Health care coverage: benefit mandates.

Existing law, the Knox-Keene Health Care Service Plan Act of 1975, provides for the licensure and regulation of health care service plans by the Department of Managed Health Care. Existing law also provides for regulation of health insurers by the Department of Insurance. Existing law imposes certain benefit mandates on health care service plan contracts and health insurance policies. This bill would exempt a health care service plan contract or health insurance policy issued, amended, or renewed on or after January 1, 2011, from complying with those benefit mandates, as specified, until the Department of Managed Health Care or the Department of Insurance, as applicable, issues a declaration finding that the state unemployment rate has been no more than 5.5% for 4 consecutive quarters.