Representative Steve Eliason proposes the following substitute bill:


1     
BEHAVIORAL HEALTH TREATMENT ACCESS AMENDMENTS

2     
2022 GENERAL SESSION

3     
STATE OF UTAH

4     
Chief Sponsor: Steve Eliason

5     
Senate Sponsor: Michael S. Kennedy

6     

7     LONG TITLE
8     General Description:
9          This bill addresses insurance coverage of behavioral health services.
10     Highlighted Provisions:
11          This bill:
12          ▸     defines terms; and
13          ▸     subject to exceptions, requires certain health benefit plans to:
14               •     upon request of an enrollee who is a health care provider, offer a single case
15     agreement for covered behavioral health treatment; and
16               •     include certain terms in the single case agreement.
17     Money Appropriated in this Bill:
18          None
19     Other Special Clauses:
20          None
21     Utah Code Sections Affected:
22     ENACTS:
23          31A-22-657, Utah Code Annotated 1953
24     

25     Be it enacted by the Legislature of the state of Utah:

26          Section 1. Section 31A-22-657 is enacted to read:
27          31A-22-657. Single case agreement -- Treatment of a mental health condition for a
28     health care provider.
29          (1) As used in this section:
30          (a) "Mental health condition" means the same as that term is defined in Section
31     31A-22-649.5.
32          (b) "Mental health provider" means:
33          (i) a mental health therapist, as defined in Section 58-60-102; or
34          (ii) an individual practicing within the scope of practice described in Title 58, Chapter
35     60, Part 5, Substance Use Disorder Counselor Act.
36          (c) "Mental health treatment" means treatment for a mental health condition.
37          (2) (a) Except as provided in Subsection (3), beginning January 1, 2023, a health
38     benefit plan that offers coverage for mental health treatment shall, upon request of a health
39     benefit plan enrollee who is employed as a health care provider, offer a single case agreement
40     that allows the enrollee to receive covered mental health treatment from an out-of-network
41     mental health provider selected by the enrollee.
42          (b) A single case agreement described in Subsection (2)(a) shall:
43          (i) reimburse the out-of-network mental health provider for the covered mental health
44     treatment at the equivalent out-of-network rate set by the health benefit plan, subject to the
45     member cost sharing requirements imposed by the health benefit plan;
46          (ii) include the same coinsurance, copayments, and deductibles that would be applied
47     for the mental health treatment if provided by a mental health provider who is a network
48     provider;
49          (iii) include the terms that a network provider is subject to under the health benefit
50     plan; and
51          (iv) define the length and scope of the agreement.
52          (3) Subsection (2) does not apply if:
53          (a) (i) the health benefit plan has network providers for the covered mental health
54     treatment; and
55          (ii) the network providers described in Subsection (3)(a)(i) do not provide the covered
56     mental health treatment in the location where the enrollee works as a health care provider; or

57          (b) the enrollee selects a mental health provider for the covered mental health treatment
58     who the health benefit plan knows or suspects has committed a fraudulent insurance act as
59     described in Section 31A-31-103.