BILL NUMBER: AB 824 CHAPTERED 08/13/01 CHAPTER 185 FILED WITH SECRETARY OF STATE AUGUST 13, 2001 APPROVED BY GOVERNOR AUGUST 12, 2001 PASSED THE SENATE JULY 19, 2001 PASSED THE ASSEMBLY MAY 17, 2001 AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY MARCH 27, 2001 INTRODUCED BY Assembly Member Cohn FEBRUARY 22, 2001 An act to amend Section 21661 of the Government Code, relating to public employee health care, and making an appropriation therefor. LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST AB 824, Cohn. Public employees' long-term care insurance. Existing law requires the Board of Administration of the Public Employees' Retirement System to contract for long-term care insurance plans, authorizes the board to develop and administer self-funded long-term care insurance plans, and specifies that active and retired members and annuitants of specified public retirement systems and their spouses, their parents, and their spouses' parents shall be eligible to enroll in those plans. Premiums for any self-funded long-term care plan developed by the board are required to be deposited in the Public Employees' Long-Term Care Fund, a continuously appropriated special fund. This bill would provide that adult siblings of eligible active and retired members and annuitants shall also be eligible to enroll in those plans. By expanding the class of persons making deposits into a continuously appropriated fund, the bill would make an appropriation. Appropriation: yes. THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS: SECTION 1. Section 21661 of the Government Code is amended to read: 21661. (a) The board shall contract with carriers offering long-term care insurance plans and enter into health care service plan contracts covering long-term care. The long-term care insurance plans and health care service plan contracts covering long-term care shall be made available periodically during open enrollment periods determined by the board. (b) The board shall award contracts to carriers who are qualified to provide long-term care benefits, and may develop and administer self-funded long-term care insurance plans. The board may offer one or more long-term care insurance plans or health care service plan contracts covering long-term care and may offer service or indemnity-type plans. (c) The long-term care insurance plans and health care service plan contracts covering long-term care shall include home, community, and institutional care and shall, to the extent determined by the board, provide substantially equivalent coverage to that required under Chapter 2.6 (commencing with Section 10230) of Part 2 of Division 2 of the Insurance Code, if the carrier has been approved by the Department of Managed Health Care pursuant to Chapter 2.2 (commencing with Section 1340) of Division 2 of the Health and Safety Code. (d) The classes of persons who shall be eligible to enroll are: (1) Active and retired members and annuitants of the Public Employees' System, and their spouses, their parents, their siblings, and their spouses' parents. (2) Active and retired members and annuitants of any county or district subject to the County Employees Retirement Law of 1937, and their spouses, their parents, their siblings, and their spouses' parents. (3) Active and retired members and annuitants of the State Teachers' Retirement System, and their spouses, their parents, their siblings, and their spouses' parents. (4) Active employees and retirees and annuitants of any public agency that is a contracting agency under this part or Part 5 (commencing with Section 22751), and their spouses, their parents, their siblings, and their spouses' parents. (5) Active and retired members and annuitants of the Judges' Retirement System, and their spouses, their parents, their siblings, and their spouses' parents. (6) Active and retired members and annuitants of the Judges' Retirement System II, and their spouses, their parents, their siblings, and their spouses' parents. (7) Active and retired members and annuitants of the Legislators' Retirement System, and their spouses, their parents, their siblings, and their spouses' parents. (8) Members of the California Assembly and Senate and their spouses, their parents, their siblings, and their spouses' parents. (9) Active and retired members and annuitants, and other classes of employees of other public employee retirement systems or public employers as the board determines may be eligible under the standards the board may prescribe, and their spouses, their parents, their siblings, and their spouses' parents. (10) Active employees and retirees and annuitants of any agency specified in paragraphs (1) through (9) who reside in the United States, its territories and possessions, or in a country in which a provider network can be established comparable in quality and effectiveness to those established in the United States. (e) Any California public agency or retirement system may contract with the board to extend the provisions of this article to its active and retired employees and annuitants. (f) Irrespective of paragraphs (1) through (10) of subdivision (d), no person shall be enrolled unless he or she meets the eligibility and underwriting criteria established by the board. (g) Irrespective of paragraphs (1) through (10) of subdivision (d), enrollment of active employees of the State of California shall be subject to Section 19867. (h) The board shall establish eligibility criteria for enrollment, establish appropriate underwriting criteria for potential enrollees, define the scope of covered benefits, define the criteria to receive benefits, and set any other standards as needed. As used in this section, " sibling" shall mean a sibling who is at least 18 years of age. (i) The full cost of enrollment in a long-term care insurance plan or in health care service plan contracts covering long-term care shall be paid by the enrollees. (j) The long-term care insurance plans and health care service plan contracts covering long-term care shall not become part of, or subject to, the retirement or health benefits programs administered by the system. (k) For any self-funded long-term care plan developed by the board, the premiums shall be deposited in the Public Employees' Long-term Care Fund.