Requires health insurance commissioner to conduct a review of health insurance benefit mandates, including an analysis of the impact on premium costs, conducted every 5 yrs and report findings and recommendations to governor, senate president and speaker.

Plain-English Summary

This bill would require Rhode Island's Health Insurance Commissioner — the state official who oversees the insurance industry — to regularly review the health insurance benefits that state law requires insurers to cover. These required coverages are known as "benefit mandates," and they can include things like coverage for mental health treatment, certain medications, or specific medical procedures. Under this bill, a thorough review of all such mandates would need to happen every five years.

As part of each review, the Commissioner would also have to analyze how these required benefits affect the cost of health insurance premiums — in other words, whether mandating certain coverages makes insurance more or less expensive for people. After completing the review, the Commissioner would be required to report the findings and any recommendations to the Governor, the President of the Senate, and the Speaker of the House.

This bill would primarily affect state government officials and the insurance industry, but its findings could ultimately influence decisions that impact anyone who buys or uses health insurance in Rhode Island. The goal appears to be creating a regular, structured process for state leaders to assess whether existing insurance requirements are still working well and whether they are affecting what Rhode Islanders pay for coverage. Currently, this bill has been referred to the House Health & Human Services Committee, where it is being held for further study.