Health benefit plan; requiring certain health benefit plan to provide coverage for certain cooling system; exempting coverage from certain limits. Emergency.
Summary
SB 1663 creates a new section of Oklahoma insurance law requiring health benefit plans to cover “cooling systems” used with chemotherapy treatment. The bill defines cooling systems broadly to include cooling caps, hypothermia caps, cold caps, physical cooling treatments, and similar therapeutic devices used to cool the scalp, hands, or feet to reduce chemotherapy side effects such as hair loss, neuropathy, and palmar-plantar erythrodysesthesia.
The bill also specifies that this coverage cannot be subject to annual deductibles, copayments, or coinsurance limits that otherwise apply to covered benefits. It includes a safeguard for health savings account-qualified high deductible health plans, limiting application of the mandate until the enrollee meets the federal minimum deductible, except for preventive care items or services under federal tax law. The bill is declared an emergency measure, meaning it would take effect immediately upon passage and approval.
Impact
SB 1663 would amend Title 36 of the Oklahoma Statutes by adding Section 6060a and imposing a new insurance coverage mandate on health benefit plans regulated in Oklahoma. Insurers offering covered health benefit plans would be required to pay for chemotherapy-related cooling systems, and the mandate would override standard cost-sharing limits for that benefit, subject to the bill’s HSA/high-deductible plan exception. The practical effect would be to expand access to an adjunct cancer-treatment service and shift associated costs from patients to health plans.
Sentiment
No committee transcripts or recorded votes were provided, so there is no direct evidence of debate or opposition in the available materials. Based on the bill text and caption, the measure appears to be framed as a patient-access and cancer-support bill, with an emergency clause suggesting urgency and likely favorable treatment. The absence of recorded opposition or amendments in the provided context limits any stronger conclusion about legislative sentiment.
Contention
The main policy issue is the insurance mandate itself: requiring all health benefit plans to cover cooling systems and prohibiting deductibles, copays, and coinsurance for that coverage. Potential points of contention include the added cost to insurers and employers, the breadth of the definition of covered cooling systems, and how the mandate interacts with federal HSA-qualified high deductible health plan rules. The bill’s exception for minimum deductibles and preventive care appears designed to address that federal compatibility concern.
Dental benefit plans; establishing formula for medical loss ratio; exempting certain dental plans; requiring annual rebate for certain plan years by certain plans. Effective date.