(a) Commencing January 1, 2001, there is hereby established in the department the Independent Medical Review System.

(b) For the purposes of this chapter, “disputed health care service” means any health care service eligible for coverage and payment under a health care service plan contract that has been denied, modified, or delayed by a decision of the plan, or by one of its contracting providers, in whole or in part due to a finding that the service is not medically necessary. A decision regarding a disputed health care service relates to the practice of medicine and is not a coverage decision. A disputed health care service does not include services provided by a specialized health care service plan, except to the extent that the service (1) involves the practice of medicine, or (2) is provided pursuant to a contract with a health care service plan that covers hospital, medical, or surgical benefits. If a plan, or one of its contracting providers, issues a decision denying, modifying, or delaying health care services, based in whole or in part on a finding that the proposed health care services are not a covered benefit under the contract that applies to the enrollee, the statement of decision shall clearly specify the provision in the contract that excludes that coverage.

(c) For the purposes of this chapter, “coverage decision” means the approval or denial of health care services by a plan, or by one of its contracting entities, substantially based on a finding that the provision of a particular service is included or excluded as a covered benefit under the terms and conditions of the health care service plan contract. A “coverage decision” does not encompass a plan or contracting provider decision regarding a disputed health care service.

(d) (1) All enrollee grievances involving a disputed health care service are eligible for review under the Independent Medical Review System if the requirements of this article are met. If the department finds that an enrollee grievance involving a disputed health care service does not meet the requirements of this article for review under the Independent Medical Review System, the enrollee request for review shall be treated as a request for the department to review the grievance pursuant to subdivision (b) of Section 1368. All other enrollee grievances, including grievances involving coverage decisions, remain eligible for review by the department pursuant to subdivision (b) of Section 1368.

(2) In any case in which an enrollee or provider asserts that a decision to deny, modify, or delay health care services was based, in whole or in part, on consideration of medical necessity, the department shall have the final authority to determine whether the grievance is more properly resolved pursuant to an independent medical review as provided under this article or pursuant to subdivision (b) of Section 1368.

(3) The department shall be the final arbiter when there is a question as to whether an enrollee grievance is a disputed health care service or a coverage decision. The department shall establish a process to complete an initial screening of an enrollee grievance. If there appears to be any medical necessity issue, the grievance shall be resolved pursuant to an independent medical review as provided under this article or pursuant to subdivision (b) of Section 1368.

(e) Every health care service plan contract that is issued, amended, renewed, or delivered in this state on or after January 1, 2000, shall provide an enrollee with the opportunity to seek an independent medical review whenever health care services have been denied, modified, or delayed by the plan, or by one of its contracting providers, if the decision was based in whole or in part on a finding that the proposed health care services are not medically necessary. For purposes of this article, an enrollee may designate an agent to act on his or her behalf, as described in paragraph (2) of subdivision (b) of Section 1368. The provider may join with or otherwise assist the enrollee in seeking an independent medical review, and may advocate on behalf of the enrollee.

(f) Medi-Cal beneficiaries enrolled in a health care service plan shall not be excluded from participation. Medicare beneficiaries enrolled in a health care service plan shall not be excluded unless expressly preempted by federal law. Reviews of cases for Medi-Cal enrollees shall be conducted in accordance with statutes and regulations for the Medi-Cal program.

(g) The department may seek to integrate the quality of care and consumer protection provisions, including remedies, of the Independent Medical Review System with related dispute resolution procedures of other health care agency programs, including the Medicare and Medi-Cal programs, in a way that minimizes the potential for duplication, conflict, and added costs. Nothing in this subdivision shall be construed to limit any rights conferred upon enrollees under this chapter.

(h) The independent medical review process authorized by this article is in addition to any other procedures or remedies that may be available.

(i) Every health care service plan shall prominently display in every plan member handbook or relevant informational brochure, in every plan contract, on enrollee evidence of coverage forms, on copies of plan procedures for resolving grievances, on letters of denials issued by either the plan or its contracting organization, on the grievance forms required under Section 1368, and on all written responses to grievances, information concerning the right of an enrollee to request an independent medical review in cases where the enrollee believes that health care services have been improperly denied, modified, or delayed by the plan, or by one of its contracting providers.

(j) An enrollee may apply to the department for an independent medical review when all of the following conditions are met:

(1) (A) The enrollee’s provider has recommended a health care service as medically necessary, or

(B) The enrollee has received urgent care or emergency services that a provider determined was medically necessary, or

(C) The enrollee, in the absence of a provider recommendation under subparagraph (A) or the receipt of urgent care or emergency services by a provider under subparagraph (B), has been seen by an in-plan provider for the diagnosis or treatment of the medical condition for which the enrollee seeks independent review. The plan shall expedite access to an in-plan provider upon request of an enrollee. The in-plan provider need not recommend the disputed health care service as a condition for the enrollee to be eligible for an independent review.

For purposes of this article, the enrollee’s provider may be an out-of-plan provider. However, the plan shall have no liability for payment of services provided by an out-of-plan provider, except as provided pursuant to subdivision (c) of Section 1374.34.

(2) The disputed health care service has been denied, modified, or delayed by the plan, or by one of its contracting providers, based in whole or in part on a decision that the health care service is not medically necessary.

(3) The enrollee has filed a grievance with the plan or its contracting provider pursuant to Section 1368, and the disputed decision is upheld or the grievance remains unresolved after 30 days. The enrollee shall not be required to participate in the plan’s grievance process for more than 30 days. In the case of a grievance that requires expedited review pursuant to Section 1368.01, the enrollee shall not be required to participate in the plan’s grievance process for more than three days.

(k) An enrollee may apply to the department for an independent medical review of a decision to deny, modify, or delay health care services, based in whole or in part on a finding that the disputed health care services are not medically necessary, within six months of any of the qualifying periods or events under subdivision (j). The director may extend the application deadline beyond six months if the circumstances of a case warrant the extension.

(l) The enrollee shall pay no application or processing fees of any kind.

(m) As part of its notification to the enrollee regarding a disposition of the enrollee’s grievance that denies, modifies, or delays health care services, the plan shall provide the enrollee with a one- or two-page application form approved by the department, and an addressed envelope, which the enrollee may return to initiate an independent medical review. The plan shall include on the form any information required by the department to facilitate the completion of the independent medical review, such as the enrollee’s diagnosis or condition, the nature of the disputed health care service sought by the enrollee, a means to identify the enrollee’s case, and any other material information. The form shall also include the following:

(1) Notice that a decision not to participate in the independent medical review process may cause the enrollee to forfeit any statutory right to pursue legal action against the plan regarding the disputed health care service.

(2) A statement indicating the enrollee’s consent to obtain any necessary medical records from the plan, any of its contracting providers, and any out-of-plan provider the enrollee may have consulted on the matter, to be signed by the enrollee.

(3) Notice of the enrollee’s right to provide information or documentation, either directly or through the enrollee’s provider, regarding any of the following:

(A) A provider recommendation indicating that the disputed health care service is medically necessary for the enrollee’s medical condition.

(B) Medical information or justification that a disputed health care service, on an urgent care or emergency basis, was medically necessary for the enrollee’s medical condition.

(C) Reasonable information supporting the enrollee’s position that the disputed health care service is or was medically necessary for the enrollee’s medical condition, including all information provided to the enrollee by the plan or any of its contracting providers, still in the possession of the enrollee, concerning a plan or provider decision regarding disputed health care services, and a copy of any materials the enrollee submitted to the plan, still in the possession of the enrollee, in support of the grievance, as well as any additional material that the enrollee believes is relevant.

(4) A section designed to collect information on the enrollee’s ethnicity, race, and primary language spoken that includes both of the following:

(A) A statement of intent indicating that the information is used for statistics only, in order to ensure that all enrollees get the best care possible.

(B) A statement indicating that providing this information is optional and will not affect the independent medical review process in any way.

(n) Upon notice from the department that the health care service plan’s enrollee has applied for an independent medical review, the plan or its contracting providers shall provide to the independent medical review organization designated by the department a copy of all of the following documents within three business days of the plan’s receipt of the department’s notice of a request by an enrollee for an independent review:

(1) (A) A copy of all of the enrollee’s medical records in the possession of the plan or its contracting providers relevant to each of the following:

(i) The enrollee’s medical condition.

(ii) The health care services being provided by the plan and its contracting providers for the condition.

(iii) The disputed health care services requested by the enrollee for the condition.

(B) Any newly developed or discovered relevant medical records in the possession of the plan or its contracting providers after the initial documents are provided to the independent medical review organization shall be forwarded immediately to the independent medical review organization. The plan shall concurrently provide a copy of medical records required by this subparagraph to the enrollee or the enrollee’s provider, if authorized by the enrollee, unless the offer of medical records is declined or otherwise prohibited by law. The confidentiality of all medical record information shall be maintained pursuant to applicable state and federal laws.

(2) A copy of all information provided to the enrollee by the plan and any of its contracting providers concerning plan and provider decisions regarding the enrollee’s condition and care, and a copy of any materials the enrollee or the enrollee’s provider submitted to the plan and to the plan’s contracting providers in support of the enrollee’s request for disputed health care services. This documentation shall include the written response to the enrollee’s grievance, required by paragraph (4) of subdivision (a) of Section 1368. The confidentiality of any enrollee medical information shall be maintained pursuant to applicable state and federal laws.

(3) A copy of any other relevant documents or information used by the plan or its contracting providers in determining whether disputed health care services should have been provided, and any statements by the plan and its contracting providers explaining the reasons for the decision to deny, modify, or delay disputed health care services on the basis of medical necessity. The plan shall concurrently provide a copy of documents required by this paragraph, except for any information found by the director to be legally privileged information, to the enrollee and the enrollee’s provider. The department and the independent medical review organization shall maintain the confidentiality of any information found by the director to be the proprietary information of the plan.

(o) This section shall become operative on July 1, 2015.

(Repealed (in Sec. 1) and added by Stats. 2012, Ch. 872, Sec. 2. (SB 1410) Effective January 1, 2013. Section operative July 1, 2015, by its own provisions.)