Agent licensing and appointment required; exceptions.

(1) With respect to a health maintenance contract, no person shall, unless licensed and appointed as a health insurance agent in accordance with the applicable provisions of the Florida Insurance Code:

(a) Solicit contracts or procure applications; or

(b) Engage or hold himself or herself out as engaging in the business of analyzing or abstracting health maintenance contracts or of counseling or advising or giving opinions to persons relative to such contracts other than as a consulting actuary advising a health maintenance organization or as a salaried bona fide full-time employee so counseling and advising his or her employer relative to coverage for the employer and his or her employees.

(2) All qualifications, disciplinary provisions, licensing and appointment procedures, fees, and related matters contained in the Florida Insurance Code which apply to the licensing and appointment of health insurance agents by insurers shall apply to health maintenance organizations and to persons licensed or appointed by the health maintenance organization as their agents.

(3) An examination, license, or appointment is not required of any regular salaried officer or employee of a health maintenance organization who devotes substantially all of his or her services to activities other than the solicitation of health maintenance organization contracts from the public and who receives no commission or other compensation directly dependent upon the solicitation of such contracts. This exemption does not apply to the solicitation of Medicaid eligible subscribers.

(4) All agents and health maintenance organizations shall comply with and be subject to the applicable provisions of ss. 641.309 and 409.912(3), and all companies and entities appointing agents shall comply with s. 626.451, when marketing for any health maintenance organization licensed pursuant to this part, including those organizations under contract with the Agency for Health Care Administration to provide health care services to Medicaid recipients or any private entity providing health care services to Medicaid recipients pursuant to a prepaid health plan contract with the Agency for Health Care Administration.