A bill for an act relating to vision benefit plans, vision benefit managers, vision care providers, and vision care provider contracts and including civil penalties and effective date and applicability provisions.

HF 2249 establishes new rules for vision benefit managers in Iowa, directly affecting optometrists and vision care providers who contract with these plans. The bill requires that reimbursement rates for covered vision services must be at least the Medicare physician fee schedule for those services, updated annually for inflation. It also mandates that the time frame for vision benefit managers to recover payments from providers (chargebacks) must match the time they have to pay providers, and prohibits managers from favoring providers based on discounts, volume, or brand. These provisions aim to create fairer payment practices and greater transparency in vision care billing.