Full Text of HB3769 103rd General Assembly
HB3769 103RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY |
| | 103RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2023 and 2024 HB3769 Introduced 2/17/2023, by Rep. Katie Stuart SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED: |
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215 ILCS 5/367f | from Ch. 73, par. 979f |
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Amends the Illinois Insurance Code. In provisions concerning firemen's continuance privilege, changes the definition of "fireman" and "firemen" to include any person who is not eligible to participate in a pension fund established under the Downstate Firefighter Article of the Illinois Pension Code and is employed on a full-time basis by a participating municipality or fire protection district to perform duties as a firefighter, paramedic, emergency medical technician, emergency medical technician-basic, emergency medical technician-intermediate, or advanced emergency medical technician.
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| | A BILL FOR |
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| 1 | | AN ACT concerning regulation.
| 2 | | Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
| 3 | | represented in the General Assembly:
| 4 | | Section 5. The Illinois Insurance Code is amended by | 5 | | changing Section 367f as follows:
| 6 | | (215 ILCS 5/367f) (from Ch. 73, par. 979f)
| 7 | | Sec. 367f. Firemen's continuance privilege. As used in | 8 | | this Section:
| 9 | | 1. The terms "municipality", "deferred pensioner" and | 10 | | "creditable service"
shall have the meaning ascribed to such | 11 | | terms by Sections 4-103, 4-105a and
4-108, respectively, of | 12 | | the Illinois Pension Code, as now or hereafter amended.
| 13 | | 2. The terms "fireman" and "firemen" shall have the | 14 | | meaning ascribed
to the term "firefighter" by Section 4-106 of | 15 | | the Illinois
Pension Code, and include those persons under the | 16 | | coverage of Article 4 of
that Code , and any person who is not | 17 | | eligible to participate in a pension fund established under | 18 | | Article 4 of the Illinois Pension Code and is employed on a | 19 | | full-time basis by a participating municipality or fire | 20 | | protection district to perform duties as a firefighter, | 21 | | paramedic, emergency medical technician, emergency medical | 22 | | technician-basic, emergency medical technician-intermediate, | 23 | | or advanced emergency medical technician, as heretofore or |
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| 1 | | hereafter amended.
| 2 | | 3. The "retirement or disability period" of a fireman | 3 | | means the period:
| 4 | | a. which begins on the day the fireman is removed from | 5 | | a municipality's
fire department payroll because of the | 6 | | occurrence of any of the following
events, to wit: (i) the | 7 | | fireman retires as a deferred pensioner under Section
| 8 | | 4-105a of the Illinois Pension Code, (ii) the fireman | 9 | | retires from active
service as a fireman with an attained | 10 | | age and accumulated creditable service
which together | 11 | | qualify the fireman for immediate receipt of retirement | 12 | | pension
benefits under Section 4-109 of the Illinois | 13 | | Pension Code, or (iii) the
fireman's disability is | 14 | | established under Section 4-112 of the Illinois
Pension | 15 | | Code; and
| 16 | | b. which ends on the first to occur of any of the | 17 | | following events,
to wit: (i) the fireman's reinstatement | 18 | | or reentry into active service
on the municipality's fire | 19 | | department as provided for under Article 4 of
the Illinois | 20 | | Pension Code, (ii) the fireman's exercise of any refund | 21 | | option
available under Section 4-116 of the Illinois | 22 | | Pension Code, (iii) the fireman's
loss pursuant to Section | 23 | | 4-138 of the Illinois Pension Code of any benefits
| 24 | | provided for in Article 4 of that Code, or (iv) the | 25 | | fireman's death or --
if at the time of the fireman's death | 26 | | the fireman is survived by a spouse
who, in that capacity, |
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| 1 | | is entitled to receive a surviving spouse's monthly
| 2 | | pension pursuant to Article 4 of the Illinois Pension Code - | 3 | | - then the death
or remarriage of that spouse.
| 4 | | No policy of group accident and health insurance under | 5 | | which firemen
employed by a municipality are insured for their | 6 | | individual benefit shall
be issued or delivered in this State | 7 | | to any municipality unless such group
policy provides for the | 8 | | election of continued group insurance coverage for
the | 9 | | retirement or disability period of each fireman who is insured | 10 | | under the
provisions of the group policy on the day | 11 | | immediately preceding the day
on which the retirement or | 12 | | disability period of such fireman begins. So
long as any | 13 | | required premiums for continued group insurance coverage are
| 14 | | paid in accordance with the provisions of the group policy, an | 15 | | election
made pursuant to this Section shall provide continued | 16 | | group insurance
coverage for a fireman throughout the | 17 | | retirement or disability period of
the fireman and, unless the | 18 | | fireman otherwise elects and subject to any
other provisions | 19 | | of the group policy which relate either to the provision
or to | 20 | | the termination of dependents' coverage and which are not
| 21 | | inconsistent with this Section, for any dependents of the | 22 | | fireman who are
insured under the group policy on the day | 23 | | immediately preceding the day on
which the retirement or | 24 | | disability period of the fireman begins; provided,
however, | 25 | | that when such continued group insurance coverage is in effect
| 26 | | with respect to a fireman on the date
of the fireman's death |
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| 1 | | but the retirement or disability period of the fireman
does | 2 | | not end with such fireman's death, then the deceased fireman's | 3 | | surviving
spouse upon whose death or remarriage such | 4 | | retirement or disability period
will end shall be entitled, | 5 | | without further election and upon payment of
any required | 6 | | premiums in accordance with the provisions of the group | 7 | | policy,
to maintain such continued group
insurance coverage in | 8 | | effect until the end of such retirement or disability
period. | 9 | | Continued group insurance coverage shall be provided in | 10 | | accordance
with this Section at the same premium rate from | 11 | | time to time charged for
equivalent coverage provided under | 12 | | the group policy with respect to covered
firemen whose | 13 | | retirement or disability period has not begun, and no | 14 | | distinction
or discrimination in the amount or rate of | 15 | | premiums or in any waiver of premium
or other benefit | 16 | | provision shall be made between continued group insurance
| 17 | | coverage elected pursuant to this Section and equivalent | 18 | | coverage provided
to firemen under the group policy other than | 19 | | pursuant to the provisions
of this Section; provided that no | 20 | | municipality shall be required by reason
of any provision of | 21 | | this Section to pay any group insurance premium other
than one | 22 | | that may be negotiated in a collective bargaining agreement.
| 23 | | If a person electing continued coverage under this Section | 24 | | becomes
eligible for medicare coverage, benefits under the | 25 | | group policy may
continue as a supplement to the medicare | 26 | | coverage upon payment of any
required premiums to maintain the |
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| 1 | | benefits of the group policy as
supplemental coverage.
| 2 | | Within 15 days of the beginning of the retirement or | 3 | | disability period
of any fireman entitled to elect continued | 4 | | group insurance coverage under any
group policy affected by | 5 | | this Section, the municipality last employing such
fireman | 6 | | shall give written notice of such beginning by certified mail, | 7 | | return
receipt requested to the insurance company issuing such | 8 | | policy. The notice
shall include the fireman's name and last | 9 | | known place of residence and the
beginning date of the | 10 | | fireman's retirement or disability period.
| 11 | | Within 15 days of the date of receipt of such notice from | 12 | | the municipality,
the insurance company by certified mail, | 13 | | return receipt requested, shall
give written notice to the | 14 | | fireman at the fireman's last known place of
residence that | 15 | | coverage under the group policy may be continued for the
| 16 | | retirement or disability period of the fireman as provided in | 17 | | this Section.
Such notice shall set forth: (i) a statement of | 18 | | election to be filed by
the fireman if the fireman wishes to | 19 | | continue such group insurance coverage,
(ii) the amount of | 20 | | monthly premium, including a statement of the portion
of such | 21 | | monthly premium attributable to any dependents' coverage which | 22 | | the
fireman may elect, and (iii) instructions as to the return | 23 | | of the election
form to the insurance company issuing such | 24 | | policy. Election shall be made,
if at all, by returning the | 25 | | statement of election to the insurance company by
certified | 26 | | mail, return receipt requested within 15 days after having |
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| 1 | | received it.
| 2 | | If the fireman elects to continue coverage, it shall be | 3 | | the obligation
of the fireman to pay the monthly premium | 4 | | directly to the municipality which
shall forward it to the | 5 | | insurance company
issuing the group insurance policy, or as | 6 | | otherwise directed by the insurance
company; provided, | 7 | | however, that the fireman shall be entitled to designate
on | 8 | | the statement of election required to be filed with the | 9 | | insurance company
that the total monthly premium, or such | 10 | | portion thereof as is not
contributed by a municipality, be | 11 | | deducted by a Firefighter's Pension
Fund from any monthly | 12 | | pension payment otherwise payable
to or on behalf of the | 13 | | fireman pursuant to Article 4 of the Illinois Pension
Code, | 14 | | and be remitted by such Pension Fund to the insurance company. | 15 | | The
portion, if any, of the monthly premium contributed by a
| 16 | | municipality for such continued group insurance coverage shall | 17 | | be paid by
the municipality directly to the insurance company | 18 | | issuing the group insurance
policy, or as otherwise directed | 19 | | by the insurance company. Such continued
group insurance | 20 | | coverage shall relate back to the beginning of the fireman's
| 21 | | retirement or disability period.
| 22 | | The amendment, renewal or extension of any group insurance | 23 | | policy affected
by this Section shall be deemed to be the | 24 | | issuance of a new policy of insurance
for purposes of this | 25 | | Section.
| 26 | | In the event that a municipality makes a program of |
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| 1 | | accident, health,
hospital or medical benefits available to | 2 | | its firemen through
self-insurance, or by participation in a | 3 | | pool or reciprocal insurer, or by
contract in a form other than | 4 | | a policy of group insurance with one or more
medical service | 5 | | plans, health care service corporations, health maintenance
| 6 | | organizations, or any other professional corporations or plans | 7 | | under which
health care or reimbursement for the costs thereof | 8 | | is
provided, whether the cost of such benefits is borne by the | 9 | | municipality or
the firemen or both, such firemen and their | 10 | | surviving spouses shall have
the same right to elect continued | 11 | | coverage under such program of benefits
as they would have if | 12 | | such benefits were provided by a policy of group
accident and | 13 | | health insurance. In such cases, the notice of right to elect
| 14 | | continued coverage shall be sent by the municipality; the | 15 | | statement of
election shall be sent to the municipality; and | 16 | | references to the required
premium shall refer to that portion | 17 | | of the cost of such benefits which is not
borne by the | 18 | | municipality, either voluntarily or pursuant to the provisions
| 19 | | of a collective bargaining agreement. In the case of a | 20 | | municipality
providing such benefits through self-insurance or | 21 | | participation in a pool or
reciprocal insurer, the right to | 22 | | elect continued coverage which is provided
by this paragraph | 23 | | shall be implemented and made available to the firemen of
the | 24 | | municipality and qualifying surviving spouses not later than | 25 | | July 1, 1985.
| 26 | | The amendment, renewal or extension of any such contract |
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| 1 | | in a form other
than a policy of group insurance policy shall | 2 | | be deemed the formation of a
new contract for the purposes of | 3 | | this Section.
| 4 | | This Section shall not limit the exercise of any | 5 | | conversion privileges
available under Section 367e.
| 6 | | Pursuant to paragraphs (h) and (i) of Section 6 of Article | 7 | | VII of the
Illinois Constitution, this Section specifically | 8 | | denies and limits the
exercise by a home rule unit of any power | 9 | | which is inconsistent with this
Section and all existing laws | 10 | | and ordinances which are inconsistent with
this Section are | 11 | | hereby superseded. This Section does not preempt the
| 12 | | concurrent exercise by home rule units of powers consistent | 13 | | herewith. | 14 | | The Division of Insurance of the Department of Financial | 15 | | and Professional Regulation shall enforce the provisions of | 16 | | this Section, including provisions relating to municipality | 17 | | self-insured benefit plans.
| 18 | | (Source: P.A. 94-858, eff. 6-15-06.)
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