Virginia Law

As used in this chapter:

"Account" means any one of the two accounts created under § 38.2-1702.

"Association" means the Virginia Life, Accident and Sickness Insurance Guaranty Association created under § 38.2-1702.

"Authorized assessment" or the term "authorized" when used in the context of assessments means that a resolution by the board of directors has been passed whereby an assessment will be called immediately or in the future from member insurers for a specified amount. An assessment is authorized when the resolution is passed.

"Benefit plan" means a specific employee, union, or association of natural persons benefit plan.

"Called assessment" or the term "called" when used in the context of assessments means that a notice has been issued by the Association to member insurers requiring that an authorized assessment be paid within the time frame set forth within the notice. An authorized assessment becomes a called assessment when notice is mailed by the Association to member insurers.

"Contractual obligation" means an obligation under a policy or contract or certificate under a group policy or contract, or portion thereof for which coverage is provided under § 38.2-1700.

"Covered contract" or "covered policy" means a policy or contract or portion of a policy or contract for which coverage is provided under § 38.2-1700.

"Extra-contractual claims" shall include, for example, claims relating to bad faith in the payment of claims, punitive damages, or attorney fees and costs.

"Health benefit plan" means any hospital or medical expense policy or certificate, or health maintenance organization subscriber contract or any other similar health contract. "Health benefit plan" does not include:

1. Accident only insurance;

2. Credit insurance;

3. Dental only insurance;

4. Vision only insurance;

5. Medicare Supplement insurance;

6. Benefits for long-term care, home health care, community-based care, or any combination thereof;

7. Disability income insurance;

8. Coverage for on-site medical clinics; or

9. Specified disease, hospital confinement indemnity, or limited benefit health insurance if the types of coverage do not provide coordination of benefits and are provided under separate policies or certificates.

"Impaired insurer" means a member insurer considered by the Commission to be potentially unable to fulfill its contractual obligations.

"Insolvent insurer" means a member insurer that is placed under an order of liquidation by a court of competent jurisdiction with a finding of insolvency.

"Member insurer" means an insurer or health maintenance organization licensed to transact in the Commonwealth any class of insurance or health maintenance organization business to which this chapter applies under § 38.2-1700, including an insurer or health maintenance organization whose license to transact the business of insurance in the Commonwealth has been suspended, revoked, not renewed, or voluntarily withdrawn, but does not include cooperative nonprofit life benefit companies, mutual assessment life, accident and sickness insurance companies, burial societies, fraternal benefit societies, dental and optometric services plans, and health services plans not subject to this chapter pursuant to § 38.2-4213.

"Moody's Corporate Bond Yield Average" means the Monthly Average Corporates as published by Moody's Investors Service, Inc., or any successor thereto.

"Owner" of a policy or contract or "policyholder," "policy owner," and "contract owner" means the person who is identified as the legal owner under the terms of the policy or contract or who is otherwise vested with legal title to the policy or contract through a valid assignment completed in accordance with the terms of the policy or contract and properly recorded as the owner on the books of the member insurer. The terms "owner," "contract owner," "policyholder," and "policy owner" do not include persons with a mere beneficial interest in a policy or contract.

"Plan sponsor" means (i) the employer, in the case of a benefit plan established or maintained by a single employer; (ii) the employee organization in the case of a benefit plan established or maintained by an employee organization; or (iii) in the case of a benefit plan established or maintained by two or more employers or jointly by one or more employers and one or more employee organizations, the association, committee, joint board of trustees, or other similar group of representatives of the parties who establish or maintain the benefit plan.

"Premiums" means amounts or considerations, by whatever name called, received on covered policies or contracts, less any returned premiums, considerations, and deposits and less dividends and experience credits. "Premiums" does not include amounts or considerations received for policies or contracts or for the portions of policies or contracts for which coverage is not provided under subsection C of § 38.2-1700 except that assessable premium shall not be reduced on account of subdivision C 2 of § 38.2-1700 relating to interest limitations and subdivision D 2 of § 38.2-1700 relating to limitations with respect to one individual, one participant, and one policy or contract owner. "Premiums" shall not include (i) premiums for coverage in excess of $5 million on an unallocated annuity contract covered under subdivisions D 2 d, e, and f of § 38.2-1700 or (ii) with respect to multiple nongroup policies of life insurance owned by one owner, whether the policy or contract owner is an individual, firm, corporation, or other person, and whether the persons insured are officers, managers, employees or other persons, premiums for coverage in excess of $5 million with respect to these policies or contracts, regardless of the number of policies or contracts held by the owner.

"Principal place of business" of a plan sponsor or a person other than a natural person means the single state in which the natural persons who establish policy for the direction, control, and coordination of the operations of the entity as a whole primarily exercise that function, determined by the Association in its reasonable judgment by considering the following factors: (i) the state in which the primary executive and administrative headquarters of the entity is located; (ii) the state in which the principal office of the chief executive officer of the entity is located; (iii) the state in which the board of directors (or similar governing person or persons) of the entity conducts the majority of its meetings; (iv) the state from which the management of the overall operations of the entity is directed; and in the case of a benefit plan sponsored by affiliated companies comprising a consolidated corporation, the state in which the holding company or controlling affiliate has its principal place of business as determined using these factors. However, in the case of a plan sponsor, if more than 50 percent of the participants in the benefit plan are employed in a single state, that state shall be deemed to be the principal place of business of the plan sponsor. The principal place of business of a plan sponsor described in clause (iii) of the definition of plan sponsor in this section shall be deemed to be the principal place of business of the association, committee, joint board of trustees, or other similar group of representatives of the parties who establish or maintain the benefit plan that, in lieu of a specific or clear designation of a principal place of business, shall be deemed to be the principal place of business of the employer or employee organization that has the largest investment in the benefit plan in question.

"Receivership court" means the court in the insolvent or impaired insurer's state having jurisdiction over the conservation, rehabilitation, or liquidation of the member insurer.

"Resident" means a person to whom a contractual obligation is owed and who resides in the Commonwealth on the date a member insurer becomes an impaired insurer or a court order is entered that determines a member insurer to be an insolvent insurer. A person may be a resident of only one state, which in the case of a person other than a natural person shall be its principal place of business. Citizens of the United States that are either (i) residents of foreign countries, or (ii) residents of United States possessions, territories, or protectorates that do not have an association similar to the Association, shall be deemed residents of the state of domicile of the member insurer that issued the policies or contracts.

"Structured settlement annuity" means an annuity purchased in order to fund periodic payments for a plaintiff or other claimant in payment for or with respect to personal injury or sickness suffered by the plaintiff or other claimant.

"Supplemental contract" means a written agreement entered into for the distribution of proceeds under a life, health, or annuity policy or contract.

"Unallocated annuity contract" means an annuity contract or group annuity certificate that is not issued to and owned by an individual or a trust created by an individual for the benefit of one or more individuals, except to the extent of any annuity benefits guaranteed to an individual or such a trust by an insurer under the contract or certificate.

1976, c. 330, § 38.1-482.19; 1980, c. 186; 1986, c. 562; 2010, c. 510; 2015, c. 710; 2018, c. 706.