News
Members have
reported from a recent Banking, Commerce and Insurance Committee hearing
that Nebraska legislative bill (LB) 553 on non-covered services (NCS)
will likely either be amended to align with the National Conference of
Insurance Legislators (NCOIL) definition for “covered services” or be
pulled from consideration. Several stakeholders testified at the hearing
including the state Dental Association and also insurance carriers, who
effectively communicated that the bill as drafted is anti-consumer and
should be amended to align with NCOIL language in order to be consistent
with other state approaches.
As reported in this month’s Soundbytes,
Nebraska already has an NCS provision in statute, but it didn’t include
a definition for “covered services.” LB 553 proposes a definition that
would allow dental providers to charge patients fees that are higher
than the discounted rate for services provided after the patient reaches
a frequency limitation or annual maximum. NADP opposed this definition in comments and will continue to provide updates in the Government Relations Open Forum.
