(a) The statewide credentialing verification organization shall provide electronic access to the uniform credentialing application forms developed pursuant to section two of this article.

(b) A health care practitioner seeking to be credentialed must attest to and submit a completed uniform application form to the statewide credentialing verification organization and must provide any additional information requested by such credentialing verification organization: Provided, That a failure to comply with a reasonable request for additional information within thirty days may be grounds for the statewide credentialing verification organization to submit its report to any credentialing entity with identification of matters deemed to be incomplete.

(c) Except as provided in subsection (d) of this section, a credentialing entity may not require a person seeking to be credentialed or recredentialed to provide verification of any information contained in the uniform application: Provided, That nothing in this article is considered to prevent a credentialing entity from collecting or inquiring about information unavailable from or through the statewide credentialing verification organization or from making inquires to the National Practitioner Data Bank.

(d) A credentialing entity other than a health care facility must issue a credentialing decision within sixty days after receiving the statewide credentialing verification organization's completed report and, with respect to affirmative credentialing decisions, payments pursuant to the contract shall be retroactive to the date of the decision.

(e) If the statewide credentialing verification organization fails to maintain national committee for quality assurance certification or, in the opinion of the Secretary and Insurance Commissioner, is unable to satisfy compliance with the joint commission's standards or federal and state credentialing regulations, the Secretary and Insurance Commissioner may, under terms and conditions deemed necessary to maintain the integrity of the credentialing process, notify credentialing entities that the requirement, relating to the mandatory use of the statewide credentialing verification organization, is being suspended.

(f) Notwithstanding any other provision of this code, credentialing entities may contract with the statewide credentialing verification organization or another credentialing verification organization to perform credentialing services, such as site visits to health care practitioners' offices, in addition to those services for which the statewide credentialing verification organization is the sole source.