Missouri § 376.1500 - Definitions.

§ 376.1500. Definitions.

As used in sections 376.1500 to 376.1532, the following words or phrases mean:

(1)  "Director", the director of the department of commerce and insurance;

(2)  "Discount card", a card or any other purchasing mechanism or device, which is not insurance, that purports to offer discounts or access to discounts in health-related purchases from health care providers;

(3)  "Discount medical plan", a business arrangement or contract in which a person, in exchange for fees, dues, charges, or other consideration, provides access for plan members to providers of medical services and the right to receive medical services from those providers at a discount.  The term does not include any product regulated as an insurance product, group health service product or membership in a health maintenance organization in this state or discounts provided by an insurer, group health service, or health maintenance organizations where those discounts are provided at no cost to the insured or member and are offered due to coverage with a licensed insurer, group health service, or health maintenance organization.  The term does not include an arrangement where the discounts or prices are sold, rented or otherwise provided to another licensed carrier or to a self-insured or self-funded employer sponsored plan or Taft-Hartley trust;

(4)  "Discount medical plan organization", means a person or an entity that, in exchange for fees, dues, charges or other consideration, provides access for plan members to providers of medical services and the right to receive medical services from those providers at a discount.  It is the person or organization that contracts with providers, provider networks or other discount medical plan organizations to offer access to medical services at a discount and determines the charge to plan members;

(5)  "Health care provider", any person or entity licensed by this state to provide health care services including, but not limited to physicians, hospitals, home health agencies, pharmacies, and dentists;

(6)  "Health care provider network", an entity which directly contracts with physicians and hospitals and has contractual rights to negotiate on behalf of those health care providers with a discount medical plan organization to provide medical services to members of the discount medical plan organization;

(7)  "Marketer", a person or entity who markets, promotes, sells or distributes a discount medical plan, including a private label entity that places its name on and markets or distributes a discount medical plan but does not operate a discount medical plan;

(8)  "Medical services", any care, service or treatment of illness or dysfunction of, or injury to, the human body including, but not limited to, physician care, inpatient care, hospital surgical services, emergency services, ambulance services, dental care services, vision care services, mental health services, substance abuse services, chiropractic services, podiatric care services, laboratory services, and medical equipment and supplies.  The term does not include pharmaceutical supplies or prescriptions;

(9)  "Member", any person who pays fees, dues, charges, or other consideration for the right to receive the purported benefits of a discount medical plan; and

(10)  "Person", an individual, corporation, business trust, estate, trust, partnership, association, joint venture, limited liability company, or any other government or commercial entity.

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(L. 2007 H.B. 818 and L. 2007 S.B. 66, A.L. 2011 H.B. 315)

---- end of effective  28 Aug 2007 ----

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