I

106TH CONGRESS

1ST SESSION H. R. 991

To amend the Public Health Service Act and other laws to apply the health

insurance portability requirements applicable to group health plans to

students covered under college-sponsored health plans.

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

MARCH 4, 1999

Mr. COSTELLO (for himself, Mr. OBERSTAR, Mr. NADLER, Mr. BENTSEN, Mr.

FROST, Mr. MCGOVERN, Mr. FORD, Mrs. CHRISTIAN-CHRISTENSEN, Mr.

LIPINSKI, Ms. SCHAKOWSKY, Mrs. MINK of Hawaii, Mr. SANDLIN, Mr.

MEEKS of New York, Mr. LAFALCE, Mr. SANDERS, Mr. SHOWS, Mr.

BALDACCI, Mr. BLAGOJEVICH, Mr. HALL of Ohio, Mr. RUSH, Mr.

BONIOR, Mr. GEORGE MILLER of California, Mr. KENNEDY of Rhode Island, Mr. LAHOOD, Mr. BARRETT of Wisconsin, Mr. WYNN, Mr. SABO,

and Mr. KLECZKA) introduced the following bill; which was referred to

the Committee on Commerce, and in addition to the Committees on Education and the Workforce, and Ways and Means, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such

provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned

A BILL

To amend the Public Health Service Act and other laws

to apply the health insurance portability requirements

applicable to group health plans to students covered

under college-sponsored health plans.

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
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1 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

2 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Student Health Insur3 ance Portability Protection Act of 1999’’.

4 SEC. 2. APPLYING HEALTH INSURANCE PORTABILITY PRO5 TECTIONS TO STUDENTS UNDER COLLEGE6 SPONSORED HEALTH PLANS.

7 (a) IN GENERAL.—Title XXVII of the Public Health

8 Service Act is amended by inserting after section 2723 the

9 following new section:

10 ‘‘SEC. 2724. APPLICATION OF PORTABILITY PROTECTIONS

11 TO STUDENTS UNDER COLLEGE-SPONSORED

12 HEALTH PLANS.

13 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Subject to the succeeding provi14 sions of this section, the provisions of subpart 1 shall

15 apply to health insurance coverage offered in connection

16 with a college-sponsored health plan (as defined in sub17 section (b)) in the same manner as they apply to health

18 insurance coverage offered in connection with a group

19 health plan.

20 ‘‘(b) COLLEGE-SPONSORED HEALTH PLAN DE21 FINED.—For purposes of this section, the term ‘college22 sponsored health plan’ means health benefits offered by

23 or through an institution of higher education (as defined

24 in section 481(a) of the Higher Education Act of 1965

25 (20 U.S.C. 1088(a))) in relation to students at the institu-
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1 tion, but does not include benefits offered to such a stu2 dent as a participant or beneficiary in a group health plan.

3 ‘‘(c) APPLICATION OF EXCEPTIONS, ENFORCEMENT,

4 PREEMPTION; DEFINITIONS.—In applying subsection

5 (a)—

6 ‘‘(1) subject to paragraph (2), the previous pro7 visions of this subpart shall apply in relation to such

8 subsection in the same manner as they apply in rela9 tion to subpart 1; and

10 ‘‘(2) in applying the other provisions of this

11 title under this section—

12 ‘‘(A) any reference in such provisions to a

13 group health plan is deemed a reference to a

14 college-sponsored health plan;

15 ‘‘(B) any reference in such provisions to a

16 participant or beneficiary in a group health

17 plan is deemed a reference to an enrollee in a

18 college-sponsored health plan; and

19 ‘‘(C) any reference in such provisions to an

20 employee in relation to the group health plan is

21 deemed a reference to a student in relation to

22 the college-sponsored health plan.’’.

23 (b) CLARIFICATION OF COVERAGE UNDER COLLEGE24 SPONSORED HEALTH PLAN AS CREDITABLE COV25 ERAGE.—
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1 (1) AMENDMENT TO PUBLIC HEALTH SERVICE

2 ACT.—Section 2701(c)(1)(B) of the Public Health

3 Service Act (42 U.S.C. 300gg(c)(1)(B)) is amended

4 by inserting ‘‘(including such coverage under a col5 lege-sponsored health plan, as defined in section

6 2724(b))’’ after ‘‘coverage’’.

7 (2) AMENDMENT TO EMPLOYEE RETIREMENT

8 INCOME SECURITY ACT OF 1974.—Section

9 701(c)(1)(B) of the Employee Retirement Income

10 Security Act of 1974 (29 U.S.C. 1181(c)(1)(B)) is

11 amended by inserting ‘‘(including such coverage

12 under a college-sponsored health plan, as defined in

13 section 2724(b) of the Public Health Service Act)’’

14 after ‘‘coverage’’.

15 (3) AMENDMENT TO THE INTERNAL REVENUE

16 CODE OF 1986.—Section 9801(c)(1)(B) of the Inter17 nal Revenue Code of 1986 is amended by inserting

18 ‘‘(including such coverage under a college-sponsored

19 health plan, as defined in section 2724(b) of the

20 Public Health Service Act)’’ after ‘‘coverage’’.

21 (c) EFFECTIVE DATE; TRANSITION.—

22 (1) IN GENERAL.—The amendment made by

23 subsection (a) apply to coverage under college-spon24 sored health plans for students matriculating or en25 rolling for periods beginning on or after August 1,
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1 1999, and the amendments made by subsection (b)

2 apply to coverage under such plans occurring on or

3 after January 1, 1999.

4 (2) CREDITING PERMITTED FOR CERTAIN PRE5 VIOUS COVERAGE.—Creditable coverage occurring on

6 or after July 1, 1998, shall be taken into account in

7 applying section 2724(a) of the Public Health Serv8 ice Act (as added by subsection (a)).

9 (3) CERTIFICATIONS, ETC.—Insofar as the cer10 tification requirements of section 2743 of the Public

11 Health Service Act are not otherwise applicable to

12 health insurance coverage under a college-sponsored

13 health plan (as defined in subsection (b) of section

14 2724 of such Act), subsection (e) of section 2701 of

15 the Public Health Service Act shall apply (as incor16 porated under subsection (a) of such section 2724)

17 to the issuer of such coverage with respect to events

18 occurring after March 1, 1999; but in no case is a

19 certification required to be provided under such sec20 tion 2724 pursuant to such subsection (e) before 60

21 days after the date of the enactment of this Act.

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