(a) For every plan contract that provides or supplements Medicare benefits, a plan shall include within its disclosure form the following statement in at least 12-point type:
“For additional information concerning covered benefits, contact the Health Insurance Counseling and Advocacy Program (HICAP) or your agent. HICAP provides health insurance counseling for California senior citizens. Call the HICAP toll-free telephone number, 1-800-434-0222, for a referral to your local HICAP office. HICAP is a service provided free of charge by the State of California.”
(b) For every plan contract that provides or supplements Medicare benefits, a plan shall modify its disclosure forms to comply with subdivision (a) no later than January 1, 1998.
(c) Every health care service plan that provides or supplements Medicare benefits shall notify those current enrollees who enrolled prior to the modification of disclosure forms to include the disclosure statement required by subdivision (a) of the availability of the HICAP program. That notification shall include the same language as is required by subdivision (a). That notification may be by free standing document and shall be made no later than January 1, 1998.
(Added by Stats. 1996, Ch. 1113, Sec. 1. Effective January 1, 1997.)