Bill > SB1473

This bill makes several key changes: 1. It eliminates the special enrollment period for individual health benefit plans offered through the California Health Benefit Exchange (Covered California) for policy years starting on or after January 1, 2023, and instead creates an annual enrollment period from November 1 to January 31. It also specifies the effective dates of coverage for plans selected during this period. 2. It requires health care service plans and disability insurers to cover COVID-19 testing, immunizations, and therapeutics without cost-sharing, and prohibits them from reporting adverse information to credit agencies or taking civil action against enrollees/insureds for these items. This requirement continues for 6 months after the federal public health emergency ends. 3. It extends existing duties for health care service plans during a declared public health emergency to Medi-Cal managed care plans, and eliminates criminal liability for health care service plans for violations of COVID-19 testing and immunization coverage requirements before January 1, 2022. 4. The bill declares itself an urgency statute to ensure COVID-19 therapeutics can be provided quickly after a positive test result.

Budget and Finance, Health and Social Services

https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billStatusClient.xhtml?bill_id=202120220SB1473