As used in this article:

(1) "Insurer" means an insurance company, a health maintenance organization, and any other entity providing health insurance coverage, as defined in Section 38-71-670(6), which is licensed to engage in the business of insurance in this State and which is subject to state insurance regulation.

(2) "Health care services" means services included in furnishing an individual medical care or hospitalization, or services incident to the furnishing of medical care or hospitalization, and other services to prevent, alleviate, cure, or heal human illness, injury, or physical disability.

(3) "Health maintenance organization" means an organization as defined in Section 38-33-20(8).

(4) "Health insurance plan" means a health insurance policy or health benefit plan offered by a health insurer or a health maintenance organization that provides health insurance coverage, as defined in Section 38-71-670(6).

(5) "Physician" means a doctor of medicine or doctor of osteopathic medicine licensed by the South Carolina Board of Medical Examiners.

(6) "Provider" means a physician, hospital, or other person properly licensed, certified, or permitted, where required, to furnish health care services.

(7) "Participating provider" means a provider who provides covered health care services to an insured or a member pursuant to a contract with an insurer or health insurance plan.

(8) "Clean claim" means an eligible electronic or paper claim for reimbursement that:

(a) is received by the insurer within one hundred twenty business days of the date the health care services at issue were performed;

(b)(i) when submitted via paper has all the elements of the standardized CMS 1500 or UB 04 claim form, or the successor of each as either may be amended from time to time; or

(ii) when submitted via an electronic transaction, uses only permitted standard code sets and has all the elements of the standard electronic formats as required by the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 and other federal and state regulatory authority;

(c) is for health care services covered by the health insurance plan and rendered to an insured person by a provider eligible for reimbursement under the health insurance plan;

(d) has any corresponding referral that may be required for the applicable claim;

(e) is a claim for which the insurer is the primary payor, or for which the insurer's responsibility as a secondary payor has been clearly established;

(f) has no material defect, error, or impropriety that would affect the adjudication of the claim;

(g) includes all required substantiating documentation or coding;

(h) is not subject to any particular circumstance that the insurer reasonably believes, subject to review by the Department of Insurance, would prevent accurate or timely payment from being made on the claim under the terms of the health insurance plan, the participating provider agreement, or the insurer's published filing requirements; and

(i) is under a health insurance plan for which the insurer has been timely paid all applicable premiums.

(9) "Force majeure" means any act of God, governmental act, act of terrorism, war, fire, flood, earthquake, hurricane, or other natural disaster, explosion or civil commotion.

HISTORY: 2008 Act No. 356, Section 1, eff one year after approval by the Governor (approved June 11, 2008).