33-19-102. Purpose. The purpose of this chapter is to establish standards for the collection, use, and disclosure of information gathered in connection with insurance transactions by insurance institutions, insurance producers, or insurance-support organizations; to maintain a balance between the need for information by those conducting the business of insurance and the public's need for fairness in insurance information practices, including the need to minimize intrusiveness; to establish a regulatory mechanism to enable natural persons to ascertain what information is being or has been collected about them in connection with insurance transactions and to have access to that information for the purpose of verifying or disputing its accuracy; to limit the disclosure of information collected in connection with insurance transactions; and to enable insurance applicants and policyholders to obtain the reasons for any adverse underwriting decision. The purpose of this chapter is also to provide privacy protection consistent with federal regulations governing the privacy of medical records when this chapter is consistent with those federal regulations. In those instances in which this chapter and the federal privacy regulations are inconsistent and this chapter provides privacy protection beyond that offered by the federal regulations, the purpose of this chapter is to provide that additional privacy protection.

History: En. Sec. 2, Ch. 580, L. 1981; amd. Sec. 1, Ch. 713, L. 1989; amd. Sec. 1, Ch. 341, L. 2001.