(1)(a) All advertisements, marketing efforts, promotions, marketing materials, discount plan documents, brochures, discount plan cards, and any other communications of a discount plan organization provided to prospective members and members must be truthful and not misleading in fact or in implication.
(b) Any advertisement, marketing material, discount plan document, brochure, discount plan card, or other communication is misleading in fact or in implication if it has a capacity or tendency to mislead or deceive based on the overall impression that it may reasonably be expected to create within the segment of the public to which it is directed.
(c) A discount plan organization shall conduct its business in its own legal name and all written communications from a discount plan to regulators and consumers must prominently display the discount plan organization's full legal name.
(2) A discount plan organization shall not:
(a) Except as otherwise provided in this chapter or as a disclaimer of any relationship between discount plan benefits and insurance, or as a description of an insurance product connected with a discount plan, use in its advertisements, marketing efforts, promotions, marketing materials, discount plan documents, brochures, and discount plan cards the term "insurance";
(b) Describe or characterize the discount plan as being insurance whenever a discount plan is bundled with an insured product and the insurance benefits are incidental to the discount plan benefits;
(c) Use in its advertisements, marketing efforts, promotions, marketing materials, discount plan documents, brochures, and discount plan cards words or phrases that are commonly associated with the business of insurance, such as the terms "health plan," "coverage," "copay," "copayments," "deductible," "preexisting conditions," "guaranteed issue," "premium," "PPO," "preferred provider organization," or similar terms, in a manner that could reasonably mislead an individual into believing that the discount plan is health insurance;
(d) Use language in its advertisements, marketing efforts, promotions, marketing material, discount plan documents, brochures, and discount plan cards with respect to being licensed by the insurance commissioner's office in a manner that could reasonably mislead an individual into believing that the discount plan is insurance or has been endorsed by the insurance commissioner's office;
(e) Make misleading, deceptive, or fraudulent representations regarding the discount or range of discounts offered by the discount plan or the access to any range of discounts offered by the discount plan;
(f) Have restrictions on access to discount plan providers including, except for hospital services, waiting periods and notification periods; or
(g) Pay health care providers any fees for health care services or collect or accept money from a member to pay a health care provider for health care services provided under the discount plan, unless the discount plan organization has an active certificate of authority or registration in Washington.
(3)(a) Each discount plan organization shall make the following general disclosures in not less than twelve-point type on the first content page of any advertisements, marketing materials, or brochures made available to the public relating to a discount plan, along with any enrollment forms given to a prospective member:
(i) That the plan is a discount plan and is not insurance coverage;
(ii) If true, that the range of discounts for health care services provided under the plan will vary depending on the type of health care provider and health care service received;
(iii) That the discount plan organization does not make payments to providers for the health care services received under the discount plan, unless the discount plan organization has an active certificate of authority or registration, as described in subsection (2)(g) of this section;
(iv) That the plan member is obligated to pay for all health care services, but will receive the stated discount from those health care providers that have a current provider agreement with the discount plan organization; and
(v) The toll-free telephone number and internet website address for the licensed discount plan organization for prospective members and members to obtain additional information about and assistance with the discount plan and up-to-date lists of health care providers participating in the discount plan.
(b) If the initial contact with a prospective member is by telephone, the disclosures required under (a) of this subsection must be made orally and included in the initial written materials that describe the benefits under the discount plan provided to the prospective or new member.
(4)(a) In addition to the general disclosures required under subsection (3) of this section, each discount plan organization shall send to:
(i) Each prospective member, at their request, information that describes the terms and conditions of the discount plan, including any limitations or restrictions on the refund of any processing fees or periodic charges associated with the discount plan. The written materials presented must not be dependent upon the requestor first making any form of payment or enrolling in the plan; and
(ii) Each new member, within fourteen calendar days of enrollment, written documents that contain all terms and conditions of the discount plan.
(b) The written documents required under (a)(ii) of this subsection must be clear and include the following information:
(i) The name of the member;
(ii) The benefits to be provided under the discount plan;
(iii) Any processing fees and periodic charges associated with the discount plan, including any limitations or restrictions on the refund of any processing fees and periodic charges;
(iv) The mode of payment of any processing fees and periodic charges, such as monthly or quarterly, and procedures for changing the mode of payment;
(v) Any limitations, exclusions, or exceptions regarding the receipt of discount plan benefits;
(vi) Any waiting periods for receiving discounts on hospital services under the discount plan;
(vii) Procedures for obtaining discounts under the discount plan, such as requiring members to contact the discount plan organization to make an appointment with a health care provider on the member's behalf;
(viii) Cancellation procedures, including information on the member's thirty-day cancellation rights and refund requirements and procedures for obtaining refunds;
(ix) Renewal, termination, and cancellation terms and conditions;
(x) Procedures for adding new members to a family discount plan, if applicable;
(xi) Procedures for filing complaints under the discount plan organization's complaint system and information that, if the member remains dissatisfied after completing the organization's complaint system, the plan member may contact the office of the insurance commissioner; and
(xii) The name, telephone number, internet website address, and mailing address of the licensed discount plan organization or other entity where the member can make inquiries about the plan, or send cancellation notices and file complaints.
[ 2009 c 175 § 12.]