Arizona Revised Statutes Title 20. Insurance § 20-841.04. Standing referrals to network health care professionals; definition

A. Any corporation that offers a health benefits plan shall establish a procedure by which a subscriber may apply for a standing referral to a network health care professional. The corporation shall provide a subscriber with a standing referral if all of the following conditions are met:

B. The corporation may limit the number of visits and time period for which a subscriber may receive a standing referral.

C. If the subscriber receives a standing referral or any other referral from the subscriber's primary care physician, that referral remains in effect even if the primary care physician leaves the corporation's network.

D. If the treating health care professional leaves the network or the subscriber ceases to be a covered member, the standing referral expires.

E. This section does not apply to any corporation that holds a certificate of authority to operate either as a dental service corporation or an optometric service corporation.

F. For the purposes of this section, “network health care professional” means a practitioner of a health profession as defined in § 32-3101 who is under written contract with the corporation to provide services in a specialty discipline that is recognized by an American medical specialty board.