601.41 General duties and powers.

(1) Duties. The commissioner shall administer and enforce chs. 600 to 655 and ss. 59.52 (11) (c), 66.0137 (4) and (4m), 100.203, and 120.13 (2) (b) to (g) and shall act as promptly as possible under the circumstances on all matters placed before the commissioner.

(2) Powers. The commissioner shall have all powers specifically granted to the commissioner, or reasonably implied in order to enable the commissioner to perform the duties imposed by sub. (1).

(3) Rules.

(a) The commissioner shall have rule-making authority under s. 227.11 (2).

(b) The commissioner may, without the consent of the attorney general as required under s. 227.21 (2), adopt standards of the National Association of Insurance Commissioners by incorporating by reference in rules promulgated by the commissioner any materials published, adopted, or approved by the National Association of Insurance Commissioners, without reproducing the standards in full. The standards referred to in this paragraph do not include any model act or model regulation proposed or adopted by the National Association of Insurance Commissioners. Any materials of the National Association of Insurance Commissioners that are incorporated by reference in rules promulgated by the commissioner shall be obtainable from, and are only required to be kept on file at, the office, which shall be stated in any rule containing such an incorporation by reference. Nothing in this paragraph prohibits the commissioner from adopting standards of the National Association of Insurance Commissioners through incorporation by reference in rules in the manner provided under s. 227.21 (2).

(4) Enforcement proceedings.

(a) The commissioner shall issue such prohibitory, mandatory, and other orders as are necessary to secure compliance with the law. An order requiring remedial measures or restitution may include any of the following:

1. Remedial measures or restitution under s. 628.347 (5).

2. Remedial measures or restitution to enforce s. 611.72 or ch. 617, including seizure or sequestering of voting securities of an insurer owned directly or indirectly by a person who has acquired or who is proposing to acquire voting securities in violation of s. 611.72 or ch. 617.

(b) On request of any person who would be affected by an order under par. (a), the commissioner may issue a declaratory order to clarify the person's rights or duties.

(5) Informal hearings and public meetings. The commissioner may at any time hold informal hearings and public meetings, whether or not called hearings, for the purposes of investigation, the ascertainment of public sentiment, or informing the public. No effective rule or order may result from the hearing unless the requirements of ch. 227 are satisfied.

(6) Regulation of risk retention groups and risk purchasing groups.

(a) The commissioner may by rule regulate the condition and conduct of risk retention groups and risk purchasing groups doing business in this state. The commissioner may by order prohibit a risk retention group or risk purchasing group from doing business in this state.

(b) The regulation of risk retention groups and risk purchasing groups under ss. 601.72, 618.41, 618.415, 618.43, 628.02, 628.03 and 628.48 is in addition to any other provisions of chs. 600 to 655 which apply to risk retention groups or risk purchasing groups and does not authorize a risk retention group or risk purchasing group to do an insurance business except as permitted under chs. 600 to 655.

(7) Information and technical assistance to employees and former employees who lose health care coverage. The commissioner shall provide to employees and former employees who lose health care coverage under a group health insurance plan or self-insured health plan information and technical assistance regarding all of the following:

(a) Any rights that the individuals may have under state or federal laws affecting health benefit plans, including laws that relate to portability or continuation coverage or conversion coverage under s. 632.897.

(b) The availability of individual health benefit plans in the area in which the individual resides.

(8) Uniform employee application form.

(a) In this subsection:

1. “Group health benefit plan" has the meaning given in s. 632.745 (9).

2. “Small employer" has the meaning given in s. 635.02 (7).

3. “Small employer insurer" has the meaning given in s. 635.02 (8).

(b) In consultation with the appropriate advisory council or committee designated by the commissioner, the commissioner shall by rule develop a uniform employee application form that a small employer insurer must use when a small employer applies for coverage under a group health benefit plan offered by the small employer insurer. The commissioner shall revise the form at least every 2 years.

(9) Uniform claim processing form.

(a) In this subsection, “health care provider" has the meaning given in s. 146.81 (1) (a) to (p).

(b) If the federal government has not developed by July 1, 2003, a uniform claim processing form that must be used by all health care providers for submitting claims to insurers and by all insurers for processing claims submitted by health care providers, the commissioner shall develop, by December 31, 2003, a uniform claim processing form for that purpose.

(10) Uniform application for individual health insurance policies.

(a) The commissioner shall by rule prescribe uniform questions and the format for applications, which may not exceed 10 pages in length, for individual major medical health insurance policies.

(b) After the effective date of the rules promulgated under par. (a), an insurer may use only the prescribed questions and format for individual major medical health insurance policy applications. The commissioner shall publish a notice in the Wisconsin Administrative Register that states the effective date of the rules promulgated under par. (a).

(c) For purposes of this subsection, an individual major medical health insurance policy includes health coverage provided on an individual basis through an association.

(11) Prelicensing training.

(a) In this subsection:

1. “Instruction" means education, training, instruction, or other experience related to an occupation or profession.

2. “License" means a license, certificate, or permit issued by the commissioner under chs. 601 to 655 for an occupation or profession.

(b) In connection with the issuance of a license, the commissioner shall count any relevant instruction that an applicant for a license has obtained in connection with military service, as defined in s. 111.32 (12g), toward satisfying any requirements for instruction for that license, if the applicant demonstrates to the satisfaction of the commissioner that the instruction obtained by the applicant is substantially equivalent to the instruction required for the license.

History: 1977 c. 339 s. 43; 1979 c. 89, 102, 177; 1983 a. 358 s. 14; 1985 a. 29; 1985 a. 182 s. 57; 1987 a. 247; 1989 a. 187 s. 29; 1989 a. 201, 336; 1991 a. 39; 1993 a. 16; 1995 a. 201; 1997 a. 27, 51, 252; 1999 a. 150 s. 672; 2001 a. 16, 65, 109; 2003 a. 261, 302; 2005 a. 74, 249; 2007 a. 170; 2009 a. 28; 2011 a. 120; 2013 a. 20.

Sub. (4) gives the commissioner the authority to issue not only prohibitory and mandatory orders, but also other orders as are necessary to secure compliance with the law. There is no limitation on the nature of the other orders except that they be necessary to secure compliance with the law. Sub. (4) permitted the order of refunds when the commissioner determined that a company violated the law by selling its contracts without a certificate of authority. Homeward Bound Services, Inc. v. Office of the Insurance Commissioner, 2006 WI App 208, 296 Wis. 2d 481, 724 N.W. 2d 380, 05-1781.

Why process consumer complaints? A case study of the office of the commissioner of insurance of Wisconsin. Whitford, Kimball, 1974 WLR 639.