(1) ABUSE.—The term ‘‘abuse’’ means the oc-
currence of 1 or more of the following acts by a cur-
rent or former household or family member, intimate 
partner, or caretaker: 
(A) Attempting to cause or causing an-
other person bodily injury, physical harm, sub-
stantial emotional distress, or psychological 
trauma. 
(B) Attempting to engage in or engaging 
in rape, sexual assault, or involuntary sexual 
intercourse. 
(C) Engaging in a course of conduct or re-
peatedly committing acts toward another per-
son, including following the person without 
proper authority and under circumstances that 
place the person in reasonable fear of bodily in-
jury or physical harm. 
(D) Subjecting another person to false im-
prisonment or kidnapping. 
(E) Attempting to cause or causing dam-
age to property so as to intimidate or attempt 
to control the behavior of another person. 
(2) HEALTH CARRIER.—The term ‘‘health car-
rier’’ means a person that contracts or offers to con-
tract on a risk-assuming basis to provide, deliver, ar-
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range for, pay for, or reimburse any of the cost of 
health care services, including a sickness and acci-
dent insurance company, a health maintenance orga-
nization, a nonprofit hospital and health service cor-
poration, or any other entity providing a plan of 
health insurance, health benefits, or health services. 
(3) INSURED.—The term ‘‘insured’’ means a 
party named on a policy, certificate, or health ben-
efit plan, including an individual, corporation, part-
nership, association, unincorporated organization, or 
any similar entity, as the person with legal rights to 
the benefits provided by the policy, certificate, or 
health benefit plan. For group insurance, the term 
includes a person who is a beneficiary covered by a 
group policy, certificate, or health benefit plan. For 
life insurance, the term refers to the person whose 
life is covered under an insurance policy. 
(4) INSURER.—The term ‘‘insurer’’ means any 
person, reciprocal exchange, inter insurer, Lloyds in-
surer, fraternal benefit society, or other legal entity 
engaged in the business of insurance, including 
agents, brokers, adjusters, and third-party adminis-
trators. The term includes employers who provide or 
make available employment benefits through an em-
ployee benefit plan, as defined in section 3(3) of the 
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Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 
(29 U.S.C. 102(3)). The term also includes health 
carriers, health benefit plans, and life, disability, and 
property and casualty insurers. 
(5) POLICY.—The term ‘‘policy’’ means a con-
tract of insurance, certificate, indemnity, suretyship, 
or annuity issued, proposed for issuance, or intended 
for issuance by an insurer, including endorsements 
or riders to an insurance policy or contract. 
(6) SUBJECT OF ABUSE.—The term ‘‘subject of 
abuse’’ means— 
(A) a person against whom an act of abuse 
has been directed; 
(B) a person who has prior or current in-
juries, illnesses, or disorders that resulted from 
abuse; or 
(C) a person who seeks, may have sought, 
or had reason to seek medical or psychological 
treatment for abuse, protection, court-ordered 
protection, or shelter from abuse. 
SEC. 4. DISCRIMINATORY ACTS PROHIBITED. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—No insurer may, directly or indi-
rectly, engage in any of the following acts or practices on 
the basis that the applicant or insured, or any person em-
ployed by the applicant or insured or with whom the appli-
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cant or insured is known to have a relationship or associa-
tion, is, has been, or may be the subject of abuse or has 
incurred or may incur abuse-related claims: 
(1) Denying, refusing to issue, renew, or re-
issue, or canceling or otherwise terminating an in-
surance policy or health benefit plan. 
(2) Restricting, excluding, or limiting insurance 
coverage for losses or denying a claim, except as oth-
erwise permitted or required by State laws relating 
to life insurance beneficiaries. 
(3) Adding a premium differential to any insur-
ance policy or health benefit plan. 
(b) PROHIBITION ON LIMITATION OF CLAIMS.—No 
insurer may, directly or indirectly, deny or limit payment 
to an insured who is a subject of abuse if the claim for 
payment is a result of the abuse. 
(c) PROHIBITION ON TERMINATION.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—No insurer or health carrier 
may terminate health coverage for a subject of abuse 
because coverage was originally issued in the name 
of the abuser and the abuser has divorced, separated 
from, or lost custody of the subject of abuse or the 
abuser’s coverage has terminated voluntarily or in-
voluntarily and the subject of abuse does not qualify 
for an extension of coverage under part 6 of subtitle 
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B of title I of the Employee Retirement Income Se-
curity Act of 1974 (29 U.S.C. 1161 et seq.) or sec-
tion 4980B of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986. 
(2) PAYMENT OF PREMIUMS.—Nothing in para-
graph (1) shall be construed to prohibit the insurer 
from requiring that the subject of abuse pay the full 
premium for the subject’s coverage under the health 
plan if the requirements are applied to all insured of 
the health carrier. 
(3) EXCEPTION.—An insurer may terminate 
group coverage to which this subsection applies after 
the continuation coverage period required by this 
subsection has been in force for 18 months if it of-
fers conversion to an equivalent individual plan. 
(4) CONTINUATION
COVERAGE.—The continu-
ation of health coverage required by this subsection 
shall be satisfied by any extension of coverage under 
part 6 of subtitle B of title I of the Employee Re-
tirement Income Security Act of 1974 (29 U.S.C. 
1161 et seq.) or section 4980B of the Internal Rev-
enue Code of 1986 provided to a subject of abuse 
and is not intended to be in addition to any exten-
sion of coverage otherwise provided for under such 
part 6 or section 4980B. 
(d) USE OF INFORMATION.— 
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(1) LIMITATION.— 
(A) IN GENERAL.—In order to protect the 
safety and privacy of subjects of abuse, no per-
son employed by or contracting with an insurer 
or health benefit plan may (without the consent 
of the subject)— 
(i) use, disclose, or transfer informa-
tion relating to abuse status, acts of abuse, 
abuse-related medical conditions, or the 
applicant’s or insured’s status as a family 
member, employer, associate, or person in 
a relationship with a subject of abuse for 
any purpose unrelated to the direct provi-
sion of health care services unless such 
use, disclosure, or transfer is required by 
an order of an entity with authority to reg-
ulate insurance or an order of a court of 
competent jurisdiction; or 
(ii) disclose or transfer information 
relating to an applicant’s or insured’s mail-
ing address or telephone number or the 
mailing address and telephone number of a 
shelter for subjects of abuse, unless such 
disclosure or transfer— 
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(I) is required in order to provide 
insurance coverage; and 
(II) does not have the potential 
to endanger the safety of a subject of 
abuse. 
(B) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in 
this paragraph may be construed to limit or 
preclude a subject of abuse from obtaining the 
subject’s own insurance records from an in-
surer. 
(2) AUTHORITY
OF
SUBJECT
OF
ABUSE.—A 
subject of abuse, at the absolute discretion of the 
subject of abuse, may provide evidence of abuse to 
an insurer for the limited purpose of facilitating 
treatment of an abuse-related condition or dem-
onstrating that a condition is abuse-related. Nothing 
in this paragraph shall be construed as authorizing 
an insurer or health carrier to disregard such pro-
vided evidence. 
SEC. 5. INSURANCE PROTOCOLS FOR SUBJECTS OF ABUSE. 
Insurers shall develop and adhere to written policies 
specifying procedures to be followed by employees, con-
tractors, producers, agents, and brokers for the purpose 
of protecting the safety and privacy of a subject of abuse 
and otherwise implementing this Act when taking an ap-
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plication, investigating a claim, or taking any other action 
relating to a policy or claim involving a subject of abuse. 
SEC. 6. REASONS FOR ADVERSE ACTIONS. 
An insurer that takes an action that adversely affects 
a subject of abuse, shall advise the applicant or insured 
who is the subject of abuse of the specific reasons for the 
action in writing. For purposes of this section, reference 
to general underwriting practices or guidelines shall not 
constitute a specific reason. 
SEC. 7. LIFE INSURANCE. 
Nothing in this Act shall be construed to prohibit a 
life insurer from declining to issue a life insurance policy 
if the applicant or prospective owner of the policy is or 
would be designated as a beneficiary of the policy, and 
if— 
(1) the applicant or prospective owner of the 
policy lacks an insurable interest in the insured; or 
(2) the applicant or prospective owner of the 
policy is known, on the basis of police or court 
records, to have committed an act of abuse against 
the proposed insured. 
SEC. 8. SUBROGATION WITHOUT CONSENT PROHIBITED. 
Subrogation of claims resulting from abuse is prohib-
ited without the informed consent of the subject of abuse. 
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SEC. 9. ENFORCEMENT. 
(a) FEDERAL TRADE COMMISSION.—Any act or 
practice prohibited by this Act shall be treated as an un-
fair and deceptive act or practice pursuant to section 5 
of the Federal Trade Commission Act (15 U.S.C. 45) and 
the Federal Trade Commission shall enforce this Act in 
the same manner, by the same means, and with the same 
jurisdiction, powers, and duties as though all applicable 
terms and provisions of the Federal Trade Commission 
Act were incorporated into and made a part of this Act, 
including issuing a cease and desist order granting any 
individual relief warranted under the circumstances, in-
cluding temporary, preliminary, and permanent injunctive 
relief and compensatory damages. 
(b) PRIVATE CAUSE OF ACTION.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—An applicant or insured who 
believes that the applicant or insured has been ad-
versely affected by an act or practice of an insurer 
in violation of this Act may maintain an action 
against the insurer in a Federal or State court of 
original jurisdiction. 
(2) RELIEF.—Upon proof of such conduct by a 
preponderance of the evidence in an action described 
in paragraph (1), the court may award appropriate 
relief, including temporary, preliminary, and perma-
nent injunctive relief and compensatory and punitive 
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damages, as well as the costs of suit and reasonable 
fees for the aggrieved individual’s attorneys and ex-
pert witnesses. 
(3) STATUTORY
DAMAGES.—With respect to 
compensatory damages in an action described in 
paragraph (1), the aggrieved individual may elect, at 
any time prior to the rendering of final judgment, to 
recover in lieu of actual damages, an award of statu-
tory damages in the amount of $5,000 for each vio-
lation. 
SEC. 10. NO PREEMPTION. 
Nothing in this Act shall be construed as superseding 
any law of a State or political subdivision of a State that 
provides greater protection to victims of domestic violence 
than provided in this Act. 
SEC. 11. EFFECTIVE DATE. 
This Act shall apply with respect to any action taken 
on or after the date of enactment of this Act. 
Æ 
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