SLS 20RS-542 ORIGINAL
2020 Regular Session
SENATE BILL NO. 314
BY SENATOR BARROW
GROUP BENEFITS PROGRAM. Requires the state Office of Group Benefits to cover
bariatric surgery techniques for the treatment of severe obesity. (7/1/20)
1 AN ACT
2 To enact R.S. 42:855, relative to the Office of Group Benefits; to require coverage for the
3 treatment of morbid obesity; to define morbid obesity and body mass index; to
4 provide for an effective date; and to provide for related matters.
5 Be it enacted by the Legislature of Louisiana:
6 Section 1. R.S. 42:855 is hereby enacted to read as follows:
7 ยง855. Morbid obesity; coverage required
8 A. The legislature hereby finds and declares that obesity is a significant
9 health problem affecting hundreds of thousands of Louisiana residents. Morbid
10 obesity increases the mortality rate more than threefold, causes physical and
11 emotional disability, and is often associated with comorbid health conditions,
12 including hypertension, cardiopulmonary conditions, and diabetes, all of which
13 compound the impact of obesity on longevity and quality of life. Obese
14 Louisiana residents are more likely to have diabetes and high blood pressure
15 than those who are not obese. Therapeutic interventions can alter the course
16 and severity of obesity and morbid obesity has successfully been treated through
17 established surgical treatments.
Page 1 of 3
Coding: Words which are struck through are deletions from existing law;
words in boldface type and underscored are additions. SB NO. 314
SLS 20RS-542 ORIGINAL
1 B.(1) As used in this Section, the term "morbid obesity" means either
2 of the following:
3 (a) A body mass index equal to or greater than forty kilograms per meter
4 squared.
5 (b) A body mass index equal to or greater than thirty-five kilograms per
6 meter squared along with an associated comorbidity including but not limited
7 to hypertension, cardiopulmonary conditions, sleep apnea, or diabetes.
8 (2) As used in this Section, the term "body mass index" means a
9 practical marker used to assess the degree of obesity, calculated by dividing the
10 weight in kilograms by the height in meters squared.
11 C.(1) The Office of Group Benefits programs shall offer a provision
12 stating that benefits shall be payable for the treatment of morbid obesity, as
13 defined in Paragraph (B)(1) of this Section, through gastric bypass surgery or
14 other methods as may be recognized by the National Institutes of Health as
15 effective for the long-term reversal of morbid obesity.
16 (2) The coverage required pursuant to this Section for bariatric surgery
17 shall be limited to facilities of surgical services that are accredited by the
18 Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery Accreditation and Quality Improvement
19 Program of the American College of Surgeons and the American Society for
20 Metabolic Bariatric Surgery as a comprehensive bariatric facility.
21 Section 2. This Act shall become effective on July 1, 2020. If vetoed by the governor
22 and subsequently approved by the legislature, this Act shall become effective on July 1,
23 2020.
The original instrument and the following digest, which constitutes no part
of the legislative instrument, were prepared by Martha S. Hess.
DIGEST
SB 314 Original 2020 Regular Session Barrow
Proposed law defines "morbid obesity" as a body mass index (BMI) of at least 40 or a BMI
of at least 35 along with comorbidity or existing medical conditions such as hypertension,
cardiopulmonary conditions, sleep apnea, or diabetes.
Proposed law requires the Office of Group Benefits to offer a provision stating that benefits
Page 2 of 3
Coding: Words which are struck through are deletions from existing law;
words in boldface type and underscored are additions. SB NO. 314
SLS 20RS-542 ORIGINAL
shall be payable for the treatment of morbid obesity through gastric bypass surgery or other
methods recognized by the National Institutes of Health as effective for the long-term
reversal of morbid obesity.
Proposed law provides that the coverage required pursuant to proposed law for bariatric
surgery shall be limited to facilities of surgical services that are accredited by the Metabolic
and Bariatric Surgery Accreditation and Quality Improvement Program of the American
College of Surgeons and the American Society for Metabolic Bariatric Surgery as a
comprehensive bariatric facility.
Effective July 1, 2020.
(Adds R.S. 42:855)
Page 3 of 3
Coding: Words which are struck through are deletions from existing law;
words in boldface type and underscored are additions.