Senate Bill 1722 amends Tennessee Code Annotated, specifically Section 56-7-2357, to enhance the rights of licensed medical laboratories in relation to health insurance issuers and managed health insurance issuers. The bill prohibits these issuers from denying a licensed medical laboratory the opportunity to participate as a provider under the same terms as other laboratories. It also ensures that beneficiaries of insurance policies can select their preferred licensed medical laboratory, provided that the laboratory is a participating provider. Additionally, the bill mandates that non-network medical laboratories eligible to participate must be reimbursed at a rate no less than the federal clinical laboratory fee schedule, with certain exceptions.

Furthermore, the bill introduces a new provision allowing managed health insurance issuers to require non-network medical laboratories to meet the same performance metrics as in-network laboratories to qualify for the specified reimbursement rates. This amendment aims to maintain quality standards while ensuring fair access and reimbursement for medical laboratories. The act is set to take effect on July 1, 2026.

Statutes affected:
Introduced: 56-7-2357(b), 56-7-2357