulatory
requirements for each license, including, but not limited to, licensure requirements
involving financial solvency, tax liabilities, rate review, data and quality reporting, claims
payment practices, utilization management, provider contracts, network adequacy,
geographic accessibility, actuarial value, consumer protections, and quality assurance.
new text end

new text begin (c) As part of the evaluation of the different operational structures, the task force
shall consider the following:
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new text begin (1) whether there is justification to maintain different licensure requirements when
health plan companies are becoming more operationally similar and there is an increasing
degree of uniformity required under both state and federal laws;
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new text begin (2) whether the different licensure requirements create the likelihood of different
standards being applied to different health plan companies or other entities that
are operationally similar, but are regulated under different licensure and regulatory
requirements, thereby creating an uneven and arguably unfair competitive marketplace; and
new text end

new text begin (3) whether the current regulatory structure allows for the state to have sufficient
oversight of new operational health care delivery models and payment systems that have
been created or may be created in the future including, but not limited to, accountable
care organizations, integrated health partnerships, or other health care delivery systems
and, if not, whether the legislature should create a review process in order to ensure
regulatory oversight.
new text end

new text begin (d) The task force shall also review the statutory provisions in Minnesota Statutes,
chapters 62A, 62C, 62D, 62L, 62M, and 62Q for redundant and unnecessary provisions
and make recommendations on whether a recodification of these chapters would create a
more uniform regulatory scheme in terms of market stability, efficiency, and simplification.
new text end

new text begin Subd. 5. new text end

new text begin Report. new text end

new text begin The task force shall submit a report to the chairs and ranking
minority members of the legislative committees with jurisdiction over commerce
and health and human services of the results of the review and assessment and any
recommendations, including draft legislation by January 15, 2017.
new text end

new text begin Subd. 6. new text end

new text begin Expiration. new text end

new text begin The task force expires the day after submitting the report
required under subdivision 5.
new text end

Sec. 2. new text begin APPROPRIATION.
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new text begin $....... is appropriated for fiscal year 2016 from the general fund to the commissioner
of health for administrative services to the Health Care Regulatory Review Task Force
for any necessary technical support from state agencies, and for contracts to provide
evaluation or analysis services as deemed necessary by the task force.
new text end