Sec. D-8. 24-A MRSA §4235, as amended by PL 2003, c. 218, §8, is further amended to read:

§4235. Standardized claim forms

All health maintenance organizations providing payment or reimbursement for diagnosis or treatment of a condition or a complaint by a licensed physician or chiropractor health care practitioner must accept the current standardized claim form for professional services approved by the Federal Government and submitted electronically. All health maintenance organizations providing payment or reimbursement for diagnosis or treatment of a condition or a complaint by a licensed hospital must accept the current standardized claim form for professional or facility services, as applicable, approved by the Federal Government and submitted electronically. A health maintenance organization may not be required to accept a claim submitted on a form other than the applicable form specified in this section and may not be required to accept a claim that is not submitted electronically, except from a health care practitioner who is exempt pursuant to Title 24, section 2985.

Sec. D-9. Effective date. This Part takes effect October 16, 2003.

PART E

Sec. E-1. 24 MRSA §2327, as amended by PL 2003, c. 428, Pt. E, §1, is further amended to read:

§2327. Group rates

A group health care contract may not be issued by a nonprofit hospital or medical service organization in this State until a copy of the group rates to be used in calculating the premium for these contracts has been filed for informational purposes with the superintendent. The filing must include the base rates and a description of any procedures to be used to adjust the base rates to reflect factors including but not limited to age, gender, health status, claims experience, group size and coverage of dependents. Notwithstanding this section,