58-17H-1. Definitions. Terms used in this chapter mean:

(1) "Adverse determination," any of the following:

(a) A determination by a health carrier or the carrier's designee utilization review organization that, based upon the information provided, a request by a covered person for a benefit under the health carrier's health benefit plan upon application of any utilization review technique does not meet the health carrier's requirements for medical necessity, appropriateness, health care setting, level of care or effectiveness or is determined to be experimental or investigational and the requested benefit is therefore denied, reduced, or terminated or payment is not provided or made, in whole or in part, for the benefit;

(b) The denial, reduction, termination, or failure to provide or make payment in whole or in part, for a benefit based on a determination by a health carrier or the carrier's designee utilization review organization of a covered person's eligibility to participate in the health carrier's health benefit plan;

(c) Any prospective review or retrospective review determination that denies, reduces, terminates, or fails to provide or make payment, in whole or in part, for a benefit; or

(d) A rescission of coverage determination;

(2) "Ambulatory review," utilization review of health care services performed or provided in an outpatient setting;

(3) "Authorized representative," a person to whom a covered person has given express written consent to represent the covered person for purposes of this chapter, a person authorized by law to provide substituted consent for a covered person, a family member of the covered person or the covered person's treating health care professional if the covered person is unable to provide consent, or a health care professional if the covered person's health benefit plan requires that a request for a benefit under the plan be initiated by the health care professional. For any urgent care request, the term includes a health care professional with knowledge of the covered person's medical condition;

(4) "Case management," a coordinated set of activities conducted for individual patient management of serious, complicated, protracted, or other health conditions;

(5) "Certification," a determination by a health carrier or the carrier's designee utilization review organization that a request for a benefit under the health carrier's health benefit plan has been reviewed and, based on the information provided, satisfies the health carrier's requirements for medical necessity, appropriateness, health care setting, level of care, and effectiveness;

(6) "Clinical peer," a physician or other health care professional who holds a nonrestricted license in a state of the United States and in the same or similar specialty as typically manages the medical condition, procedure, or treatment under review;

(7) "Clinical review criteria," the written screening procedures, decision abstracts, clinical protocols, and practice guidelines used by the health carrier to determine the medical necessity and appropriateness of health care services;

(8) "Concurrent review," utilization review conducted during a patient's hospital stay or course of treatment in a facility or other inpatient or outpatient health care setting;

(9) "Covered benefits" or "benefits," those health care services to which a covered person is entitled under the terms of a health benefit plan;

(10) "Covered person," a policyholder, subscriber, enrollee, or other individual participating in a health benefit plan;

(11) "Director," the director of the Division of Insurance;

(12) "Discharge planning," the formal process for determining, prior to discharge from a facility, the coordination and management of the care that a patient receives following discharge from a facility;

(13) "Emergency medical condition," a medical condition manifesting itself by acute symptoms of sufficient severity, including severe pain, such that a prudent layperson, who possesses an average knowledge of health and medicine, could reasonably expect that the absence of immediate medical attention, would result in serious impairment to bodily functions or serious dysfunction of a bodily organ or part, or would place the person's health or, with respect to a pregnant woman, the health of the woman or her unborn child, in serious jeopardy;

(14) "Emergency services," with respect to an emergency medical condition:

(a) A medical screening examination that is within the capability of the emergency department of a hospital, including ancillary services routinely available to the emergency department to evaluate such emergency condition; and

(b) Such further medical examination and treatment, to the extent they are within the capability of the staff and facilities at a hospital to stabilize a patient;

(15) "Facility," an institution providing health care services or a health care setting, including hospitals and other licensed inpatient centers, ambulatory surgical or treatment centers, skilled nursing centers, residential treatment centers, diagnostic, laboratory, and imaging centers, and rehabilitation, and other therapeutic health settings;

(16) "Health care professional," a physician or other health care practitioner licensed, accredited, or certified to perform specified health services consistent with state law;

(17) "Health care provider" or "provider," a health care professional or a facility;

(18) "Health care services," services for the diagnosis, prevention, treatment, cure, or relief of a health condition, illness, injury, or disease;

(19) "Health carrier," an entity subject to the insurance laws and regulations of this state, or subject to the jurisdiction of the director, that contracts or offers to contract, or enters into an agreement to provide, deliver, arrange for, pay for, or reimburse any of the costs of health care services, including a sickness and accident insurance company, a health maintenance organization, a nonprofit hospital and health service corporation, or any other entity providing a plan of health insurance, health benefits, or health services;

(20) "Managed care contractor," a person who establishes, operates, or maintains a network of participating providers; or contracts with an insurance company, a hospital or medical service plan, an employer, an employee organization, or any other entity providing coverage for health care services to operate a managed care plan or health carrier;

(21) "Managed care entity," a licensed insurance company, hospital or medical service plan, health maintenance organization, or an employer or employee organization, that operates a managed care plan or a managed care contractor. The term does not include a licensed insurance company unless it contracts with other entities to provide a network of participating providers;

(22) "Managed care plan," a plan operated by a managed care entity that provides for the financing or delivery of health care services, or both, to persons enrolled in the plan through any of the following:

(a) Arrangements with selected providers to furnish health care services;

(b) Explicit standards for the selection of participating providers; or

(c) Financial incentives for persons enrolled in the plan to use the participating providers and procedures provided for by the plan;

(23) "Network," the group of participating providers providing services to a health carrier;

(24) "Participating provider," a provider who, under a contract with the health carrier or with its contractor or subcontractor, has agreed to provide health care services to covered persons with an expectation of receiving payment, other than coinsurance, copayments, or deductibles, directly or indirectly, from the health carrier;

(25) "Prospective review," utilization review conducted prior to an admission or the provision of a health care service or a course of treatment in accordance with a health carrier's requirement that the health care service or course of treatment, in whole or in part, be approved prior to its provision;

(26) "Rescission," a cancellation or discontinuance of coverage under a health benefit plan that has a retroactive effect. The term does not include a cancellation or discontinuance of coverage under a health benefit plan if:

(a) The cancellation or discontinuance of coverage has only a prospective effect; or

(b) The cancellation or discontinuance of coverage is effective retroactively to the extent it is attributable to a failure to timely pay required premiums or contributions towards the cost of coverage;

(27) "Retrospective review," any review of a request for a benefit that is not a prospective review request, which does not include the review of a claim that is limited to veracity of documentation, or accuracy of coding, or adjudication for payment;

(28) "Second opinion," an opportunity or requirement to obtain a clinical evaluation by a provider other than the one originally making a recommendation for a proposed health care service to assess the medical necessity and appropriateness of the initial proposed health care service;

(29) "Secretary," the secretary of the Department of Health;

(30) "Stabilized," with respect to an emergency medical condition, that no material deterioration of the condition is likely, with reasonable medical probability, to result from or occur during the transfer of the individual from a facility or, with respect to a pregnant woman, the woman has delivered, including the placenta;

(31) "Utilization review," a set of formal techniques used by a managed care plan or utilization review organization to monitor and evaluate the medical necessity, appropriateness, and efficiency of health care services and procedures including techniques such as ambulatory review, prospective review, second opinion, certification, concurrent review, case management, discharge planning, and retrospective review; and

(32) "Utilization review organization," an entity that conducts utilization review other than a health carrier performing utilization review for its own health benefit plans. (SL 2012, ch 239, § 1 provides: "The provisions of chapter 219 of the 2011 Session Laws shall be deemed repealed if the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, Pub. L. No. 111-148, 124 Stat. 119 (2010), as amended by the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act of 2010, Pub. L. No. 111-152, 124 Stat. 1029 (2010) is found to be unconstitutional in its entirety by a final decision of a federal court of competent jurisdiction and all appeals exhausted or time for appeals elapsed.")Source: SL 2011, ch 219, § 28.