AB 280: Health care coverage: provider directories.

The bill aims to improve health care coverage by requiring health care service plans and insurers to maintain accurate provider directories. These directories must be 60% accurate by July 1, 2026, increasing to 95% by July 1, 2029. Plans and insurers are subject to administrative penalties for failing to meet these accuracy benchmarks. They must also provide coverage for services received from inaccurate providers and reimburse the provider for out-of-network amounts. Providers are prohibited from collecting extra fees from patients. Plans and insurers must provide information about in-network providers upon request, including whether the provider is accepting new patients. The bill also sets a 10-business-day timeframe for approving or rejecting provider directory updates. The state is authorized to update uniform formats for provider directory requests and establish accuracy and consi…