CHAIRMAN MACKIE announced HB 158 to be up for consideration. REPRESENTATIVE ROKEBERG, sponsor, said this bill is important to pass this year, because it meets the biennial licensing cycle. It authorizes the Division of Insurance to make inquiries of the health insurers as to the numbers of individual or group policies that they write in this State. Representative Rokeberg said as a member of the Labor and Commerce Committee for five years, he has wondered who is really covered by insurance mandates, because they sound real good, but have a negative impact on the affordability of insurance to people. Most people are covered by ARITHA or self insured plans which the insurance mandate bills don't reach out to. There may be under 100,000 people who are actually affected by any insurance mandate bill. This provision allows the Division to get that information. The second thing this bill does is because of a situation with an 83 year old neighbor who forgot to pay his premium and got in an automobile accident. It requires the insurance industry to give notice to everyone in the state that a person over 70 years of age may request and have designated a third party to which their insurance premiums and notifications will be mailed to. Industry has also indicated to Representative Rokeberg that they are willing to do this in their general publications on all insurance policies sent within the state. He noted that this only covers personal insurance like auto and home owners. It's not meant to go into other areas. Number 136 SENATOR KELLY asked why the age wasn't set at 65. REPRESENTATIVE ROKEBERG said that statistics show that the onset of ADRD type dementia disease start when you get into the older ages. SENATOR DONLEY asked if section 2, repealing existing notice requirements, changes any the notice requirements for anyone under 70 years of age. MR. JOHN FERENCE, Division of Insurance, answered that it didn't change those requirements. It adds the opportunity for an extra notice for someone over 70 years of age. Number 176 MR. JOHN GEORGE, National Association of Independent Insurers, said that this version is better than the original bill which industry did not support. SENATOR DONLEY asked if section 2 overturns any court cases or change any current rules as far as providing notice to the elderly. MR. FERENCE answered no. SENATOR LEMAN moved to report HB 158 from committee with individual recommendations. There were no objections and it was so ordered.