        (2) the continued use of which endangers the solvency of an insurer using that rate.
    "Large employer" has the meaning provided in the Illinois Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act.

"Plain language" has the  meaning provided in the  federal Plain Writing Act of 2010  and subsequent guidance documents, including the Federal Plain Language Guidelines.

"Unreasonable rate increase" means a rate increase that the Director determines to be excessive, unjustified, or unfairly discriminatory in accordance with 45 CFR 154.205.

(b) No policy of insurance against loss or damage from the sickness, or from
the bodily injury or death of the insured by accident shall be issued or
delivered to any person in this State until a copy of the form thereof and
of the classification of risks and the premium rates pertaining thereto
have been filed with the Director; nor shall it be so issued or delivered
until the Director shall have approved such policy pursuant to the provisions
of Section 143.  If the Director
disapproves the policy form, he or she shall make a written decision stating the
respects in which such form does not comply with the requirements of law
and shall deliver a copy thereof to the company and it shall be unlawful
thereafter for any such company to issue any policy in such form. On and after January 1, 2025, any form filing submitted for large employer group accident and health insurance shall be automatically deemed approved within 90 days of the submission date unless the Director extends by not more than an additional 30 days the period within which the form shall be approved or disapproved by giving written notice to the insurer of such extension before the expiration of the 90 days.  Any form in receipt of such an extension shall be automatically deemed approved within 120 days of the submission date. The Director may toll the filing due to a conflict in legal interpretation of federal or State law as long as the tolling is applied uniformly to all applicable forms, written notification is provided to the insurer prior to the tolling, the duration of the tolling is provided within the notice to the insurer, and justification for the tolling is posted to the Department's website. The Director may disapprove the filing if the insurer fails to respond to an objection or request for additional information within the timeframe identified for response.  As used in this subsection, "large employer" has the meaning given in Section 5 of the federal Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act.

(c)    For plan year 2026 and thereafter, premium rates for all individual and small group accident and health insurance policies must be filed with the Department for approval.  Unreasonable rate increases or inadequate rates shall be modified or disapproved. For any plan year during which the Illinois Health Benefits Exchange operates as a full State-based exchange, the Department shall provide insurers at least 30 days' notice of the deadline to submit rate filings.

(d) For plan year 2025 and thereafter, the Department shall post all insurers' rate filings and summaries on the Department's website 5 business days after the rate filing deadline set by the Department in annual guidance. The rate filings and summaries posted to the Department's website shall exclude information that is proprietary or trade secret information protected under paragraph (g) of subsection (1) of Section 7 of the Freedom of Information Act or confidential or privileged under any applicable insurance law or rule. All summaries shall include a brief justification of any rate increase or decrease requested, including the number of individual members, the medical loss ratio, medical trend, administrative costs, and any other information required by rule. The plain writing summary shall include notification of the public comment period established in subsection (e).

(e) The Department shall open a 30-day public comment period on the rate filings beginning on the date that all of the rate filings are posted on the Department's website. The Department shall post all of the comments received to the Department's website within 5 business days after the comment period ends.

(f) After the close of the public comment period described in subsection (e), the Department, beginning for plan year 2026, shall issue a decision to approve, disapprove, or modify a rate filing within 60 days. Any rate filing or any rates within a filing on which the Director does not issue a decision within 60 days shall automatically be deemed approved. The Director's decision shall take into account the actuarial justifications and public comments. The Department shall notify the insurer of the decision, make the decision available to the public by posting it on the Department's website, and include an explanation of the findings, actuarial justifications, and rationale that are the basis for the decision. Any company whose rate has been modified or disapproved shall be allowed to request a hearing within 10 days after the action taken.  The action of the Director in disapproving a rate shall be subject to judicial review under the Administrative Review Law.

(g)   If, following the issuance of a decision but before the effective date of the premium rates approved by the decision, an event occurs that materially affects the Director's decision to approve, deny, or modify the rates, the Director may consider supplemental facts or data reasonably related to the event.

(h)   The Department shall adopt rules implementing the procedures described in subsections (d) through (g) by March 31, 2024.

(i) Subsection (a) and subsections (c) through (h) of this Section do not apply to grandfathered health plans as defined in 45 CFR 147.140; excepted benefits as defined in 42 U.S.C. 300gg-91; student health insurance coverage as defined in 45 CFR 147.145; the large group market as defined in Section 5 of the Illinois Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act; or short-term, limited-duration health insurance coverage as defined in Section 5 of the Short-Term, Limited-Duration Health Insurance Coverage Act. For a filing of premium rates or classifications of risk for any of these types of coverage, the Director's initial review period shall not exceed 60 days to issue informal objections to the company that request additional clarification, explanation, substantiating documentation, or correction of concerns identified in the filing before the company implements the premium rates, classifications, or related rate-setting methodologies described in the filing, except that the Director may extend by not more than an additional 30 days the period of initial review by giving written notice to the company of such extension before the expiration of the initial 60-day period. Nothing in this subsection shall confer authority upon the Director to approve, modify, or disapprove rates where that authority is not provided by other law. Nothing in this subsection shall prohibit the Director from conducting any investigation, examination, hearing, or other formal administrative or enforcement proceeding with respect to a company's rate filing or implementation thereof under applicable law at any time, including after the period of initial review.

(Source: P.A. 103-106, eff. 1-1-24.)