Bill Text: IL HB2498 | 2023-2024 | 103rd General Assembly | Introduced

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Bill Title: Amends the Illinois Insurance Code. Creates the Eating Disorder Treatment Parity Task Force within the Department of Insurance to review reimbursement to eating disorder treatment providers in Illinois as well as out-of-state providers of similar services. Provides for the membership of the Task Force. Provides that the Task Force shall elect a chairperson from its membership and shall have the authority to determine its meeting schedule, hearing schedule, and agendas. Provides that appointments shall be made within 60 days after the effective date of the amendatory Act. Provides that the Task Force shall review insurance plans and rates and provide recommendations for rules, and the findings, recommendations, and other information determined by the Task Force to be relevant shall be made available on the Department's website. Provides that the Task Force shall submit findings and recommendations to the Director of Insurance, the Governor, and the General Assembly by December 31, 2023. Provides for repeal of the provisions on January 1, 2025. Effective immediately.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)

Status: (Introduced) 2023-03-10 - Rule 19(a) / Re-referred to Rules Committee [HB2498 Detail]

Download: Illinois-2023-HB2498-Introduced.html

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103RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY State of Illinois 2023 and 2024 HB2498 Introduced , by Rep. Terra Costa Howard SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
215 ILCS 5/370c.3 new
Amends the Illinois Insurance Code. Creates the Eating Disorder Treatment Parity Task Force within the Department of Insurance to review reimbursement to eating disorder treatment providers in Illinois as well as out-of-state providers of similar services. Provides for the membership of the Task Force. Provides that the Task Force shall elect a chairperson from its membership and shall have the authority to determine its meeting schedule, hearing schedule, and agendas. Provides that appointments shall be made within 60 days after the effective date of the amendatory Act. Provides that the Task Force shall review insurance plans and rates and provide recommendations for rules, and the findings, recommendations, and other information determined by the Task Force to be relevant shall be made available on the Department's website. Provides that the Task Force shall submit findings and recommendations to the Director of Insurance, the Governor, and the General Assembly by December 31, 2023. Provides for repeal of the provisions on January 1, 2025. Effective immediately.
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A BILL FOR
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AN ACT concerning regulation.
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
represented in the General Assembly:
Section 5. The Illinois Insurance Code is amended by
adding Section 370c.3 as follows:
(215 ILCS 5/370c.3 new)
Sec. 370c.3. Eating Disorder Treatment Parity Task Force.
(a) The General Assembly finds that there is a mental
health crisis in Illinois regarding access to care for people
experiencing eating disorders. At least 1,600,000 people
suffer from an eating disorder in Illinois, and eating
disorders have the highest mortality rate of any mental
illness. The Academy for Eating Disorders estimates that
10,200 deaths occurred in the U.S. between 2018 and 2019 and
that the disease is more than 2 times more likely to occur in
females than males. This crisis has a much more significant
affect on young people between the ages of 15 and 24 with
anorexia nervosa, who have 10 times the risk of dying compared
to their same-aged peers. The General Assembly also finds that
the current COVID-19 pandemic has dramatically increased the
demand for residential treatment of eating disorders to
support those experiencing additional anxiety and depression
and cannot cope at home.

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The General Assembly further finds that access to eating
disorder treatment in Illinois may be restricted due to
insurance companies providing low reimbursement rates to
Illinois-based providers as compared to those in other states.
The lower reimbursement rates may be contributing to the low
number of providers available to treat persons suffering from
these disorders in Illinois.
(b) As used in this Section, "eating disorder" includes
anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa, binge eating disorder,
other specified feeding or eating disorder, atypical anorexia
nervosa, and avoidant/restrictive food intake disorder as set
forth in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental
Disorders, Fifth Edition (DSM-5).
(c) The Eating Disorder Treatment Parity Task Force is
created within the Department to review reimbursement to
eating disorder treatment providers in Illinois as well as
out-of-state providers of similar services. The Task Force
shall work cooperatively with the insurance industry,
community organizations, businesses, business coalitions, and
advocacy groups to identify the high costs of medical
complications, disability, and loss of life associated with
eating disorders and to determine whether disparities in
insurance reimbursement is limiting access to a full range of
evidence-based treatment providers in the State of Illinois.
(d) The Task Force shall be comprised of the following
members:

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(1) 2 experts in the eating disorder treatment field
appointed by the Governor;
(2) 2 consumers of mental health insurance appointed
by the Governor who have experienced or are experiencing
an eating disorder directly or as family members of eating
disorder patients;
(3) 2 members of the General Assembly appointed by the
Speaker of the House of Representatives;
(4) 2 members of the General Assembly appointed by the
President of the Senate;
(5) 2 members of the General Assembly appointed by the
Minority Leader of the House of Representatives; and
(6) 2 members of the General Assembly appointed by the
Minority Leader of the Senate.
Members shall be adults and residents of Illinois.
(e) The Task Force shall elect a chairperson from its
membership and shall have the authority to determine its
meeting schedule, hearing schedule, and agendas.
(f) Appointments shall be made within 60 days after the
effective date of this amendatory Act of the 103rd General
Assembly.
(g) Members shall serve without compensation.
(h) The Task Force shall:
(1) review existing plans and policies for individual
and group health insurance issued, delivered, and offered
in Illinois that cover treatment of eating disorders;

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(2) review and compare commercial insurance rates paid
for health insurance plan members receiving eating
disorder treatment in network with Illinois-based
providers to rates paid to out-of-state, out-of-network
providers for the same level of care;
(3) provide recommendations for rules to provide a
process for the Department to receive and investigate
complaints from consumers and treatment providers who have
been wrongfully denied coverage or fair compensation by
health care insurers;
(4) provide recommendations for rules designed to
increase access for needed treatments for eating
disorders; these recommendations may include providing
incentives to providers of such treatments as well as rate
methodologies for third-party insurers; and
(5) provide recommendations for rules to ensure
compliance with such rules adopted pursuant to this
Section, which may include fines, license sanctions, or
other enforcement remedies that may be appropriate as
determined by the Task Force.
(i) The findings, recommendations, and other information
determined by the Task Force to be relevant shall be made
available on the Department's website.
(j) The Task Force shall submit findings and
recommendations to the Director, the Governor, and the General
Assembly by December 31, 2023.

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(k) This Section is repealed on January 1, 2025.
Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon
becoming law.