§ 6322. Scope of service.

(a) Territory of service.--The certificate of authority of a professional health service corporation shall define the limits of the area in which it may operate. If the corporation is deemed to be a holder of a certificate of authority under section 6304(b) of this title (relating to exemptions), the articles of incorporation of the corporation on the effective date of this chapter, regardless of any subsequent amendment to such articles, shall be deemed to be its initial certificate of authority for the purposes of this section.

(b) Classes and kinds of services.--The certificate of authority, bylaws, or resolutions of the board of directors of a professional health service corporation may limit the professional health services that will be provided for its subscribers, and may divide such professional health services as it elects to provide into classes or kinds, and it may enter into contracts with its subscribers or groups of subscribers to secure professional health services of any kind or class so delimited. A general medical services corporation shall make available to its subscribers or groups of subscribers, upon request of any individual for his individual subscriptions or any group for its group subscriptions, contracts which provide coverage for professional health services with appropriate premiums.

(c) Services provided only by licensed persons.--A professional health service corporation shall not provide professional health services for its subscribers otherwise than through health service doctors, duly licensed to practice in their respective fields under the laws of this Commonwealth.

(d) Services provided only to domiciliaries.--A professional health service corporation shall provide professional health services only to persons domiciled within this Commonwealth. If a subscriber, regularly domiciled within this Commonwealth and entitled to professional health services, or any of his dependents so entitled, necessarily employs professional health services within the meaning of this chapter, while absent from this Commonwealth, a professional health service corporation to which he is a subscriber may, in its discretion, and if satisfied as to the necessity for such services and satisfied that it was such as the subscriber would have been entitled to under similar circumstances in this Commonwealth, pay to the persons who rendered the services such fees and charges as would have been payable if the services had been rendered in this Commonwealth. A professional health service corporation organized under the laws of, and operating near the boundaries of, this Commonwealth may, with the consent of the proper officers of and as authorized by the laws of the adjacent state, provide professional health services therein; but all operations of any such corporation, whether within or without this Commonwealth, shall remain at all times subject to the provisions of this chapter.

(e) Liability of corporation limited.--All professional health services provided by or on behalf of a professional health service corporation shall be in accordance with the best professional health service practice in the community at the time, but the corporation providing such services shall not be liable for injuries resulting from negligence, misfeasance, malfeasance, nonfeasance, or malpractice, on the part of any officer or employee or on the part of any health service doctor in the course of rendering professional health services to subscribers, and the corporation may so provide in its contracts with subscribers.

(f) Legislative amendment of stated purposes of existing corporations.--The stated purposes of all existing general medical service corporations are hereby amended so as to include the furnishing of osteopathic, dental, optometric, podiatry, chiropractic, physical therapy, clinical social work, occupational therapy, psychological, speech-language pathology and audiology services and the services of teachers of persons who are hearing impaired through doctors of osteopathy, dentistry, optometry, podiatry and chiropractic and through licensed physical therapists, licensed clinical social workers, licensed marriage and family therapists, licensed occupational therapists, licensed professional counselors, psychologists, speech-language pathologists, audiologists and teachers of persons who are hearing impaired, respectively. (Oct. 10, 1980, P.L.801, No.151, eff. 90 days; Mar. 30, 1982, P.L.220, No.70, eff. imd.; Apr. 20, 1988, P.L.363, No.57, eff. 60 days; Apr. 21, 1994, P.L.124, No.14, eff. 60 days; Oct. 9, 2008, P.L.1393, No.108, eff. 120 days)

2008 Amendment. Act 108 amended subsec. (f).

1980 Amendment. Act 151 amended subsecs. (b) and (f).

Cross References. Section 6322 is referred to in section 6324 of this title.