New York Senate Bill S03555 Latest Draft

   
  STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 3555 2023-2024 Regular Sessions  IN SENATE January 31, 2023 ___________ Introduced by Sen. BRESLIN -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Insurance AN ACT to amend the insurance law, in relation to life, accident and health insurance; discriminating and rebating; prohibited inducements and independent sales The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. Subsection (f) of section 4224 of the insurance law is 2 amended by adding a new paragraph 3 to read as follows: 3 (3) Notwithstanding subsection (c) of this section, a licensed agent 4 or insurance broker may provide the following services without charging 5 a service fee or, in the case of a licensed insurance broker, for a 6 separate service fee pursuant to a written memorandum made in accordance 7 with subsection (c) of section two thousand one hundred nineteen of this 8 chapter, if such services are provided in a fair and nondiscriminatory 9 manner and incidental to a group or blanket policy or contract sold by 10 the insurance agent or insurance broker: 11 (i) risk assessment, including identifying sources of risk and devel- 12 oping strategies for eliminating or limiting those risks; 13 (ii) insurance consulting services or other insurance-related advice; 14 (iii) insurance-related regulatory and legislative updates; 15 (iv) certain claims assistance services (including the preparation of 16 claims forms), but excluding adjustment, unless the exceptions set forth 17 in subsection (g) of section two thousand one hundred one of this chap- 18 ter are satisfied; 19 (v) tax preparation on behalf of an employer of schedule A of the 20 internal revenue service form fifty-five hundred annual return/report of 21 employee benefit plan, which requests information regarding insurance 22 contract coverage, fees, and commissions, investment and annuity 23 contracts, and welfare benefit contracts; EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [ ] is old law to be omitted. LBD08531-01-3 
 S. 3555 2 1 (vi) information to group policy or contract holders and members under 2 group insurance policies currently in place, as well as forms needed for 3 plan administration, enrollment in a plan, insurer website links, and 4 answers to frequently asked questions related to the insurance (includ- 5 ing, for example, access through a website, created by the insurance 6 producer, to an employee benefit portal that contains such information); 7 (vii) certain services performed pursuant to the federal consolidated 8 omnibus budget reconciliation act (COBRA), such as billing former 9 employees, collecting the insurance premiums, and forwarding the aggre- 10 gate premiums to the employer policy or contract holder or to the insur- 11 er, when offered in connection with the provision of accident and health 12 insurance; and 13 (viii) certain services provided in accordance with the federal health 14 insurance portability and accountability act, such as those pertaining 15 to health care access, portability, and renewability, when offered in 16 connection with the provision of accident and health insurance. 17 § 2. This act shall take effect immediately.