§ 31-3512 — Group subscriber contract standard provisions.

No group subscriber contract shall be issued in the District of Columbia by a corporation unless it contains in substance the following provisions, or provisions which in the opinion of the Mayor are more favorable to the subscribers, or at least as favorable to the subscribers and more favorable to the group contractholder; except, that if any provision of this section is in whole or in part inapplicable to or inconsistent with the coverage provided by a particular form of contract, the corporation, with the approval of the Mayor, shall omit from such contract any inapplicable provision or part of a provision, and shall modify any inconsistent provision or part of the provision in such manner as to make the provision as contained in the contract consistent with the coverage provided by the contract:

(1) A provision that the group contract holder is entitled to a grace period of the last day of the month for which the premium is due for the payment of any premium due except the first, during which grace period the contract shall continue in force, unless the group contract holder has given the corporation written notice of discontinuance in advance of the date of discontinuance and in accordance with the terms of the contract; except, that the contract may provide that the contract holder shall be liable to the corporation for the payment of a pro rata premium for the time the contract was in force during such grace period;

(2) A provision that the validity of the contract shall not be contested except for nonpayment of premiums, fraudulent misstatements, noncompliance with contractual provisions and noncompliance with eligibility requirements after it has been in force for 2 years from its date of issue;

(3) A provision that no statement made by any subscriber under the contract relating to insurability may be used in contesting the validity of the coverage with respect to which such statement was made after the subscriber’s coverage has been in force for a period of 2 years nor unless it is contained in a written instrument signed by the subscriber, except that this provision need not preclude the assertion at any time of defenses based upon the subscriber’s lack of eligibility for coverage under the contract or upon other provisions in the contract unrelated to insurability;

(4) A provision that a copy of the application, if any, of the contractholder shall be attached to the contract when issued, that all statements made by the contractholder or by the subscriber shall be deemed representations and not warranties, and that no statement made by any subscriber may be used in any contest unless a copy of the instrument containing the statement is or has been furnished to such person or, in the event of the death or incapacity of the subscriber, to the individual’s beneficiary or personal representative;

(5) A provision setting forth the conditions, if any, under which the corporation reserves the right to require a person eligible for coverage to furnish evidence of individual insurability satisfactory to the corporation as a condition to part or all of the individual’s coverage;

(6) A provision that the corporation shall issue to the contractholder for delivery to each subscriber a certificate setting forth a statement as to the coverage to which that person is entitled, to whom benefits are payable, and a statement as to any family member’s or dependent’s coverage;

(7) A provision that written notice of a claim must be given to the corporation within 15 months after the occurrence or commencement of the date of a service covered by the contract and that failure to give notice within such time shall not invalidate or reduce any claim if it is shown that the contractholder was legally incapacitated prior to the expiration of the 15-month claim filing period;

(8) A provision that the corporation shall furnish to the subscriber under the contract, or to the contractholder for delivery to the subscriber, such forms as are usually furnished by it for filing a claim; and that if such forms are not furnished before the expiration of 20 days after the corporation received notice of any claim under the contract, the person making the claim shall be deemed to have complied with the claims filing requirements of the contract;

(9) A provision that all benefits and indemnification payable under the contract must be paid not more than 60 days after receipt of all necessary information and documentation or proof;

(10) A provision that the corporation has the right to examine the person for whom a claim is so filed under the contract as often as it may reasonably require during the pendency of the claim and also has the right to conduct an autopsy in case of death if doing so is not prohibited by law;

(11) A provision that no action at law or in equity may be brought to recover on the contract before the expiration of 60 days from the date a claim has been filed in accordance with the claim filing requirements of the contract or after a period of 3 years from the last date on which a claim is required to be filed under the claim filing requirements of the contract; and

(12) A provision that allows subscribers who leave such groups to convert, without evidence of insurability, to an individual subscriber contract providing an adequate level of coverage and in accordance with any standards the Mayor prescribes pursuant to § 31-3514(g) .

Legislative History

Apr. 9, 1997, D.C. Law 11-245, § 13, 44 DCR 1158; May 2, 2015, D.C. Law 20-265, § 105(c), 62 DCR 1529