The Florida Senate

627.4235  Coordination of benefits.--

(1)  A group hospital, medical, or surgical expense policy, group health care services plan, or group-type self-insurance plan that provides protection or insurance against hospital, medical, or surgical expenses delivered or issued for delivery in this state must contain a provision for coordinating its benefits with any similar benefits provided by any other group hospital, medical, or surgical expense policy, any group health care services plan, or any group-type self-insurance plan that provides protection or insurance against hospital, medical, or surgical expenses for the same loss.

(2)  A hospital, medical, or surgical expense policy, health care services plan, or self-insurance plan that provides protection or insurance against hospital, medical, or surgical expenses issued in this state or issued for delivery in this state may contain a provision whereby the insurer may reduce or refuse to pay benefits otherwise payable thereunder solely on account of the existence of similar benefits provided under insurance policies issued by the same or another insurer, health care services plan, or self-insurance plan which provides protection or insurance against hospital, medical, or surgical expenses only if, as a condition of coordinating benefits with another insurer, the insurers together pay 100 percent of the total reasonable expenses actually incurred of the type of expense within the benefits described in the policies and presented to the insurer for payment.

(3)  The standards provided in subsection (2) apply to coordination of benefits payable under Medicare, Title XVIII of the Social Security Act.

(4)  If a claim is submitted in accordance with any group hospital, medical, or surgical expense policy, or in accordance with any group health care service plan or group-type self-insurance plan, that provides protection, insurance, or indemnity against hospital, medical, or surgical expenses, and the policy or any other document that provides coverage includes a coordination-of-benefits provision and the claim involves another policy or plan which has a coordination-of-benefits provision, the following rules determine the order in which benefits under the respective health policies or plans will be determined:

(a)1.  The benefits of a policy or plan which covers the person as an employee, member, or subscriber, other than as a dependent, are determined before those of the policy or plan which covers the person as a dependent.

2.  However, if the person is also a Medicare beneficiary, and if the rule established under the Social Security Act of 1965, as amended, makes Medicare secondary to the plan covering the person as a dependent of an active employee, the order of benefit determination is:

a.  First, benefits of a plan covering a person as an employee, member, or subscriber.

b.  Second, benefits of a plan of an active worker covering a person as a dependent.

c.  Third, Medicare benefits.

(b)  Except as stated in paragraph (c), if two or more policies or plans cover the same child as a dependent of different parents:

1.  The benefits of the policy or plan of the parent whose birthday, excluding year of birth, falls earlier in a year are determined before the benefits of the policy or plan of the parent whose birthday, excluding year of birth, falls later in that year; but

2.  If both parents have the same birthday, the benefits of the policy or plan which covered the parent for a longer period of time are determined before those of the policy or plan which covered the parent for a shorter period of time.

However, if a policy or plan subject to the rule based on the birthdays of the parents coordinates with an out-of-state policy or plan which contains provisions under which the benefits of a policy or plan which covers a person as a dependent of a male are determined before those of a policy or plan which covers the person as a dependent of a female and if, as a result, the policies or plans do not agree on the order of benefits, the provisions of the other policy or plan determine the order of benefits.

(c)  If two or more policies or plans cover a dependent child of divorced or separated parents, benefits for the child are determined in this order:

1.  First, the policy or plan of the parent with custody of the child.

2.  Second, the policy or plan of the spouse of the parent with custody of the child.

3.  Third, the policy or plan of the parent not having custody of the child.

However, if the specific terms of a court decree state that one of the parents is responsible for the health care expenses of the child and if the entity obliged to pay or provide the benefits of the policy or plan of that parent has actual knowledge of those terms, the benefits of that policy or plan are determined first, except with respect to any claim determination period or plan or policy year during which any benefits are actually paid or provided before the entity has the actual knowledge.

(d)  The benefits of a policy or plan which covers a person as an employee who is neither laid off nor retired, or as that employee's dependent, are determined before those of a policy or plan which covers the person as a laid-off or retired employee or as the employee's dependent. If the other policy or plan is not subject to this rule, and if, as a result, the policies or plans do not agree on the order of benefits, this paragraph does not apply.

(e)  If none of the rules in paragraph (a), paragraph (b), paragraph (c), or paragraph (d) determine the order of benefits, the benefits of the policy or plan which covered an employee, member, or subscriber for a longer period of time are determined before those of the policy or plan which covered the person for the shorter period of time.

(5)  Coordination of benefits is not permitted against an indemnity-type policy, an excess insurance policy as defined in s. 627.635, a policy with coverage limited to specified illnesses or accidents, or a Medicare supplement policy.

(6)  If an individual is covered under a COBRA continuation plan as a result of the purchase of coverage as provided under the Consolidation Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1987 (Pub. L. No. 99-272), and also under another group plan, the following order of benefits applies:

(a)  First, the plan covering the person as an employee, or as the employee's dependent.

(b)  Second, the coverage purchased under the plan covering the person as a former employee, or as the former employee's dependent provided according to the provisions of COBRA.

History.--s. 1, ch. 74-367; s. 3, ch. 76-168; s. 1, ch. 77-457; ss. 2, 3, ch. 81-318; ss. 374, 377, 809(2nd), ch. 82-243; ss. 52, 79, ch. 82-386; s. 5, ch. 84-235; s. 2, ch. 85-244; ss. 41, 114, ch. 92-318.