Abstract: | This notice proposes to amend the Public Health Service rules on health maintenance organizations (HMOs) to conform with the 1981 amendments to the HMO statute regarding member protection in the event of insolvency, community rating by class, and primary care within the service area of a non-metropolitan HMO. In addition, this notice proposes: (a) to remove provisions of the rules that are considered unnecessary or burdensome, such as the regulatory specification of contractual provisions, and (b) to increase one of the regulatory limits on copayments to permit HMOs to become more competitive with alternative forms of health insurance. |