[Congressional Bills 109th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 577 Introduced in Senate (IS)]







109th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                 S. 577

To promote health care coverage parity for individuals participating in 
   legal recreational activities or legal transportation activities.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             March 9, 2005

  Ms. Collins (for herself and Mr. Feingold) introduced the following 
  bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, 
                     Education, Labor, and Pensions

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To promote health care coverage parity for individuals participating in 
   legal recreational activities or legal transportation activities.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``HIPAA Recreational Injury Technical 
Correction Act''.

SEC. 2. COVERAGE AMENDMENTS.

    (a) ERISA.--Section 702(a)(3) of the Employee Retirement Income 
Security Act of 1974 (29 U.S.C. 1182(a)(3)) is amended--
            (1) by striking ``Construction.--For'' and inserting the 
        following: ``Scope.--
                    ``(A) Waiting periods.--For''; and
            (2) by adding at the end the following:
                    ``(B) Limitation on denial of benefits.--For 
                purposes of paragraph (2), a group health plan, or a 
                health insurance issuer offering group health insurance 
                coverage in connection with a group health plan, may 
                not deny benefits otherwise provided under the plan or 
                coverage for the treatment of an injury solely because 
                such injury resulted from the participation of the 
                individual in a legal mode of transportation or a legal 
                recreational activity.''.
    (b) PHSA.--Section 2702(a)(3) of the Public Health Service Act (42 
U.S.C. 300gg-1(a)(3)) is amended--
            (1) by striking ``Construction.--For'' and inserting the 
        following: ``Scope.--
                    ``(A) Waiting periods.--For''; and
            (2) by adding at the end the following:
                    ``(B) Limitation on denial of benefits.--For 
                purposes of paragraph (2), a group health plan, or a 
                health insurance issuer offering group health insurance 
                coverage in connection with a group health plan, may 
                not deny benefits otherwise provided under the plan or 
                coverage for the treatment of an injury solely because 
                such injury resulted from the participation of the 
                individual in a legal mode of transportation or a legal 
                recreational activity.''.
    (c) Internal Revenue Code.--Section 9802(a)(3) of the Internal 
Revenue Code of 1986 is amended--
            (1) by striking ``Construction.--For'' and inserting the 
        following: ``Scope.--
                    ``(A) Waiting periods.--For''; and
            (2) by adding at the end the following:
                    ``(B) Limitation on denial of benefits.--For 
                purposes of paragraph (2), a group health plan may not 
                deny benefits otherwise provided under the plan for the 
                treatment of an injury solely because such injury 
                resulted from the participation of the individual in a 
                legal mode of transportation or a legal recreational 
                activity.''.
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