HOUSE BILL NO. 324

INTRODUCED BY M. BRAINARD

A BILL FOR AN ACT ENTITLED: "AN ACT CREATING A CATASTROPHIC COVERAGE AND MEDICAL CARE SAVINGS ACCOUNT PLAN FOR STATE EMPLOYEE GROUP BENEFITS; AMENDING SECTION 2-18-703, MCA; AND PROVIDING AN EFFECTIVE DATE."

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MONTANA:

NEW SECTION. Section 1. Catastrophic medical coverage and state medical care savings account program. (1) The advisory council shall develop a state employee group benefit plan that provides coverage for costs of catastrophic medical expenses and provides for a deductible of $5,000.

(2) The state employee group benefit plan provided for in subsection (1) must also provide a mechanism to offer a state medical care savings account as provided for in Title 15, chapter 61.

(3) An employee who chooses the state employee group benefit plan provided for in this section shall use the unused employer contribution to deposit in the medical care savings account provided for in subsection (2) until the account reaches $5,000.

(4) After a medical care savings account reaches $5,000, the state employee must receive any unused employer contributions, subject to all applicable state and federal laws.

Section 2. Section 2-18-703, MCA, is amended to read:

"2-18-703. Contributions. (1) Each agency, as defined in 2-18-601, shall contribute the amount specified in this section towards the group benefits cost.

(2) For employees defined in 2-18-701 and for members of the legislature, the employer contribution for group benefits is $270 a month . When a state employee is terminated to achieve a reduction in force, the continuation of contributions for group benefits beyond the termination date is subject to negotiation under 39-31-305. Permanent part-time, seasonal part-time, and temporary part-time employees who are regularly scheduled to work less than 20 hours a week are not eligible for the group benefit contribution. An employee who elects not to be covered by a state-sponsored group benefit plan may not receive the state contribution. A portion of the employer contribution for group benefits may be applied to an employee's costs for participation in Part B of medicare under Title XVIII of the Social Security Act, as amended, if the state group benefit plan is the secondary payer and medicare the primary payer.

(3) For employees of elementary and high school districts and of local government units, the employer's premium contributions may exceed but may not be less than $10 a month.

(4) Except as provided in [section 1], unused employer contributions for any state employee must be transferred to an account established for this purpose by the department of administration and upon transfer may be used to offset losses occurring to the group of which the employee is eligible to be a member.

(5) Except as provided in [section 1], unused employer contributions for any government employee may be transferred to an account established for this purpose by a self-insured government and upon transfer may be used to offset losses occurring to the group of which the employee is eligible to be a member or to increase the reserves of the group.

(6) The laws prohibiting discrimination on the basis of marital status in Title 49 do not prohibit bona fide group insurance plans from providing greater or additional contributions for insurance benefits to employees with dependents than to employees without dependents or with fewer dependents."

NEW SECTION. Section 3. Codification instruction. [Section 1] is intended to be codified as an integral part of Title 2, chapter 18, part 8, and the provisions of Title 2, chapter 18, part 8, apply to [section 1].

NEW SECTION. Section 4. Effective date. [This act] is effective July 1, 1999.

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