2764

LAWS OF MARYLAND

Ch. 515

chiropodists, a chiropractor or chiropractors, a pharmacist or
pharmacists, a dentist or dentists, a duly licensed psychologist
or psychologists, or an optometrist or optometrists, to persons
who become subscribers to such plan under contracts which entitle
each subscriber to certain hospital, medical, chiropodial,
chiropractic, pharmaceutical, dental, psychological, or
optometric care or any of them, shall be governed and regulated
by the provisions of this subtitle, and by no other law relating
to insurance unless such law is referred to under this subtitle,
and no law hereafter enacted shall apply to such corporations,
unless they are expressly designated therein, and specifically
refer to such corporations. NOTWITHSTANDING THIS, THE
COMMISSIONER SHALL HAVE THE GENERAL THOSE POWERS AND DUTIES
NECESSARY TO ENFORCE THE PROVISIONS OF THIS SUBTITLE WITH RESPECT
TO NONPROFIT HEALTH SERVICE PLANS AS ARE GRANTED UNDER §§ 24 AND
25 OF THIS ARTICLE.

356.

(A) No corporation subject to the provisions of this
subtitle shall amend its certificate of incorporation, its
bylaws, the terms and provisions of contracts executed or to be
executed with hospitals, physicians, chiropodists, chiropractors,
pharmacists, dentists, psychologists, or optometrists, and the
terms and provisions of contracts issued, or proposed to be
issued, to subscribers of the plan, until such proposed
amendments have been first submitted to, and approved by, the
Insurance Commissioner, and payment made of the fees provided for
by § 41 of this article; nor shall any change be made in the
table of rates charged, or proposed to be charged, to subscribers
for any form of contract issued or to be issued for hospital,
medical, chiropodial, chiropractic, pharmaceutical, dental,
psychological, or optometric care until such proposed change has
been submitted to, and approved by, the Insurance Commissioner.
Each amendment shall be on file for a waiting period of 45
working days before it becomes effective. When in the
Commissioner's opinion an amendment is not accompanied by the
information needed to support it and the Commissioner does not
have sufficient information to determine whether the filing meets
the requirements of this section, the nonprofit health service
plan shall be required to furnish the needed information and in
this event the waiting period shall be suspended and shall
recommence as of the date the information is furnished. Upon
written application by the nonprofit health service plan, the
Commissioner may authorize an amendment which he has reviewed to
become effective before the expiration of the waiting period or
any extension thereof or at any later date. A filing shall be
deemed approved unless disapproved by the Commissioner within the
waiting period or any extension thereof. The Commissioner shall
disapprove or modify the proposed change or changes if the table
of rates appears by STATISTICAL ANALYSIS AND reasonable
assumptions to be excessive in relation to benefits, or if the
form contains provisions which are unjust, unfair, inequitable,
inadequate, misleading, deceptive, or encourage
misrepresentations of the coverage. In determining whether to