Senate Bill No. 39
(By Senators Jackson, Anderson, Helmick, Redd, Minard, Ross,
Kessler, McKenzie, Sharpe, Love, Ball and Bowman)
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[Introduced January 13, 1999;
referred to the Committee on Health and Human Resources.]
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A BILL to amend article sixteen, chapter five of the code of West
Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended,
by adding thereto a new section, designated section
twenty-eight, relating to prohibiting plans offered by the
public employees insurance agency from changing their drug
formulary without first giving sufficient notice to allow
members to change plans.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That article sixteen, chapter five of the code of West
Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended, be
amended by adding thereto a new section, designated section
twenty-eight, to read as follows:
ARTICLE 16. WEST VIRGINIA PUBLIC EMPLOYEES INSURANCE ACT.
§5-16-28. Drug formulary change notice.
Any plan offered by the agency, including the medical
indemnity plan and the managed care plan options, that changes
the drug formulary shall give sufficient notice to allow the
members of the plan to change plans during the open enrollment
period.
NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to prohibit any plan
offered by the public employees insurance agency from changing
their drug formulary without first giving sufficient notice to
members to allow them to change plans during the open enrollment
period.
This section is new; therefore, strike-throughs and
underscoring have been omitted.