513C.5  Restrictions relating to premium rates.
  1.  Premium rates for any block of individual health benefit plan business issued on or after January 1, 1996, or the date rules are adopted by the commissioner of insurance and the director of public health and become effective, whichever date is later, by a carrier subject to this chapter shall be limited to the composite effect of allocating costs among the following:
  a.  After making actuarial adjustments based upon benefit design and rating characteristics, the filed rate for any block of business shall not exceed the filed rate for any other block of business by more than twenty percent.
  b.  The filed rate for any block of business shall not exceed the filed rate for any other block of business by more than thirty percent due to factors relating to rating characteristics.
  c.  The filed rate for any block of business shall not exceed the filed rate for any other block of business by more than thirty percent due to any other factors approved by the commissioner.
  d.  Premium rates for individual health benefit plans shall comply with the requirements of this section notwithstanding any assessments paid or payable by the carrier pursuant to any reinsurance program or risk adjustment mechanism.
  e.  An adjustment applied to a single block of business shall not exceed the adjustment applied to all blocks of business by more than fifteen percent due to the claim experience or health status of that block of business.
  f.  For purposes of this subsection, an individual health benefit plan that contains a restricted network provision shall not be considered similar coverage to an individual health benefit plan that does not contain such a provision, provided that the differential in payments made to network providers results in substantial differences in claim costs.
  2.  Notwithstanding subsection 1, the commissioner, with the concurrence of the board established under chapter 514E, may by order reduce or eliminate the allowed rating bands provided under subsection 1, paragraphs “a”, “b”, “c”, and “e”, or otherwise limit or eliminate the use of experience rating.
  3.  A carrier shall not transfer an individual involuntarily into or out of a block of business.
  4.  The commissioner may suspend for a specified period the application of subsection 1, paragraph “a”, as to the premium rates applicable to one or more blocks of business of a carrier for one or more rating periods upon a filing by the carrier requesting the suspension and a finding by the commissioner that the suspension is reasonable in light of the financial condition of the carrier.
  5.  A carrier shall make a reasonable disclosure at the time of the offering for sale of any individual health benefit plan of all of the following:
  a.  The extent to which premium rates for a specified individual are established or adjusted based upon rating characteristics.
  b.  The carrier’s right to change premium rates, and the factors, other than claim experience, that affect changes in premium rates.
  c.  The provisions relating to the renewal of policies and contracts.
  d.  Any provisions relating to any preexisting condition.
  e.  All plans offered by the carrier, the prices of such plans, and the availability of such plans to the individual.
  6.  A carrier shall maintain at its principal place of business a complete and detailed description of its rating practices, including information and documentation that demonstrate that its rating methods and practices are based upon commonly accepted actuarial assumptions and are in accordance with sound actuarial principles.
  7.  A carrier shall file with the commissioner annually on or before March 15, an actuarial certification certifying that the carrier is in compliance with this chapter and that the rating methods of the carrier are actuarially sound. The certification shall be in a form and manner and shall contain information as specified by the commissioner. A copy of the certification shall be retained by the carrier at its principal place of business. Rate adjustments made in order to comply with this section are exempt from loss ratio requirements.
  8.  A carrier shall make the information and documentation maintained pursuant to subsection 6 available to the commissioner upon request. The information and documentation shall be considered proprietary and trade secret information and shall not be subject to disclosure by the commissioner to persons outside of the division except as agreed to by the carrier or as ordered by a court of competent jurisdiction.
95 Acts, ch 5, §7; 2001 Acts, ch 125, §2; 2002 Acts, ch 1119, §65
Referred to in §513C.3