Report Title:

Insurance

Description:

Allows medical service providers to have treatment carried out by support or auxiliary personnel authorized by law to provide such treatment. Requires bills for services to identify services provided by support or auxiliary personnel.

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

H.B. NO.

2107

TWENTY-FIRST LEGISLATURE, 2002

 

STATE OF HAWAII

 


 

A BILL FOR AN ACT

 

relating to insurance.

 

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF HAWAII:

SECTION 1. Section 386-21, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended by amending subsection (c) to read as follows:

"(c) The liability of the employer for medical care, services, and supplies shall be limited to the charges computed as set forth in this section. The director shall make determinations of the charges and adopt fee schedules based upon those determinations. Effective January 1, 1997, and for each succeeding calendar year thereafter, the charges shall not exceed one hundred ten per cent of fees prescribed in the Medicare Resource Based Relative Value Scale system applicable to Hawaii as prepared by the United States Department of Health and Human Services, except as provided in this subsection. The rates or fees provided for in this section shall be adequate to ensure at all times the standard of services and care intended by this chapter to injured employees.

If the director determines that an allowance under the medicare program is not reasonable, or if a medical treatment, accommodation, product, or service existing as of June 29, 1995, is not covered under the medicare program, the director may, at any time, establish an additional fee schedule or schedules not exceeding the prevalent charge for fees for services actually received by health care providers [of health care services] to cover charges for that treatment, accommodation, product, or service. If no prevalent charge for a fee for service has been established for a given service or procedure, the director shall adopt a reasonable rate that shall be the same for all health care providers [of health care services] to be paid for that service or procedure.

Health care providers may have treatment in their discipline carried out by support or auxiliary personnel authorized by law to provide such services. There shall be no more than two support or auxiliary personnel carrying out treatment under the supervision of any one health care provider. Support or auxiliary personnel includes but is not limited to assistants and aides, and does not include students, apprentices, or interns. Individual health care providers shall be identified on the bill for service and other supporting documents. Bills and supporting documents that fail to identify services performed by support or auxiliary personnel shall be denied.

The director shall update the schedules required by this section every three years or annually, as required. The updates shall be based upon:

(1) Future charges or additions prescribed in the Medicare Resource Based Relative Value Scale system applicable to Hawaii as prepared by the United States Department of Health and Human Services; or

(2) A statistically valid survey by the director of prevalent charges for fees for services actually received by health care providers [of health care services] or based upon the information provided to the director by the appropriate state agency having access to prevalent charges for medical fee information.

When a dispute exists between an insurer or self-insured employer and a [medical service] health care provider regarding the amount of a fee for medical services, the director may resolve the dispute in a summary manner as the director may prescribe; provided that a health care provider shall not charge more than the health care provider's private patient charge for the service rendered."

SECTION 2. Statutory material to be repealed is bracketed and stricken. New statutory material is underscored.

SECTION 3. This Act shall take effect upon its approval.

INTRODUCED BY:

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