Tex. Ins. Code § 1501.156 · Subchapter D. GUARANTEED ISSUE OF SMALL EMPLOYER HEALTH BENEFIT PLANS; CONTINUATION OF COVERAGE
EMPLOYEE ENROLLMENT; WAITING PERIOD.
Text — Current through the 89th 2nd Called Legislative Session, 2025
(a) The initial enrollment period under a small employer health benefit plan for employees and dependents must be at least 31 days, with a 31-day open enrollment period provided annually.
(b) A small employer may establish a waiting period not to exceed 90 days from the first day of employment.
(c) A small employer health benefit plan issuer may not deny coverage to a new employee of a covered small employer or the employee's dependents if the issuer receives an application for coverage not later than the 31st day after the date employment begins or on completion of a waiting period established under Subsection (b).
(d) A small employer health benefit plan issuer may deny coverage to a late enrollee until the next annual open enrollment period and may subject the enrollee to a one-year preexisting condition provision as described by Section 1501.102. The period during which the preexisting condition provision applies may not exceed 18 months from the date of the initial application.
Notes and commentary — not statutory text
History
Added by Acts 2003, 78th Leg., ch. 1274, Sec. 3, eff. April 1, 2005.
Source of truth
- Edition
- Current through the 89th 2nd Called Legislative Session, 2025
- Official file
- https://statutes.capitol.texas.gov/Docs/IN/htm/IN.1501.htm
- Text hash
- sha256 4647889d95304ca4310b2f1e48f45f3124a3c9f54d30255e96d8a85eb1d99f42
- Composed by
- compose_tx.py 2026-10-05: the Legislative Council's chapter files read in document order; verify_tx.py's independent reading (lxml DOM walk) agrees character for character
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