South Carolina S 402: Workers' Comp

Bill Text

2025-2026 Bill 402 Text of Previous Version (Feb. 27, 2025) - South Carolina Legislature Online 

South Carolina General Assembly
126th Session, 2025-2026

Bill 402

Indicates Matter Stricken
Indicates New Matter

(Text matches printed bills. Document has been reformatted to meet World Wide Web specifications.)

A bill

TO AMEND THE SOUTH CAROLINA CODE OF LAWS BY ADDING ARTICLE 
24 TO CHAPTER 71, TITLE 38 ENTITLED "VISION CARE PLANS" SO AS TO DEFINE TERMS 
AND REGULATE VISION CARE PLANS.

Be it enacted by the 
General Assembly of the State of South Carolina:

SECTION 1. Chapter 71, Title 38 of the S.C. Code is amended by 
adding:

Article 24

Vision Care Plans

 Section 
38-71-2500. For purposes of this article:

 (1) 
"Vision care provider" means ophthalmologists, optometrists, and opticians 
licensed in this State.

 (2) 
"Vision care insurance plan" means any public or private health plan 
implemented in this State that provides vision care benefits to covered persons 
including payments and reimbursements.

 (3) 
"Insured" means a covered person under any vision care insurance plan.

 Section 
38-71-2510. (A) Vision care 
insurance plans must allow providers the option to opt out of exclusive 
supplier or product agreements without penalties.

 (B) 
If a required product is not available through a contracted supplier, the 
vision care insurance plan must allow the consumer to obtain the product from 
an out-of-network supplier at the same coverage level available to the 
in-network provider.

 (C) 
A vision care insurance plan must provide, between the hours of 8:30 a.m. and 
5:30 p.m., prevailing local time, a phone number through which a vision care 
provider can obtain answers within thirty minutes to questions regarding vision 
care insurance plan coverage, networks, patient benefits, appeals, and other 
contractual or service issues.

 Section 
38-71-2520. A vision care insurance plan must:

 (1) 
disclose all coverage details, including limitations, exclusions, and consumer 
costs, in plain language before enrollment and upon request by the consumer or 
provider;

 (2) 
provide to consumers reasonable examples of actual costs in excess of available 
benefits;

 (3) 
provide real-time information to both consumers and providers regarding 
coverage, benefits, copayments, deductibles, and remaining balances for all 
services and products;

 (4) 
make vision care insurance plan coverage available to all vision care providers 
without limitation or restriction; and

 (5) 
update online provider directories monthly to accurately reflect the current 
network of participating vision care providers, including opticians.

 Section 
38-71-2530. A vision care insurance plan may not:

 (1) 
prohibit, restrict, or penalize in any way a provider from disclosing to any 
covered person any healthcare information that the provider deems appropriate 
within their scope of practice;

 (2) 
proscribe a vision care provider from discussing information regarding the 
total cost for vision care services or from selling a more affordable 
alternative to the insured if a more affordable alternative is available, but a 
vision care insurance plan may proscribe a vision care provider from sharing 
proprietary or confidential information; or

 (3) 
penalize or retaliate against a vision care provider for exercising rights 
provided pursuant to the provisions of this article.

 Section 
38-71-2540. An insured is allowed to purchase lenses and frames separately 
without being required to bundle them under a single coverage limit.

SECTION 2. This act takes effect upon approval 
by the Governor.

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This web page was last updated on February 27, 2025 at 11:48 AM