Current through Register Vol. 41, No. 3, September 23, 2024
A. Other than policies for which no
applicable premium rate or rate schedule increases can be made, insurers shall
provide all of the information listed in this subsection to the applicant at
the time of application or enrollment, unless the method of application does
not allow for delivery at that time. In such a case, an insurer shall provide
all of the information listed in this section to the applicant no later than at
the time of delivery of the policy or certificate.
1. A statement that the policy may be subject
to rate increases in the future;
2.
An explanation of potential future premium rate revisions, and the
policyholder's or certificateholder's option in the event of a premium rate
revision;
3. The premium rate or
rate schedules applicable to the applicant that will be in effect until a
request is made for an increase;
4.
A general explanation for applying premium rate or rate schedule adjustments
that shall include:
a. A description of when
premium rate or rate schedule adjustments will be effective (e.g., next
anniversary date, next billing date, etc.); and
b. The right to a revised premium rate or
rate schedule as provided in subdivision 2 of this subsection if the premium
rate or rate schedule is changed;
5.
a.
Information regarding each premium rate increase on this policy form or similar
policy forms over the past 10 years for this Commonwealth or any other state
that, at a minimum, identifies:
(1) The
policy forms for which premium rates have been increased;
(2) The calendar years when the form was
available for purchase; and
(3) The
amount or percentage of each increase. The percentage may be expressed as a
percentage of the premium rate prior to the increase, and may also be expressed
as minimum and maximum percentages if the rate increase is variable by rating
characteristics.
b. The
insurer may, in a fair manner, provide additional explanatory information
related to the rate increases.
c.
An insurer shall have the right to exclude from the disclosure premium rate
increases that only apply to blocks of business acquired from other
nonaffiliated insurers or the long-term care policies acquired from other
nonaffiliated insurers when those increases occurred prior to the
acquisition.
d. If an acquiring
insurer files for a rate increase on a long-term care policy form or a block of
policy forms acquired from nonaffiliated insurers 24 months or more following
the acquisition of the policy form or the block of policies, the acquiring
insurer may exclude that rate increase from the disclosure. However, the
nonaffiliated selling company shall include the disclosure of that rate
increase in accordance with subdivision 5 a of this subsection.
e. If the acquiring insurer in subdivision 5
d of this subsection files for a subsequent rate increase, even within the
24-month period, on the same policy form acquired from nonaffiliated insurers
or block of policy forms acquired from nonaffiliated insurers referenced in
subdivision 5 d of this subsection, the acquiring insurer shall make all
disclosures required by subdivision 5 of this subsection, including disclosure
of the earlier rate increase referenced in subdivision 5 d of this
subsection.
B. An applicant shall sign an acknowledgement
at the time of application, unless the method of application does not allow for
signature at that time, that the insurer made the disclosure required under
subdivisions A 1 and 5 of this section. If due to the method of application the
applicant cannot sign an acknowledgement at the time of application, the
applicant shall sign no later than at the time of delivery of the policy or
certificate. The insurer shall maintain copies of the signed acknowledgement
for the duration of the policy or certificate.
C. An insurer shall use Forms B and F to
comply with the requirements of subsections A and B of this section.
D. An insurer shall provide notice of an
upcoming premium rate schedule increase to all policyholders or
certificateholders, if applicable, at least 75 days prior to the implementation
of the premium rate schedule increase by the insurer. Such notice shall be
filed with the commission at the time the premium rate increase is filed. The
notice shall include at least the following information:
1. All applicable information identified in
subsection A of this section when the rate increase is implemented;
2. A clear explanation of options available
to the policyholder as alternatives to paying the increased premium amount,
including:
a. An offer to reduce policy
benefits provided by the current coverage consistent with the requirements of
14VAC5-200-183;
b. A disclosure stating that all options
available to the policyholder may not be of equal value;
c. In the case of a partnership policy, a
disclosure that some benefit reduction options may result in a loss in
partnership status that may reduce policyholder protections; and
d. Contact information that will allow the
policyholder to contact the insurer for additional options available;
3. A clear identification of the
driving factors of the premium rate increase; and
4. A statement substantially similar to the
following:
The rate increase request was reviewed by the commission and
was found to be compliant with applicable Virginia laws and regulations
addressing long-term care insurance. All premium rate filings are available for
public inspection and may be accessed online through the Virginia Bureau of
Insurance's webpage at
https://scc.virginia.gov/boi/SERFFInquiry/LtcFilings.aspx.
Statutory Authority: §§
12.1-13,
38.2-223
and
38.2-5202
of the Code of Virginia.
