By Averitt                                            H.B. No. 1924
         76R7826 PB-F                           
                                A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
 1-1                                   AN ACT
 1-2     relating to health insurance provided through the Texas Health
 1-3     Insurance Risk Pool.
 1-4           BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
 1-5           SECTION 1.  Section 2(7), Article 3.77, Insurance Code, is
 1-6     amended to read as follows:
 1-7                 (7)  "Health insurance" means individual or group
 1-8     health insurance and includes any hospital and medical expense
 1-9     incurred policy, a fraternal benefit society, a stipulated premium
1-10     company, an approved nonprofit health corporation, health
1-11     maintenance organization subscriber contract, coverage by a group
1-12     hospital service plan, a multiple employer welfare arrangement
1-13     subject to Subchapter I of this chapter, or any other health care
1-14     plan or arrangement that pays for or furnishes medical or health
1-15     care services whether by insurance or otherwise.  The term does not
1-16     include short-term, accident, dental-only, vision-only, fixed
1-17     indemnity, credit insurance, long-term care, disability, or other
1-18     limited  benefit insurance, coverage issued as a supplement to
1-19     liability insurance, insurance arising out of a workers'
1-20     compensation or similar law, automobile medical-payment insurance,
1-21     or insurance under which benefits are payable with or without
1-22     regard to fault and which is statutorily required to be contained
1-23     in any liability insurance policy or equivalent self-insurance.
1-24           SECTION 2.  Article 3.77, Insurance Code, as amended by this
 2-1     Act, applies only to an insurance policy, contract, or evidence of
 2-2     coverage delivered, issued for delivery, or renewed on or after
 2-3     January 1, 2000.  A policy, contract, or evidence of coverage
 2-4     delivered, issued for delivery, or renewed before January 1, 2000,
 2-5     is governed by the law as it existed immediately before the
 2-6     effective date of this Act, and that law is continued in effect for
 2-7     that purpose.
 2-8           SECTION 3.  This Act takes effect September 1, 1999.
 2-9           SECTION 4.  The importance of this legislation and the
2-10     crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an
2-11     emergency and an imperative public necessity that the
2-12     constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several
2-13     days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.