§33-25E-2. Definitions.

For the purposes of this article:

(1) “Commissioner” means the Insurance Commissioner of West Virginia.

(2) “Covered services” and “covered materials” means services or materials for which reimbursement from the insurer or vision care plan or vision care discount plan is available under an enrollee’s vision plan or contract, or for which a reimbursement would be available but for the application of contractual limitations such as deductibles, copayments, coinsurance, waiting periods, annual or lifetime maximums, frequency limitations, alternative benefit payments or other limitations.

(3) "Covered person" means an individual enrolled in a health benefit plan or an eligible dependent of that person.

(4) “Enrollee” means any individual enrolled in a health care plan, vision care plan or vision care discount plan provided by a group, employer or other entity that purchases or supplies coverage for a vision care plan or vision care discount plan.

 (5) “Eye care provider” means a licensed doctor of optometry practicing under the authority of article eight, chapter thirty of this code or a licensed medical physician specializing in ophthalmology licensed in West Virginia to practice medicine and surgery under the authority of article three, chapter thirty of this code or osteopathy under article fourteen, chapter thirty of this code.

(6) "Eye care benefits" means coverage for the diagnosis, treatment and management of eye disease and injury.

(7) "Health benefit policy" means any individual or group plan, policy or contract providing medical, hospital or surgical coverage issued, delivered, issued for delivery or renewed in this state by an insurer, after January 1, 2001. It does not include credit accident and sickness, long-term care, Medicare supplement, champus supplement, disability or limited benefits policies.

(8) "Insurer" means any health care corporation, health maintenance organization, accident and sickness insurer, nonprofit hospital service corporation, nonprofit medical service corporation or similar entity.

 (9) “Materials” means ophthalmic devices, including, but not limited to, lenses, devices containing lenses, artificial intraocular lenses, ophthalmic frames and other lens-mounting apparatus, prisms, lens treatments and coatings, contact lenses and prosthetic devices to correct, relieve or treat defects or abnormal conditions of the human eye or its adnexa.

(10) “Services” means the professional work performed by an eye care provider.

(11) “Subcontractor” means any company, group or third party entity, including, but not limited to, agents, servants, partially- or wholly-owned subsidiaries and controlled organizations that is contracted by the insurer, vision care plan or vision care discount plan to supply services or materials for an eye care provider or enrollee to fulfill the benefit plan of an insurer, vision care plan or vision care discount plan.

(12) "Vision care benefits" means benefits for the refraction of the eyes and other optical benefits.

(13) “Vision care discount plan” means a business arrangement or contract offered by an insurer in which a person, in exchange for fees, dues, charges or other consideration, offers access for its plan members to providers of eye care or ancillary services and the right to receive discounts on eye care or ancillary services provided under the discount vision care plan from those providers.

(14) “Vision care plan” means an entity that creates, promotes, sells, provides, advertises or administers an integrated or stand-alone vision benefit plan, or a vision care insurance policy or contract which provides vision benefits to an enrollee pertaining to the provision of covered services or covered materials.