Section 929.30  Filing Requirements

a)         All companies writing medical liability insurance are subject to this Section.  Each company must file with the Secretary or Director, in a manner prescribed in this Section, under its own name.  Combined group filings for companies subject to common management or ownership are not acceptable.

b)         Rates – A company must file on its own behalf all rates for medical liability insurance, and:

1)         File duplicate copies of a Rate Submission Letter that must include:

A)        The name of the company making the filing;

B)        FEIN of the company making the filing;

C)        Identification of the classes of medical liability insurance to which the filing applies;

D)        Notification of whether the filing is new or supersedes a present filing. Identification of all changes in superseding filings, as well as identification of all superseded filings is required;

E)         The effective date of use; and

F)         Certification by an officer of the company and a qualified actuary that the company's rates are based on sound actuarial principles and are not inconsistent with the company's experience.

2)         File duplicate copies of FORM (RF-3), which provides information on changes in rate level based on the company's premium volume, rating system, and distribution of business with respect to the classes of medical liability insurance to which the rate revision applies.  Insurers shall report the rate level change information and premium volume on the "Other" line and indicate "Medical Liability" on the "Other" descriptive line.

3)         Maintain documentary data on rate development and changes in order that it be available for review by the Secretary or Director.

c)         Rules – A company must file with the Secretary or Director, in a manner prescribed in this subsection all underwriting rule manuals that contain rules for applying rates or rating plans, plans for the gathering of statistics or the reporting of statistics to statistical agencies, classifications, or other such schedules used in writing medical liability insurance.  A company may file directly or in conjunction with an advisory organization.

1)         A company filing directly must file, in addition to all rate rules themselves, duplicate copies of a Rule Submission Letter that must include:

A)        The name of the company making the filing;

B)        The FEIN of the company making the filing;

C)        Identification of the classes of medical liability insurance to which the filing applies;

D)        Notification as to whether the filing is new or supersedes a present filing.  Identification of all changes in all superseding filings, as well as identification of all superseded filings is required;

E)         The effective date of use; and

F)         Certification by an officer of the company and a qualified actuary that the company's rate rules are based on sound actuarial principles and are not inconsistent with the company's experience.

2)         A company filing in conjunction with an advisory organization must file in accord with this subsection (c)(2).

A)        A company, that has authorized an advisory organization to file required materials on the company's behalf must have on file a Rule Authorization Letter, which must include:

i)          The name of the company's authorized advisory organization.

ii)         The kinds of insurance for which the filing is being made.

iii)         Authorization clause or language.

iv)        Effective date of authorization.

B)        A company deviating from the advisory organization's rules as they have been filed on behalf of the company by the advisory organization under Section 929.30(c)(2)(A) must file with the Secretary or Director:

i)          Manual size exception pages to the rule manual in duplicate.

ii)         The manual rule number, which must be the same as the rule number being replaced.

iii)         The effective date of use.

iv)        Certification of an officer of the company and a qualified actuary that the company's rates are based on sound actuarial principles and are not inconsistent with the company's experience.

C)        A company making a filing under this subsection (c)(2) that wants an effective date different from that of the advisory organization's advisory effective date must file either:

i)          Manual size exception pages in duplicate establishing an automatic uniform delayed effective date applicable to all future advisory organization rule revisions, or

ii)         Copies of the Advisory Organization Checking Slip, in duplicate, establishing a special effective date for a particular advisory organization rule revision.

d)         All medical liability rate and rule manuals shall contain separate, clearly marked sections for rates and rules according to class or classes of insurance, such as physicians and surgeons, allied health, nursing homes, hospitals, nurses, dentists, chiropractors.  Such rate and rule manuals shall also contain a comprehensive table of contents or index at the front of each manual.

e)         Quarterly Installment Premium Payments

1)         Filing of Plan

All companies writing medical liability insurance shall file with the Secretary or Director a plan to offer medical liability insureds the option to make premium payments in at least quarterly installments.

2)         Mandatory Quarterly Payment Option

For medical liability insureds whose annual premiums total $500 or more, the plan must allow the option of quarterly payments.

3)         Non-mandatory Quarterly Payment Option

A)        For medical liability insureds whose annual premiums are less than $500, insurers may, but are not required to, offer quarterly installment premium payment plans.

B)        For insureds who pay a premium for any extension of a reporting period, insurers may, but are not required to, offer quarterly installment, premium payment plans.

C)        If an insurer offers any quarterly payments under this subsection (e)(3), they must be offered to all medical liability insureds.

4)         Quarterly installment premium payment plans subject to this Section shall be included in the initial offer of the policy, or in the first policy renewal occurring after January 1, 2006.  Thereafter, the insurer may, but need not, re-offer the payment plan, but if an insured requests the payment plan at a later date, the insurer must make it available. All quarterly installment premium payment plan provisions shall be contained in the filed rate and/or rule manual in a section entitled "Quarterly Installment Option" or a substantially similar title. If the company uses a substantially similar title, the Rule Submission Letter must indicate the name of the section that complies with this requirement. All quarterly installment premium payment plans shall include the minimum standards listed below.  Insurers may provide for quarterly installment premium payment plans that differ from these minimum standards, as long as the plans have terms that are at least as favorable or more favorable than those listed below.

A)        An initial payment of no more than 40% of the estimated total premium due at policy inception;

B)        The remaining premium spread equally among the second, third, and fourth installments, with the maximum for such installments set at 30% of the estimated total premium, and due 3, 6, and 9 months from policy inception, respectively;

C)        No interest charges;

D)        Installment charges or fees of no more than the lesser of 1% of the total premium or $25, whichever is less; and

E)         a provision stating that additional premium resulting from changes to the policy shall be spread equally over the remaining installments, if any. If there are no remaining installments, additional premium resulting from changes to a policy may be billed immediately as a separate transaction.

f)          Any company writing medical liability insurance shall file with the Secretary or Director any plan to offer deductibles to its insureds. These provisions shall be contained in the filed rate and/or rule manual in a section entitled "Deductibles Offered"  or a substantially similar title.  If the company uses a substantially similar title, the Rule Submission Letter must indicate the name of the section that complies with this requirement.

g)         All companies writing medical liability insurance shall file with the Secretary or Director any plan to offer insureds premium discounts for participation in risk management activities.  These provisions shall be contained in the filed rate and/or rule manual in a section entitled "Risk Management Activities Discounts" or a substantially similar title.  If the company uses a substantially similar title, the Rule Submission Letter must indicate the name of the section that complies with this requirement.

h)         All filings must be received by the Division of Insurance, Property and Casualty Compliance Section, Springfield, Illinois no later than  their effective date, and no filing is deemed to be received until it is received in the Property and Casualty Compliance Section.

i)          In addition to the filings required in this Section, the Secretary or Director may require the filing of statistical data and any other pertinent information necessary to determine the manner the company used to set the filed rates and the reasonableness of those rates, as well as the manner of promulgation and the acceptability or unacceptability of a filing for rules, minimum premiums, rates, forms or any combination of those items.  An insurer shall provide the data or information within 14 calendar days after the Secretary's or Director's request.

j)          In order to determine when 1% of Illinois insureds within a specialty have requested a hearing, the Secretary or Director may contact an insurer for the total number of Illinois insureds within the insurer's specialties, and the insurer shall provide that information within 14 calendar days.

k)         Groups, associations, organizations or companies authorized to engage in joint underwriting and joint reinsurance activities are prohibited from establishing underwriting rules with respect to rates that in any way inhibit a company from individually underwriting any risks.

l)          No company authorized to write medical liability insurance in Illinois may discontinue writing medical liability insurance without notifying the Secretary or Director of the action, as well as reasons for the action, 180 days before the termination of any policy is effective. The notice must include the reasons for the action, all data relied upon by the company as the basis for the action, and whether the company offers and will continue to offer medical liability insurance in any other state.  For purposes of this requirement, discontinuance of the writing of medical liability insurance shall mean cancellation or nonrenewal of greater than 50% of the company's medical liability insurance policies within any 12 month period.

(Source:  Amended at 30 Ill. Reg. 19530, effective December 11, 2006)