SB 1494: technical correction; open pit mining - Arizona

SENATE - Werner flr amemd (ref HHS) adopted → Chaptered Version · 3 edits

MINOR

This bill was converted from a floor amendment into an official chaptered version, finalizing its status as law. The core policy content remains focused on prohibiting patient brokering, kickbacks, and steering patients between health plans or sober living homes. The text was cleaned up to remove amendment-specific markup and formatting instructions, while retaining the substantive legal definitions and penalties.

Scope change

The bill's scope and applicability remain unchanged; it continues to regulate insurance producers, healthcare providers, and institutions regarding patient referrals and plan enrollment.

TECHNICAL

Removed floor amendment headers, committee references, and legislative markup instructions (such as strikeout/underline codes) that were only relevant during the drafting and voting process.

Added standard chaptered version metadata, including the official chapter number (Chapter 180), the Governor's approval date (June 19, 2026), and the Secretary of State filing date (June 22, 2026).

Converted the bill text from a 'proposed amendment' format to a final 'enacted statute' format, removing placeholder text and preparing the laws for the official Arizona Revised Statutes code.

Senate Engrossed Version (03/10/2026) → SENATE - Werner flr amemd (ref HHS) adopted · 4 edits

MODERATE

The bill was amended to explicitly prohibit insurance producers from steering patients to or from sober living homes for kickbacks and to remove restrictions on healthcare providers advising patients to change health plans. It also clarifies that discussing network status is permissible for licensed providers while maintaining penalties for fraud. These changes aim to balance anti-kickback protections with provider autonomy and clarify enforcement boundaries.

Scope change

The bill's scope was expanded to explicitly include insurance producers in the prohibition against steering patients to sober living homes, and the restrictions on healthcare providers advising plan changes were removed.

REQUIREMENT

Added an explicit prohibition preventing insurance producers from offering or receiving commissions for referring patients to or from sober living homes.

Removed the restriction that prevented healthcare providers and institutions from steering, advising, or encouraging enrollees to terminate or change health plans.

DEFINITION

Clarified that licensed healthcare providers may discuss whether they are in-network or out-of-network with specific insurance providers or plans.

ENFORCEMENT

Reorganized the statute's subsections and penalties to align with the new text, including the removal of the 'serial offender' doubling penalty clause.

Introduced Version → Senate Engrossed Version (03/10/2026) · 5 edits · Mar 10, 2026

MODERATE

This bill completely replaced a technical correction regarding open-pit mining with a new law prohibiting patient brokering and steering in health insurance. The new legislation bans healthcare providers, insurers, and drug manufacturers from paying for patient referrals or covering insurance premiums for enrollees. It also adds strict penalties for insurance producers who provide false information about eligibility and requires doctors to steer patients based on their health conditions to buy specific insurance plans.

Scope change

The bill's scope shifted entirely from regulating mining infrastructure to regulating health insurance practices and professional conduct.

SCOPE

Removed all text related to open-pit mining, haulage ways, and mine roadways.

Added new laws prohibiting patient brokering, kickbacks, and steering patients to specific insurance plans.

REQUIREMENT

Required healthcare providers to disclose direct financial interests in referred treatments and prohibited advising patients to switch insurance plans unless the provider is a licensed insurance agent.

ENFORCEMENT

Established felony penalties for violations, including fines and doubled penalties for repeat offenders.

DEFINITION

Updated definitions for 'health benefits plan' and 'insurance producer' to include specific exclusions and inclusions related to Medicare and patient brokering.

technical correction; open pit mining

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