DIGEST
The digest printed below was prepared by House Legislative Services. It constitutes no part of
the legislative instrument. The keyword, one-liner, abstract, and digest do not constitute part of
the law or proof or indicia of legislative intent. [R.S. 1:13(B) and 24:177(E)]
Pearson HB No. 764
Abstract: Provides for licensing of health insurance navigators and registration of non-navigator
personnel by the commissioner of insurance.
Proposed law provides for regulation of health insurance navigators and registration of non-
navigator personnel by the commissioner of insurance, as follows:
(1)Provides for definitions, including defining "health insurance navigators" and "non-
navigator personnel" as individuals or entities which meet specific requirements.
(2)Requires that health insurance navigators be licensed by the commissioner of insurance.
Also requires non-navigator personnel to register with the commissioner. However,
provides for exemptions from proposed law for certain individuals or entities and
authorizes the commissioner to grant additional exemptions.
(3)Requires that individual navigators be at least 18 years old and not be disqualified for any
act that would be grounds for denial or revocation of an insurance producer license under
present law. Additionally requires that any such navigator complete all training and
education required by the federal government or an Exchange. Further provides that any
such navigator shall identify any navigator entity with which he is affiliated and by which
he is supervised.
(4)Requires that each entity licensed as a navigator provide the commissioner with a list of
licensed individual navigators employed by the entity.
(5)Provides that a navigator license is valid for two years from the date issued and that the
commissioner prescribe the form for an application for license renewal.
(6)Requires that any applicant for an individual navigator license submit a full set of
fingerprints to the commissioner and successfully complete a criminal history and
regulatory background check conducted by the commissioner. Further requires that the
commissioner submit the fingerprints of each such navigator license applicant to the
Louisiana Bureau of Criminal Identification and Information for state and national
criminal history checks. Makes applicants' fingerprints and any criminal history record
information exempt from the Public Records Law, confidential and privileged, and not
subject to discovery or admissible in evidence in any private civil action. (7)Authorizes the commissioner to require education and training for individual navigators
in addition to that required by the federal government or an Exchange. Limits such
education and training to not more than 30 hours for initial education and not more than
15 hours per year for continuing education when combined with education or training
required by any office or agency of the federal government or by an Exchange.
(8)Specifies the activities that navigators and non-navigator personnel may perform and may
not perform.
(9)Provides penalties that the commissioner may impose on navigators for violations of
proposed law, including a fine up to $500 per violation, probation, suspension, or
revocation of a navigator license, or refusal to issue, renew, or reinstate a navigator
license, and provides for appeal of the commissioner's decision to impose a penalty.
(10)Requires an individual navigator to report to the commissioner any administrative action
taken against him by a governmental agency or any criminal prosecution instituted against
him in any jurisdiction within 30 days of the final disposition of the matter. Also requires
an individual navigator to report to the commissioner any criminal prosecution instituted
against him in any jurisdiction within 30 days of the initial pretrial hearing date.
(11)Requires an entity acting as a navigator that terminates the employment or other
association with an individual navigator to notify the commissioner within 30 days
following the effective date of the termination if the reason for the termination is one set
forth in present law relative to prohibited activities by producers.
(12)Requires navigators to file with the commissioner the annual and quarterly progress
reports or annual financial reports required to be filed with the Centers for Medicare and
Medicaid Services.
(13)Authorizes the commissioner to promulgate rules and regulations to carry out the
provisions of proposed law in accordance with present law, the Administrative Procedure
Act.
(14)Authorizes the commissioner to establish an enforcement moratorium for the provisions
of proposed law relative to licensing and training of education of navigators and
registration of non-navigator personnel for the purposes of effectuating the provisions of
proposed law.
(15) Deletes provisions contained in present law relative to life insurance which authorized the
commissioner to promulgate rules relative to navigators and required the House and
Senate insurance committees to review such rules.
`
(Amends R.S. 44:4.1(B)(11); Adds R.S. 22:1566; Repeals R.S. 22:753(H)(5))
Summary of Amendments Adopted by House Committee Amendments Proposed by House Committee on Insurance to the original bill.
1. Clarified which provisions of proposed law apply to individual navigators, navigator
entities, and/or non-navigator personnel.
2. Specified that the provision of proposed law prohibiting non-navigator personnel
from receiving any direct or indirect compensation from a health insurance issuer or
an issuer of health stop loss insurance is only applicable if prohibited by federal law.
3. Deleted provisions contained in present law relative to life insurance which
authorized the commissioner to promulgate rules relative to navigators and required
the House and Senate insurance committees to review such rules, as such provisions
are superceded by proposed law.