HBA-NRS H.B. 2146 77(R)BILL ANALYSIS Office of House Bill AnalysisH.B. 2146 By: Chisum Insurance 4/11/2001 Committee Report (Amended) BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE Small businesses are facing increasingly expensive employee health insurance premiums. A substantial claim by one employee can increase the rate of premiums paid by the employer for all employees. Current law does not require an issuer of group health benefit plans to provide a small employer with the claims experience of the employees covered by a group health benefit plan. Consequently, the employer cannot verify the legitimacy of rate increases. Nondisclosure of claims experience is intended to protect the privacy of an individual employee who files a large health insurance claim. However, preventing a small employer's access to claims information hinders the ability of a small employer to evaluate alternatives to health insurance providers. House Bill 2146 requires the issuer of a group health benefit plan to provide a small employer with the claims experience of the small employer's employees covered by the plan. RULEMAKING AUTHORITY It is the opinion of the Office of House Bill Analysis that this bill does not expressly delegate any additional rulemaking authority to a state officer, department, agency, or institution. ANALYSIS House Bill 2146 amends the Insurance Code to require the issuer of group health benefit plans that are issued to the employees of one or more employers that sponsor the plan to provide to the employer the claims experience of the employees covered by the plan during the preceding calendar year. The bill requires claims experience to be provided in aggregate, without information through which a specific individual enrolled in the group health benefit plan may be identified. The bill authorizes the employer to use the information only for purposes relating to obtaining and maintaining group health benefit plan coverage for the employer's employees. EFFECTIVE DATE September 1, 2001. The Act applies only to a group health benefit plan that is delivered, issued for delivery, or renewed on or after January 1, 2002. EXPLANATION OF AMENDMENTS Committee Amendment No. 1 creates the option for an issuer of a group health benefit plan to provide detailed claims experience of an employee to an employer.