House
Study
Bill
682
-
Introduced
HOUSE
FILE
_____
BY
(PROPOSED
COMMITTEE
ON
HUMAN
RESOURCES
BILL
BY
CHAIRPERSON
SMITH)
A
BILL
FOR
An
Act
requiring
certain
health
insurance
contracts,
policies,
1
or
plans
to
provide
coverage
for
audiological
services
and
2
hearing
aids
for
children.
3
BE
IT
ENACTED
BY
THE
GENERAL
ASSEMBLY
OF
THE
STATE
OF
IOWA:
4
TLSB
6189HC
(3)
83
av/rj
H.F.
_____
Section
1.
NEW
SECTION
.
514C.26
Audiological
services
and
1
hearing
aids
for
children
——
coverage.
2
1.
Notwithstanding
the
uniformity
of
treatment
requirements
3
of
section
514C.6,
a
contract,
policy,
or
plan
providing
for
4
third-party
payment
or
prepayment
of
health
or
medical
expenses
5
shall
provide
minimum
coverage
benefits
for
audiological
6
services
and
hearing
aids
for
children,
including
but
not
7
limited
to
the
following
classes
of
third-party
payment
8
provider
contracts,
policies,
or
plans
delivered,
issued
for
9
delivery,
continued,
or
renewed
in
this
state
on
or
after
10
January
1,
2011:
11
a.
Individual
or
group
accident
and
sickness
insurance
12
providing
coverage
on
an
expense-incurred
basis.
13
b.
An
individual
or
group
hospital
or
medical
service
14
contract
issued
pursuant
to
chapter
509,
514,
or
514A.
15
c.
An
individual
or
group
health
maintenance
organization
16
contract
regulated
under
chapter
514B.
17
d.
An
individual
or
group
Medicare
supplemental
policy,
18
unless
coverage
pursuant
to
such
policy
is
preempted
by
federal
19
law.
20
e.
A
plan
established
pursuant
to
chapter
509A
for
public
21
employees.
22
2.
This
section
shall
not
apply
to
accident-only,
specified
23
disease,
short-term
hospital
or
medical,
hospital
confinement
24
indemnity,
credit,
dental,
vision,
long-term
care,
basic
25
hospital
and
medical-surgical
expense
coverage
as
defined
26
by
the
commissioner,
disability
income
insurance
coverage,
27
coverage
issued
as
a
supplement
to
liability
insurance,
28
workers’
compensation
or
similar
insurance,
or
automobile
29
medical
payment
insurance.
30
3.
As
used
in
this
section,
“minimum
coverage
for
31
audiological
services
and
hearing
aids
for
children”
means
32
coverage
that
includes,
at
a
minimum,
all
of
the
following:
33
a.
Coverage
for
audiological
evaluations
performed
by
a
34
licensed
audiologist.
35
-1-
LSB
6189HC
(3)
83
av/rj
1/
2
H.F.
_____
b.
Coverage
for
hearing
aids
that
are
recommended
by
a
1
licensed
audiologist
and
dispensed
by
a
licensed
hearing
aid
2
dispenser
for
children
up
to
eighteen
years
of
age.
3
c.
Coverage
for
an
ear
mold
and
a
hearing
aid
for
each
4
hearing-impaired
ear
payable
every
twenty-four
months
for
5
children
up
to
eighteen
years
of
age
and
coverage
for
up
to
6
four
additional
ear
molds
per
year
for
children
up
to
three
7
years
of
age.
8
4.
The
commissioner
of
insurance
shall
adopt
rules
pursuant
9
to
chapter
17A
as
necessary
to
administer
this
section.
10
EXPLANATION
11
This
bill
requires
insurers
offering
certain
individual
or
12
group
health
insurance
contracts,
policies,
or
plans
in
the
13
state
to
provide
coverage
for
certain
audiological
services
and
14
hearing
aids
for
children.
15
The
provisions
of
the
bill
are
applicable
to
third-party
16
payment
provider
contracts,
policies,
or
plans
delivered,
17
issued
for
delivery,
continued,
or
renewed
in
this
state
on
or
18
after
January
1,
2011.
19
The
commissioner
of
insurance
is
required
to
adopt
rules
20
under
Code
chapter
17A
to
administer
the
provisions
of
the
21
bill.
22
The
bill
requires
such
insurers
to
provide
minimum
coverage
23
for
audiological
services
and
hearing
aids
for
children
24
which
must
include,
at
a
minimum,
coverage
for
audiological
25
evaluations
performed
by
a
licensed
audiologist,
coverage
for
26
hearing
aids
that
are
recommended
by
a
licensed
audiologist
27
and
dispensed
by
a
licensed
hearing
aid
dispenser
for
children
28
up
to
18
years
of
age,
coverage
for
an
ear
mold
and
a
hearing
29
aid
for
each
hearing-impaired
ear
payable
every
24
months
for
30
children
up
to
18
years
of
age,
and
coverage
for
up
to
four
31
additional
ear
molds
per
year
for
children
up
to
three
years
32
of
age.
33
-2-
LSB
6189HC
(3)
83
av/rj
2/
2