The bill introduces the "Primary Care Preservation Act" as a new chapter in Title 5 of the General Laws. This act authorizes physician practices in Rhode Island to charge a practice support contribution of up to $120 per year for each patient enrolled in a healthcare insurance plan, excluding Medicaid and traditional Medicare. The practice support contribution is defined as a fee for operational services, including reception, referral coordination, medication refill management, medical assistant support, and general operational overhead.

The contribution will be adjusted annually based on the most recently published annual consumer price index by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The act prohibits payors from including clauses in contracts that restrict physician practices from charging this fee directly to patients or from billing or collecting it on behalf of the practices.

Additionally, the legislation allows physician practices to require current payment of the practice support contribution as a condition for scheduling non-emergent appointments for patients enrolled in healthcare insurance or Medicare Advantage plans. However, patients in arrears will still be entitled to receive standard and customary care, including medication refills for 30 days and medical record transfers upon request. The act also provides for the possibility of reimbursement for the practice support contribution by the state or payors, provided that such reimbursements are processed separately from the physician practices' direct billing to patients. The act will take effect upon passage.