Maine Legislature, Session 121, LD 0902
Committee Amendment CA_A_S56 (Senate)
Amends: 24-A MRSA §5002-B

COMMITTEE AMENDMENT 
.. A" to S. P. 298, L.D. 902, Bill, "An 
Act To Create Equality in Medicare Supplement Insurance Policies" 
Amend the bill by striking out everything after the enacting 
clause and before the summary and inserting in its place the 
following: 
'Sec. 1. 24-A MRSA §5002-B, sub-§§1 and 2, as enacted by PL 
1999, c. 36, §4, are amended to read: 
1. 
Persons provided continuity of coverage. 
This section 
provides continuity of coverage for a person who has a Medicare 
supplement 
policy 
and 
seeks 
coverage 
under 
a 
new 
Medicare 
supplement policy with the same or lesser benefits if: 
A. 
That person 
was--p-F&y.i,.e.a-s-],.Y'-~-ed---unde-r:--a--MeEiieaFe 
sQ~~lemeB~-~eliey , including a person entitled to Medicare 
benefits due to disability, has been covered under a policy 
that supplemented benefits under Medicare with no gap in 
coverage greater than 90 days beginning with the person's 
open enrollment period. 
A policy 
supplementing benefits 
payable 
under Medicare 
may 
include 
an individual health 
policy, a group health plan, a Medicare supplement policy or 
other coverage issued by the same or a different carrier. 
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Page l-LR1609(2) 
COMMITTEE AMENDMENT 
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COMMITTEE AMENDMENT .. A" to S.P. 298, L.D. 902 
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2. 
Prohibition against discontinuity. 
The insurer shall, 
for any person described in subsection 1, waive any medical 
underwri ting or preexisting conditions exclusion to the extent 
that benefits would have been payable under the prior Medicare 
supplement policy and any earlier Medicare supplement policy if 
those policies were still in effect. 
This subsection does not 
require the succeeding insurer to pay any benefits that are not 
within the terms of coverage of the succeeding policy solely 
because they would have been paid by the prior policy. 
Sec. 2. 24·A MRSA §5010·A, as amended by PL 1993, c. 547, 
§5, is further amended to read: 
§5010-A. 
Coverage of the disabled 
An 
issuer offering coverage under 
a 
Medicare 
supplement 
policy in this State shall offer coverage under its standardized 
plans to all individuals, regardless of age, who are entitled to 
Medicare benefits due to disability. 
An issuer shall offer such 
coverage during an individual's open enrollment period under any 
of the policies offered by the issuer to persons eligible for 
Medicare 
benefits 
due 
to 
age. 
An 
issuer shall 
also offer 
standardized Medicare Supplement Plan A to persons entitled to 
Medicare benefits due to disability during the guaranteed issue 
period as set forth in section 5012. 
An individual who 
is 
entitled to Medicare benefits due to disability must be provided 
continuity 
of 
coverage 
in 
accordance 
with 
section 
5002-B. 
Issuers shall give notice of Medicare supplement coverage to 
individuals 
enrolled in Medicare 
in advertising of Medicare 
supplement policies intended for use in this State. 
By January 
1, 1994, the superintendent shall establish rules to ensure that 
the notice of the availability of coverage for the disabled is 
sufficiently advertised.' 
COMMITTEE AMENDMENT 
COMMITTEE AMENDMENT ,A" to S.P. 298, L.D. 902 
SUMMARY 
This amendment replaces the bill. The amendment clarifies 
that guaranteed issuance of Medicare supplement policies extends 
to persons who have maintained coverage supplementing benefits 
under Medicare beginning with their open enrollment period. It 
also provides that the coverage supplementing benefits under 
Medicare includes coverage under a Medicare supplement policy as 
well as coverage under an individual policy or group health plan. 
The 
amendment 
retains 
the 
prov1s10n 
in 
the 
original 
bill 
providing guaranteed issuance for Medicare supplement insurance 
policies 
to 
persons 
entitled 
to 
Medicare 
benefits 
due 
to 
disability. 
COMMITTEE AMENDMENT