Bill > HB1563

This bill authorizes the Maryland Insurance Commission to investigate patterns of adverse decisions or grievance decisions made by insurance carriers (referred to as "carriers") regarding claims or authorization requests for emergency room services, and requires the Maryland Health Care Commission, working with the Health Services Cost Review Commission, to study and report on the capacity of hospital and post-acute care beds in the state, including recommendations for a system to track and audit this bed capacity. The bill also mandates a study on facilitating smoother transitions from acute to post-acute care settings, and it clarifies that carriers cannot deny coverage for emergency room services solely based on diagnosis codes and must provide coverage regardless of whether the provider has a contract with the carrier, with specific rules for cost-sharing and reimbursement for non-contracted providers.