Prohibits insurers, SHBP, and SEHBP from charging fee for paper bills and notices.

A1965

ASSEMBLY, No. 1965

STATE OF NEW JERSEY

222nd LEGISLATURE

�

PRE-FILED FOR INTRODUCTION IN THE 2026 SESSION

Sponsored by:

Assemblywoman ANNETTE QUIJANO

District 20 (Union)

Assemblywoman ROSAURA "ROSY" BAGOLIE

District 27 (Essex and Passaic)

Assemblyman WILLIAM B. SAMPSON, IV

District 31 (Hudson)

Co-Sponsored by:

Assemblyman Danielsen

SYNOPSIS

���� Prohibits insurers, SHBP, and SEHBP from charging fee
for paper bills and notices.

CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT

���� Introduced Pending Technical Review by Legislative
Counsel.

��

An Act
concerning insurance billing practices and
supplementing various parts of the statutory law.

����
Be It
Enacted
by the Senate and General Assembly of
the State of New Jersey:

���� 1.��� a.� As used in this
section:

���� "Commissioner" means
the Commissioner of Banking and Insurance.

���� "Insurer" means:

���� (1)� Any corporation,
association, partnership, reciprocal exchange, interinsurer, Lloyd's insurer,
fraternal benefit society, or other person engaged in the business of insurance
pursuant to Subtitle 3 of Title 17 of the Revised Statutes or Subtitle 3 of Title
17B of the New Jersey Statutes;

���� (2)� Any medical service
corporation operating pursuant to P.L.1940, c.74 (C.17:48A-1 et seq.);

���� (3)� Any hospital service
corporation operating pursuant to P.L.1938, c.366 (C.17:48-1 et seq.);

���� (4)� Any health service
corporation operating pursuant to P.L.1985, c.236 (C.17:48E-1 et seq.);

���� (5)� Any health maintenance
organization established pursuant to the provisions of P.L.1973, c.337
(C.26:2J-1 et seq.);

���� (6)� Any insurance plan
operating pursuant to P.L.1970, c.215 (C.17:29D-1);

���� (7)� The New Jersey Insurance
Underwriting Association operating pursuant to P.L.1968, c.129 (C.17:37A-1 et
seq.).

���� b.��� No insurer shall charge
a fee to furnish tangible printed or paper bills or notices, with respect to
any insurance policy, to an insured or other owner of that policy.

���� c.��� If the commissioner
finds, after notice and hearing, that an insurer has a pattern and practice of
charging a fee prohibited by this section, the commissioner may, after notice
and hearing, order the payment of a penalty not to exceed $1,000 for each offense.
Each instance of a fee prohibited by this section that is charged to an insured
or other owner of that policy shall be a separate offense and subject to
assessment of a separate penalty. Penalties assessed pursuant to this section
shall be collected by the commissioner pursuant to the "Penalty
Enforcement Law of 1999," P.L.1999, c.274 (C.2A:58-10 et seq.).

���� d.��� Nothing in this section
shall prohibit an insurer from offering a discount, credit or other incentive
to an insured for selecting a specific billing, payment or notification option.���

���� 2.��� The State Health
Benefits Commission shall not charge a fee to furnish tangible printed or paper
bills or notices, with respect to any health plan included in the State Health
Benefits Program to any member of the State Health Benefits Program.

���� 3.��� The School Employees�
Health Benefits Commission shall not charge a fee to furnish tangible printed
or paper bills or notices, with respect to any health plan included in the
School Employees� Health Benefits Program to any member of the School Employees�
Health Benefits Program.

���� 4.��� This act shall take
effect on the 90
th
day next following enactment.

STATEMENT

���� This bill prohibits any
insurer from charging a fee to furnish tangible printed or paper bills or
notices, with respect to any insurance policy, to an insured or other owner of
that policy.� Insurance policies referred to under the bill include automobile
insurance policies, homeowners policies, individual life and health insurance
policies.� In addition, the bill prohibits the State Health Benefits Commission
and School Employees� Health Benefits Commission from charging a fee to furnish
tangible printed or paper bills or notices to any member of the State Health
Benefits Program or the School Employees� Health Benefits Program.

���� The bill provides that an
insured, or other owner of the policy, will not be charged an additional fee if
the insured or other owner of the policy elects to receive tangible printed or
paper bills or notices in place of digital access to the same. The bill does
not prohibit an insurer from offering a discount, credit, or other incentive to
an insured for selecting a specific billing, payment, or notification option.